Plecostamous

Question
I was wondering if/how often I should feed my plecostamous. He's still quite small at like 5-7 inches. I've had him for about a month and his colors seem to be going faint. It's just a common plecostamous that you'd find at Wal-mart if that makes a difference. I've actually never fed him anything but he seems to be doing fine accept his colors.

Answer
Hello Bill,
The common pleco is a vegetarian catfish that grows to lengths of over two feet long. You should be housing him in a 55 gallon tank or larger, otherwise you will have to either upgrade or find another home for him soon.
You can feed your pleco algae wafers bought at the local pet store, and also slices of cucumber, broccoli, and steamed zuchini. Just make sure to remove any fresh veggies no later than four hours after placing them in the tank, to avoid problems with filters, and water quality.
It is important to make sure you are not overfeeding him, but also that he is not starving. If you are not currently feeding him, and there is no visible algae in the tank, it is quite possible he is starving.
Also, paling is normally due to poor water quality. Do you test your water often? Most likely you need to start doing water changes more often, or get a larger tank.
You can sometimes get free water tests at pet stores (such as Petsmart) and you can also buy your own.
You will want to test for at least Ammonia, Nitrites and Nitrates. Ammonia and nitrites should be 0. Nitrates should not go over 20, and if any of these are too high, there is a problem that needs to be fixed asap.