Do snails &/or plecos chew epoxy, PondArmour etc?

[Andyroo]

Do snails &/or plecos (etc) chew on or sealants such as epoxy, PondArmour etc?

Maybe an odd query, but relevant to current in-wall plan. MDF and/or particle board's resins are porcupine candy, and then there's the terrifying silicone boring/striping tendencies of board clown loaches...

 

[neutrino]

I can't definitively or scientifically say. All know is I've had two of my current tanks 30 yrs. and I've had plenty of plecos, including those I can see eating algae off the silicone seams and wood eating royal plecos capable of scratching acrylic and (eventually) reducing driftwood to sawdust, and it hasn't bothered the silicone, which has never leaked and looks the same as ever.

 

[Andyroo]

I'm thinking of the waterproofing/sealing coat to a plywood build, though the clown mention does allow confusion- sorry.
So Royals do gouge acrylic?
A couple of ml into a sealing coat could let water into the timber? Does this happen? Worth fretting over (doubtful, but peace of mind)?

 

[Akeno071]

wood eating royal plecos capable of scratching acrylic

Now I know I can rule out this material for my future tank, royal plecos are something I want to keep at somepoint.

A more expensive ( but attractive ) option might be to get a background and cover the parts you don't want disturbed?

 

[neutrino]

I'm thinking of the waterproofing/sealing coat to a plywood build, though the clown mention does allow confusion- sorry.
So Royals do gouge acrylic?
A couple of ml into a sealing coat could let water into the timber? Does this happen? Worth fretting over (doubtful, but peace of mind)?

Fine scratches in acrylic, don't know whether they can do much beyond that, maybe after long enough? Not speaking from personal experience since all my tanks are glass, but I've seen many with acrylic tanks say something similar. Royals and other wood eaters especially, some say bushynose also. Opinions seem divided on other pleco species and I've seen the suggestion that carnivorous plecos are safe. I couldn't confirm that one way or the other, but carnivorous plecos I've kept still eat some algae or bio-film on surfaces, including glass from time to time, so if that IS true it would have to be due to different dentition imo.

I've seen the claim that a royal pleco will loosen silicone, but I kept royals for years and never saw that in my tanks.