Pleco poop

[Knew tooth is]

I have a 2.5 inch pleco in a 10 gallon tank. The tank has a bubble filter and also a hang-on-the-back filter. The pleco is fed pleco wafers. The amount of pleco poop is enormous. The water parameters don't appear to be affected and the water is clear. Just, there is considerable poop on the gravel substrate and a lot of broken apart pieces of poop on the plants. In fact, there is so much dispersed poop on the lower plants that I'm afraid some of the light is blocked. To remove the poop, I have been syphoning off the gravel top, but this is getting tiring and I really would like to keep nitrates higher for the plants. I read on this forum and on the internet several possible avenues to remove the poop, one being syphoning, my current method. Another mentioned method is snails, which, I read, eat the nutrients contained within the poop. Still another suggested shrimp (which I have never taken care of). Are there additional possibilities? Recommendations? Thanks.

[Guppysnail]

Hi. Increase the filter flow to stop the debris from settling. Pleco are designed for a stronger flow/current. Also not many pleco stay small enough to be in a 10 gallon. It is also not just their size that makes most unsuitable for a 10 gallon. They are one of the top waste producers. I’m sorry but Snails do not eat poop they do eat waste ie leftover food plant debris etc. they are right up there with pleco in poop production so will increase your problem unfortunately.  shrimp eat the bacteria that grows on poop not the poop itself. Change the strength and direction of your flow. Possibly add a second hang on back filter if you can. I have a breeding pair of bristlenose so I totally empathize with your poop plight. 

Edited December 16, 2021 by Guppysnail
Typo

[Robert K]

I myself became aware of how much waste they produce just recently and it turned me off of them. I think shrimp and snails might help break the poop down into smaller parts by picking at it, even if they don't eat it, so I think it might actually help. But like I said, catfish wise it's not gonna be a pleco for me.

[lefty o]

im in the club that believes snails just make another layer of poop.

[Beardedbillygoat1975]

Designing the output and return of the filtration can help as @Guppysnailindicated but really the problem is that unless it is one of the smallest ancistrus species or a paraotocinclus it’s just an inappropriate stocking for that size tank. Small footprint everything is more visible and more evident. Bigger volume of water covers up all sorts of sins. I’ve made this mistake as have others over the years. It’s almost guaranteed at big box and local fish store for them to say get a pleco to “clean” the tank. They are a fish with needs and appropriate care just like the other tank inhabitants - don’t feel bad but at the same time the poop you see is just a sign of the other issues. 

[Knew tooth is]

Thanks y'all.

All good information and perspective, of course. Indeed, I was in the "they'll clean up your tank" scenario. But, it was my action and should have read more prior to jumping in. I did just now increase the filtering rate, in response to your suggestions.

My intention is to purchase a larger volume tank down the road. Hopefully the growth rate of the fella won't be too rapid until the larger tank becomes a reality. Until then, it looks like the safest bet is the repeated skimming of the gravel surface. I've become too attached to the wonderful creature (yes, despite the land-filling poop) to give it up for adoption.

[1moretank]

On 12/16/2021 at 1:00 PM, Knew tooth is said:

Thanks y'all.

All good information and perspective, of course. Indeed, I was in the "they'll clean up your tank" scenario. But, it was my action and should have read more prior to jumping in. I did just now increase the filtering rate, in response to your suggestions.

My intention is to purchase a larger volume tank down the road. Hopefully the growth rate of the fella won't be too rapid until the larger tank becomes a reality. Until then, it looks like the safest bet is the repeated skimming of the gravel surface. I've become too attached to the wonderful creature (yes, despite the land-filling poop) to give it up for adoption.

If you can upgrade to a 20 gallon long, you will double your available water and double your surface space, at a cost that isn't huge.  Good luck.

[RonBFree]

I wonder if a steady diet of the pleco wafers are causing the excessive poop.  I have two or three bristle nose plecos is my community tanks (55, 29 and 20 gallon tanks.  The plecos eat the same food as the fish (flake and pelleted).  I do add some algae wafers a twice a week and blanched zucchini weekly (plecos love their zucchini.  I have mystery snails in each tank and cherry shrimp in two of them

[laritheloud]

This thread reinforced my plans to use a 20 gallon long quarantine tank for my future pleco (and not a 10 gallon). Nearly cycled and ready, lol!!!

[Goldie Blue]

I don't have much to add in the way of help, but I clicked on this because I too have a pleco who poops an unbelievable amount. He is a clown pleco in my 55g and I could not believe how much was in there after his first day or two home with me. When I first brought him home I thought it was nervous poops from stress, but he never...stops...pooping lol. I do as RonBFree mentioned above, and limit my pleco specific foods to once or twice a week, zucchini, and then he can graze off the rest of my tank. 

[Guppysnail]

Plecos have very short digestive tracks from my understanding. They eat so much because it does not all digest well so poor absorption. I know there is a more sciencey way to say that but I hope you can understand what I’m trying to convey. In the recent coop membership presentation the presenter discussed the large amount of food they consume to meet their nutritional requirements. Limiting the amount of food to low to reduce waste may not be so good for them. If you are not yet a member it is so worth it. I have gotten tons of valuable information out of each video. 

 

[Knew tooth is]

Thanks all for the input. The information from Guppysnail is interesting and suggestive: the inability of Plecos to fully absorb the nutrients in their food due to a relatively shorter digestive track, requires greater food intake and resultant increased excrement. Related to RonBFree's point, I think I'll try altering the diet away from daily algae wafers to flakes and pellets plus occasional zucchini and occasional wafer, and see if this change decreases the excrement. 

[Jawjagrrl]

On 12/16/2021 at 3:00 PM, Knew tooth is said:

Hopefully the growth rate of the fella won't be too rapid until the larger tank becomes a reality.

All depends on the species, but for reference I bought a 6" common pleco for my 55 that it shared with a tiger oscar, a sevrum and a trio of silver dollars. Oscar made sure I didn't have a heavily planted tank, and everyone could handle good flow, so I kept it high. Oscar's make a lot of poop too, but the filtration kept up just fine. After about 1 year my pleco was pushing 12". Great fish, even survived a trip onto the floor overnight once. He was barely damp when I found him, but threw him back in on the off chance he was still alive. An hour later it was if nothing ever happened! I'd have another one when I get the 55s up again, maybe a bristlenose. Good luck with yours 🙂

[Knew tooth is]

Forgot to include that the pleco is a clown pleco. Wow- yours growing 6 inches in one year! And the floor episode as well!

[RonBFree]

Dietary guidelines as per Petco's site:

Some species of pleco exclusively eat algae, while others eat plants. Some are more carnivorous, still others mainly eat wood fiber and the small crustaceans who live within the wood. In general, plecos are opportunistic scavengers who will eat anything that comes their way. A well-balanced pleco diet consists of:

• Algae and sinking algae wafers (or pleco wafers)
• Plecos require plenty of fiber. Supplement with raw zucchini, sweet potato, carrots, lettuce, spinach or cucumbers as a treat once or twice a week. Raw vegetables should be anchored near the bottom of the aquarium
• Some plecos require driftwood as part of their diet, supplying them with cellulose and lignin
• More carnivorous species need higher-protein foods such as bloodworms, shrimp pellets, krill or brine shrimp 

[Knew tooth is]

RonBFree- thanks for the dietary guidelines for Plecos (as per Petco's site). I was wondering, regarding the vegetables, do you have a notion as to which vegetables do not or only minimally cloud the water, given that there is not overfeeding? Also, I read that driftwood releases tannins, which alters pH as well as causing a brownish coloring. These effects occur even after extensive boiling of the driftwood, at least from some aquarists' experience. Any ideas on how to eliminate these unwanted effects caused by the driftwood? Again, I guess a prudent approach would be to add a minimal amount of driftwood rather than one of the decorative pieces, but still there could be a problem. Are there substitutes for driftwood that one could use that don't cause these changes? Thanks. 

[LarryTAngler]

For your driftwood question I can help with that. Spider wood. I dont use any other type of drift wood in my tanks at the moment. I have a common pleco and a longfin BN pleco and they both graze on the spider wood and my water doesnt have that orange tinge. Im not against the color, but my vision on my current tanks doesnt include that water discoloration as of yet. Anywho, grab you a piece of spider wood that is moderately sized for your tank and give it a try! I attached a pic so take a look at it. All the wood in my tank is spider wood. No boiling just a good rinse with water, attach some type of weight for a few days to keep it sunk for a few days, and boom tannin free wood in your tank for your plecos to enjoy.

[Knew tooth is]

Dear LarryTAngler-  thanks for the tip. I did some reading on spider wood and it, indeed, appears to fit the bill (or is it, "fit the gill?"). There are a number of different spider woods, "spider wood drift wood", as most are called, depending upon the plant from which the material is obtained. Do you have a particular kind of spider wood that you can recommend? Also, not unexpectedly, there are numerous retail sources for spider wood. Could you recommend any (assuming this information would not violate the policies of the Forum)? 

[LarryTAngler]

Spider wood is actually rendered from the roots of various plants like Azaleas or Rhododendrons to name a couple so to consider it a "driftwood" is kind of trivial as its more like drift roots lol. In my tank the smaller pieces of spider wood on the left were purchased from my local favorite fish store. The larger piece of spiderwood was purchased from Petsmart and yes I was very thorough on the rinsing of that bad boy lol. I will try my hand at tannin rich driftwood in the future when I design a "river" tank. I do like the tannin tinged water, but when I want wood in my tank without the orangeish tinge ill go with spider wood every time.