Tank proposal

[Nommo]

Hi all,

Firstly, I must say this looks like a very informative site. I hope it will make life easier with all the info that is here.

Now to my question. I have at the moment a 2&1/2 ft tank (which I realise is too small) with 4 small clown loaches in it. I would like to upgrade to a 6 footer & include 6 yoyo loaches in it as well. Would these guys all get along? I also have 4 small bristle mouths & some platys.

I was thinking of setting the filter system up like this one. http://www.loaches.com/articles/a-river-runs-through-it
Is this going to be too stong of a current & if so would it be better to down size or go with a completely different setup.

Thanks for your help.

Dean.

[chefkeith]

A river tank manifold is not a filtration system. Its main purpose is to add water movement.

A manifold also might not work well in large clown loach tanks with sand substrates. Manifolds reduce the flow rates of the pump and give you less control over the water movement. IME, in large tanks you'll want to move the powerhead around to find the most suitable spot for it. A spot that won't disturb and pile up the sand too much, while at the same time keeping the top of the sand clean of detritus.

Another reason why I don't care much for the manifold is because you can get the same result with a canister filter if you set up the filter intake and spray bars at opposite ends of the tank.

For a large tank, you might want to get 2 canister filters, so that the bio filtration is evenly distributed also. One filter usually isn't enough to keep the tank clean and the water quality in the safety zone at all times. Having 2 filters also adds some redundancy, so you won't have to worry as much about filters getting clogged up or breaking down. A combination of powerheads and filters is what most people here have in their large loach tanks.

Loaches love additional water flow, but I'm sure that the other fish will care for it.