Plecos + Cichlids??

I have a 2 1/2 inch bristle nose in my AC tank, they seem to ignore him!
 
Yeah, I've heard about letting the Pleco get bigger, etc. But that's why I included the sizes :p If my cichlids are 2-2.25", how long should my pleco be to be safe with them? (since 2.5-2.75" pleco wasn't workin out too well)
 
I wouldn't suggest a pleco with mbunas. Get a catfish only when you get a large tank. A 20g is too tight, let alone coping with the bioload. A synodontis would be your best bet.
 
bristlenose plecs seem to generally do ok, equally there are some which have had eyes bitten off by africans.

synodontis multipunctatus would be a great choice for a catfish with those fish.

wait until you get the bigger tank.
 
I have plecos in three of my tanks with cichlids and they have done fine, but I do have a warning. I decided I wanted to get a fancier pleco for my 125, so I got a gold nugget (had to wait almost a month for the lfs to get some in). He was too small to put in my big tank right away so I put him in my 55 with the smaller cichlids I'm trying to grow out. Within four days he was dead and I was out $30. I don't think it was the cichlids since he looked fine the night before. It looked like they'd been nipping at his tailfin though, possibly after he died. As a result I didn't try to return him. I'm now going with cheap plecos unless I find one full grown.
 
When dealing with cichlids. even Africans, I'd tell anyone to get a bristlenosed pleco, (IF THEY HAD TO HAVE A PLECO) b/c of their armor & their temperment.

I say "if they have to have a pleco" b/c plecos (overall) get very large & are a big load on almost any established tank & it's filter at some point if they are growing like they should grow.

I'd make sure that I fed them well, b/c algae in your tank is not nough to sustain them.

ljx
 
I have a non-bristle nose with Africans who has done fine for almost a full year. If I didn't have one cleaning algae out of my 125 would be a constant burden.
 
cichlids w/plecos

I have plecos with my Discus. I kept them w/ Angels too. The key is to get a decent sized pleco to start with. You must also give the pleco a cave or flower pot to live in, he will then defend his small area.

There are only a very few varieties called "common" plecos. There are sOOO many more fancy ones. Some prefer gravel/sand bottom tanks, but most REQUIRE a piece of real driftwood in the tank. Plecos EAT driftwood and will not do well without it. Also, a pleco can starve to death if the fish above him eat all the food on the way down, or if other bottom dwellers are faster than him(cory cats, synos...).

Currently in my discus tank I have:

Green Phantom pleco
Chocolate Zebras 2
Yellow King Tiger
Clown Pleco- baby
Snowball Pleco
Chocolate Pleco(sailfin)
 
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My three plecos don't use caves and I have one tank that is shared by a pleco, two cory cats and south american cichlids. I also have one tank with a pleco and no drift wood. They seem to do fine feeding off the crumbs cichlids leave behind.
 
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