# Plecos in rift setups



## olzkool (Jul 30, 2013)

First off, I admittedly know nothing about plecos. My only experience is I have about 30 or so bn plecos scattered through my tanks as diatom controllers, and they are brown algae devouring machines. All are very healthy and not shy in the least. I have never lost a single one.

I decided I would like to keep some fancier plecos in my show tanks upstairs. I have been looking for fancy plecos that can handle higher ph. I run typical malawi numbers for ph, kh, gh. ph is around 8.2. I also run 1tsp of salt and 1 tbls of epsom per 5 gal. Definitely not ideal for South American Plecos. For my first attempt (about a month ago) I added a young 3-4" emporer/flash pleco to my all male peacock/hap tank. So far so good. He rarely comes out, but during spot checks, looks healthy and fat. I may have not handled his acclimation very well, and probably just got lucky. All I did was put him in quarantine tank with equal parameters for a week, then dumped him in. I just got a really nice pair of Green phantoms and would like to give them a shot. Since buying them I have done a lot of reading on the web. After reading countless articles and forums on the subject, I am a little confused. Some say no way can you keep fancy plecos in a rift setup, others say they have done it with no problems. Some just dump them in, others spend over a month introducing them gradually to rift parameters. I want to be successful keeping these guys in my show tank, but don't want to compromise the plecos life in doing so. If it works I would like to get some different ones. If you guys/girls advise against it, I will just keep these guys in the neutral tank they are in. Thanks a lot for your help.


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## scooter31707 (Aug 24, 2012)

IMO, I would quarantine them first and see how they react to the parameters without any other fish to help reduce the stress. If we were talking about Bristlenose plecos then I would say dump them in which is the most common ones use with africans. If all works out then maybe try them in your show tank. You said that they were going into an all male peacock/hap tank, just make sure they are big enough not to get eaten. Just remember what works for someone else, may not work for you.


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## Narwhal72 (Sep 26, 2006)

With the _Panaqolous albivermis _(the emperor/Flash pleco) you want to make sure you incorporate some wood into their diet. These are wood eaters by nature and will not last long term in the aquarium without wood to munch on.

I think your best bet for plecos in a Malawi tank are going to be the omnivorous species. These will tend to fair better on the food they are able to find in the aquarium compared to the specialized wood and algae eaters.

_Hemiancistrus subviridis _(one of the two species of Green Phantom) should do pretty well. Be sure to provide some caves for them to hide in. They prefer wider, flatter caves than the round ones.

I would probably avoid the smaller Peckoltia and Hypancistrus species as they will be intimidated by the larger cichlids and possibly starve in that condition.

If your tank is large enough, some of the Leporacanthicus and Pseudacanthicus species may do well for you. These are carnivorous species and should be fed meaty foods preferably just before or after lights out.

Andy


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## rennsport2011 (Oct 21, 2013)

What kind of rift cichlids are you keeping. It isn't unusual for mbuna to pluck the eyes out of plecos.


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## olzkool (Jul 30, 2013)

Thanks for the advice so far. I guess ill have to get a small piece of wood for the flash pleco. I don't want to put on too big a piece and upset my water in the cichlid tank. The haps/ peacocks aren't that big yet. I was considering putting the phantoms in my all male mbuna 125 but am a little hesitant as I am afraid they will harass him to death. The plecos are at least twice the size of the mbuna at the moment. Any thoughts?


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## olzkool (Jul 30, 2013)

The flash pleco is currently in a all male hap peacock tank with a lot of rocks. The phantoms are currently in their own tank alone


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## Floridagirl (Jan 10, 2008)

Plecos are less than ideal in a Malawi set up. I keep them in a Tanganyikan tank, no problem. I would only consider them in a hap/peacock setting. I've never seen them fare well in a Mbuna tank.


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## Demasoni1 (Apr 9, 2014)

I have had at least on pleco in all my Malawi tanks, no problem. I can say the same for fancy plecos though, as I haven't had any.


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## scooter31707 (Aug 24, 2012)

IMO, I would not try putting them in your mbuna tank. IME, I had no luck putting in plecos with my mbunas. they were dead in 2 days. I luck one time when the pleco was the first one in the tank.


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## olzkool (Jul 30, 2013)

Sounds like they are going in the hap tank. That one is really starting to get overcrowded though do I was hoping to stick them in the mbuna tank. That's a 125 and the largest fish in it at the moment is 4". Most are around 3 or so. The phantom plecos are 5.5 and 6.5 inches


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## olzkool (Jul 30, 2013)

There are about 30 in there though


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## scooter31707 (Aug 24, 2012)

you can try it but i would not recommend it. If you do decide to put him in there, I would rearrange your rock work. I just didnt have luck , my mbunas just kept picking and picking at the plecos. pecking at their eyes and everything. It was not just one mbuna, it was like 10 of them. They ranged from 2-4 inches in size.


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## Ramseydog14 (Dec 31, 2013)

I don't doubt what any of you say,..but I have 3 Mbuna tanks with Plecos in each one and they do fine. I have one BN and one common in my Demasoni/Yellow-Lab tank,....one clown, one rubber-lip, and one blue-eyed (albino) in with my Cyno Hara and Red Zebra,..and one spotted in with my Saulosi.

I didn't research them first for compatibility,..ie water conditions, food etc. and I don't know if these are considered fancy or common, but they all do great and aren't picked on at all. The one albino draws a lot of intereset from the Red Zebras because he is almost their color,..but that's it. The Rubber-Lip actually jousts with my Hara dominant male and usually backs him down. I'm sure this all varies with a lot of factors but that is my experience with them.


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## pfoster74 (May 13, 2012)

if you can add the plecos first wait a few days and add juvenile mbuna they will live together fine for life. if you have an established tank be harder to mix in the new pleco without being picked on


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