How to Care for Aquarium Suckerfish

The sucker fish, or Plecostomus (Pleco) keeps the aquarium clean by eating algae and dead fish. Due to their extraordinary ability to keep a tank clean from algae and scum, they are incredibly popular amongst freshwater fish enthusiasts. The Pleco is a good-natured fish that will grow from a safe purchasing size of about 3-inches long to 2-feet or more if they have the room. Before adding them to your tank, though it is important to know how to care for them.

Things You'll Need

  • Algae wafers
  • Glass aquarium
  • Bubbler or filter
  • Thermometer
  • Heater
  • Aquarium lid
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Instructions

    • 1

      Feed your pleco algae wafers to supplement their scavenging. Cucumber, zucchini, lettuce and green peas make a tasty treat if they are cut incredibly small. In most tanks, no additional food is necessary other than the occasional algae wafer as it has nutrients that your tank might not have. The fish will subsist on the algae in your tank, so you can give him a wafer every day, or once a month.

    • 2

      Time your feeding to coincide with night if you are going to offer additional food. Plecos are nocturnal creatures so they like to eat at night.

    • 3

      Provide good water filtration and a temperature maintained between 72 and 82 degrees.

    • 4

      Use a glass rather than an acrylic aquarium. The sucking activities of a pleco have been known to scratch the plastic on acrylic aquariums.

    • 5

      Avoid other bottom feeders. Pleco will defend their "turf" to the point of violence so do not add other bottom feeders to your tank.

    • 6

      Secure the tank with a lid. Plecos are agile jumpers and could jump out of the tank if there is no lid.