# Best filter and tankmates for breeding plecos?



## FistSlaminElite (Sep 2, 2015)

Well I have a 20h that I plan to breed my albino bristlenose in,its heavily planted and has alot of wood, well I have a HOB filter currently installed and I know I need to replace it, I'm thinking a canister? Finnex makes a nice smaller one that I'm debating getting. And since its my only big-ish(I know its small but in my living situation its the biggest I can have) tank I'm hoping to have some upper/Mid water movement and I was thinking that since baby plecos are armored than I can keep small tankmates. I currently have platys in there but I'm debating trading them out, they don't fit the feeling of the tank. My lfs has a TON of different nano rasboras, I liked the look of those. Or maybe some blue eye forktails, those are always pretty. One last thing,(Its a huge strike against Te platys and a narrower of possible choices) my local tap water is about 6.0 ph, I can buy stuff to buffer ph but simply getting lower ph fish would be much prefered.


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## Summer (Oct 3, 2011)

Hello, I dont think a school of small tetras would bug the plecos at all. Any small fish that wouldnt be able to eat the eggs, or fry should be perfectly fine. As far as the ph, most fish can be acclimated to any ph....look up drip acclimation on here to learn how to do it. I have very high ph, and have succesfully kept fish who would live in a much lower ph habitat if in the wild. As far as filter for a 20, you could go any route, really. Even a sponge filter would be perfectly acceptable in that size of tank.


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## FistSlaminElite (Sep 2, 2015)

Summer said:


> Hello, I dont think a school of small tetras would bug the plecos at all. Any small fish that wouldnt be able to eat the eggs, or fry should be perfectly fine. As far as the ph, most fish can be acclimated to any ph....look up drip acclimation on here to learn how to do it. I have very high ph, and have succesfully kept fish who would live in a much lower ph habitat if in the wild. As far as filter for a 20, you could go any route, really. Even a sponge filter would be perfectly acceptable in that size of tank.


So I know of the drip method and am definitely willing to put the little extra time, i would love to keep my king betta in there but i know bettas are predatory and a bigger one isn't a great idea as for baby wise.


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## susankat (Nov 15, 2008)

I use sponge filters in all my breeder tanks and they work great. As for tank mates, make sure you keep something with the same type of diet as the bns. Makes it a lot easier.


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## FistSlaminElite (Sep 2, 2015)

So I've narrowed it down to either some form of nano rasbora or Gertrude rainbows/Blueeye forktails,(any nano fish is also a possibility, I just feel platys are too destructive and will tear at the algae wafers before the fry can get to it) also I will be keeping shrimp in the tank .


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