I have a regular pleco right now because I have heard and read that they are good algae eaters and I have quite an algae problem...but he doesnt eat much of it at all!! Even over night, hes eating just enough scraps and stuff to stay alive i guess but there is no change in the amount of algae except im getting more of it. Do they stop eating it as they mature?? what would be a better algae eater in a community freshwater tank?? thx.

Mabey some oto cats they ar little fish that will clean your tank very well and unlike plecos they dont stay hidden all day and the don't grow very big and if you want to keep any of them you do have to feed the algae waffers and of course some fresh veggies. I've had great success with both, in smaller aqarium that dosen't fit plecos I put a school of Otocinclus Catfish AKA oto cats that cleaned every centimeter and the same thing with plecos in a big aqarium. But like I said keep in mind you do have to feed them other foods, as like any other fish they need a balanced and deverse diet. Here is a link to a site that has great info about the oto cats www.otocinclus.com - Home of the Dwarf Suckermouth Catfishes and thier is this one about feeding plecos and other bottom feeders Feeding Plecos, Part 1 • Types of food • Catfishology • Shane's World • PlanetCatfish

But then again you could also try a siamese algae eater I've never used them but have heard wonders about him but to find one for sale can be tricky as thier are may look-alikes on the market. Here are some great links I found that will help you on you search
Siamese Algae Eater (SAE) - Crossocheilus siamensis
Here is the site I think will help you most
Aquarium Algae Eaters

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Ohh and one more thing what type of algae is it ????????????????

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The thing about otos and plecos, they don't eat all kinds of algae. Otos will eat brown algae most of the time. Common plecos don't eat a lot after they reach a certain size and also like to be supplements with shrimp pellets and algae tabs. Oto's and bristlenose plecos are a good combination to eat various algaes but there is some algae you will have to deal with yourself by manually removing it. It is also best to find the cause of so much algae.

Does your tank get any sunlight? Do you have live plants in the tank? What type of lights do you have? what are you water parameters?

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