Buying plecos at smaller sizes (1")?

[Yams]

I'm new here and new to plecos. I've been doing lots of research on the fancy types (L134, L46, L260, L066) as my goal is to set up my 20 gallon long tank for breeding a single type of small fancy pleco, such as the ones I just mentioned. Right now, I'm at the stage where I just need pick the pleco I want to keep the most, and get the tank ready for them.

One thing, though, that I haven't been able to find answers online for, is the ideal purchase size of fancy plecos. I've found a few people in my area selling plecos at all sorts of sizes, but I was wondering if it would be a good idea to buy them at a small size (1 inch) in order to save a bit of money. However, my concern is that the smallest ones may just be too delicate.

I'm fine with waiting months/years for them to grow up to a size where they can reproduce, but the last thing I want is to have purchased a group of 1-inch zebra plecos or whatever and then they die immediately. So, would it be better for me to spend extra money for plecos that are 2" or more, or would it be better to save money and buy them at 1"?

Available locally at the time that I'm writing this are:
L260 at 1" size, $15 each;
L066 at 2" size, $30 each;
L134 at 2.5" size, $40 each;
L046 at 1" size, $110 each;
L046 at 2" size, $195 each.
Those prices are all in Canadian dollars. These fish are all of the ones on my wishlist, and I think the prices (and whichever one is the best deal) may be the factor that decides which one I will get. What do you guys think? Or are none of those good deals, and you think I should wait!?

[gehandylan]

Given that you are new to plecos, my advice to you is to stay away from L46 given their price. Any of the other 3 should be fine but my preference is L134s or L333s as some 260s don't stay nice when they grow into adulthood. I know the L134 seller and its good stock and you cannot go wrong at that price. Try buying them closer to 2 inches as the risk to you is much less. I live in Toronto and would be happy to help you pick a decent pleco group.

[TwoTankAmin]

As someone who has worked with a few plecos for a number of years, I have developed some rules I follow in terms of the size at which I will sell offspring. I use TL when sizing.

1. I will not ship plecos that are not at least 1.5 inches and over 6 months old.
2. I will allow local buyers to pick them up in person at 1.25 inch.
3. I will not sell anything smaller than 1.25 inch. However, sometimes I will give them away as a bonus because a buyer as gotten other things, but only for pick up.

The biggest issue with selling baby fish is that one cannot purge them prior to shipping. They will often not withstand taking more than a day to arrive. It is also more difficult to have any idea how any individual baby fish might develop.

One last observation here. A single 20 long will not be sufficient for spawning if you are successful. Once most plecos are in spawning mode they will spawn for some time. They will often spawn at about 30 day intervals. if you get a mere 15 fry per spawn and you were to use the above guidelenes, at the end of your first three months of success you would have close to 50 fish in that 20 L. And this assumes you are working with a pair or trio.

I use 20Ls mostly for growout. I have bigger tanks for breeding bottom dwellers- 30B, 33L, 40B, 45L, 50 and 75. Footprint is important. A 4x1 ft. 33 long or 55 gal. has a 4 sq.ft. area. A 30B, 40B or 50 at 3x1.5 ft. has a 4.5 sq. ft. area. The longer tanks are actually smaller in terms of footprint even when they hold more water. It is a lot easier to change water than to stretch a tank to make a greater area when stocking becomes a short term issue.

[Yams]

Thanks for your replies, I think I'll go with the L134.

The tank size concern is good to know... I have this 20gallon long already with the equipment, since I used it for some other fish, so I was hoping I could use it for an adult group of plecos and it'd be fine. Well, maybe I should get a 40 breeder for the plecos and use this 20 long for somethin' else!! Hah. I guess that's how people end up with 50 aquariums in their house.

Thanks again, the info you guys provided is very helpful

[Jobro]

I would also go with a bigger tank.

And just like TTA, I am no friend of buying or selling small plecos. I would stay away from plecos with only 1" TL. 1.5" seems to be a reasonable size to me. Anything smaller might end up starving in their new homes if the new keeper is not familiar with raising pleco fry.

[Phreeflow]

Given that you are new to plecos, my advice to you is to stay away from L46 given their price. Any of the other 3 should be fine but my preference is L134s or L333s as some 260s don't stay nice when they grow into adulthood. I know the L134 seller and its good stock and you cannot go wrong at that price. Try buying them closer to 2 inches as the risk to you is much less. I live in Toronto and would be happy to help you pick a decent pleco group.

I've kept all of the above except for L134 and my experience has been different. The L260 looked nicer into adulthood but the L333 got gray and unattractive. Like @gehandylan said, however, I think the L134 would be the best bet. All those prices are fair but that's a great deal for L134 at that size and they are nice fish. I'd also stay away from anything under 1.25"

[bekateen]

I agree with all the above. My thoughts are (1) stay away from babies <1.5" TL, (2) L134 at $40 when 2" is a great price, and (3) I'd buy a group of 8 to start with, and plan to move up to at least a 40 gallon breeder or 40 gallon long tank as they grow.

Good luck, Eric