cwb141

So, I have a 30 gallon tank with 17 tetras, 4 kuhli loaches, 1 rainbow shark, and 1 common pleco. Do I need the pleco? A little crowded. I plan on buying a larger tank (55+) before January.

harpua2002

No, you don't need a pleco.

Lucy

Hi welcome to FishLore
You really don't need the pleco. In fact with the fish you have you'll need a much bigger tank than a 55g. From what I read, your rainbows will start to get aggressive with each other and smaller fish.

Best of luck and post some pics when you get a chance!

Meenu

welcome to fl. I have a 30g, and no pleco (although I do have 6 cory cats)

flyin-lowe

The common pleco will out grow that tank quickly anyway. They get VERY large.

Jaysee

You don't need THAT pleco, though a bn or clown pleco would make a nice addition, as they both stay under 6 inches.

If you don't see your kuhlis as much as you'd like, picking up a couple more will probably help. They don't "school", but need to be in a group to feel comfortable enough to come out on a regular basis.

Lucy

What happened to the other 3 rainbow sharks that were edited out of the first post?

cwb141

The rainbows I had before were black white-fin rainbows and I bought them because I thought they were cool looking. They were doing fine together and with the other fish, but I decided to reduce that down to just one. I returned them all and switched to a normal rainbow. I took the pleco to my LFS and got some credit for him. I don't plan on adding anymore fish now

Godfather6reat

the rainbow will get full grown in about a year they get about 6 in and it will be come agressive and will eat the tetreas if they fit in his mouth.

i have been told by the guy at several different LFS's that plecos cuase more waste than they eat. i disagree but they are diffenetly not a neccesity

cwb141

If the size of the mouth is in direct relation to the length of the fish then I don't see the rainbow shark being able to fit the tetras in its mouth. All the fish I have max out at blood worms when fitting stuff in their mouths.

Pleco was a returned. Got a bunch of Java Moss in exchange.

I rearranged the plants/wood/rock and now they're hiding out in fron't of the tank and swimming around much more

Hello. I've merged your posts to save some space. There is an "Edit" key at the bottom of every post for corrections or additional thoughts if there is no response between your posts.
Thanks! Have a good day today!
Ken

cwb141

You were totally right. I thought having 4 would cause them to be active but I hardly ever saw them. I bought 2 more last week and they're starting to explore the tank during the day now. Although, I changed my feeding to 3 times a day, but less food overall, so they may be hungry.

I'd also like to point out that I know the rainbow shark will eventually be too large for the tetras but I'm hoping to have a 75g to move it into in a couple months.

Jaysee

If you cut the feeding to once a day you'll see them even more. Often times scavenging fish become sedintary from being overfed. There are worms and stuff living in the sand that they snack on when hungry. Hungry fish forage while well fed fish wait for their next meal. Feeding less is a great way to see more actvity from your fish, and a side bonus will be a healthier tank.

Butterfly

I find that dropping their food in the same place out front will get them used to coming out to eat. Being in the same place helps them find it easier.
Carol

cwb141

I drop the pellets in the same place but my filter has two exit points (not sure of term) and I have them angled to create a current that circles the tank so it's hard to drop the flakes in any one point.