Creating Kuhlii paradise

[bevans]

Wendie said:

Here's a shot of my kuhli tank when I first set it up. I added a few more kuhlis and moved the log in the back area to another spot and added a mid size rock with openings which they love. They go thru the entry ways, and under it. The java moss has grown to fill almost the entire tank now and they apparently love swimming under and thru it as you can see them actively moving around most of the time.

That's a really nice tank, Wendi! Thanks for posting the pics-my son really enjoyed them.

The same tank after about a year.

That java moss really grows, doesn't it! I may have to look into getting some of that. Guppy fry would definitely like it as well.

Black kuhlis in another tank. They live in the rear portion of the tank under the rocks. They usually come out when the food does.

THAT is an awesome picture! My son said, "Look! Black kuhliis and fish loaches!" My black kuhlis sound like they're more outgoing than yours-they tend to come out more than the striped ones do a lot of the time.

They remained in a 5 gallon tank for about 6 months and seemed to be quite happy eating well, exploring, and becoming gravid.

From what people have been saying, I'm surprised they did so well in such a small tank. It's good to know in the event of an emergency. They certainly look fat and sassy!

[lstaunt]

You said they were by themselves, IIRC. My goldfish tank is a 29gal., but it's only 30" long, so do you have some sort of 30 long tank, and if so, where did you get it?

The filter thing is a bit of a mystery to me. The snooty LFS sells all sorts, including some big canister ones, but they are big into reef tanks, etc. I thought about replacing the Aquatech filter on my big tank with a Penguin, but haven't decided. Perhaps a Fluval would be better-people can feel free to chime in about their experiences! I don't remember seeing sponge filters there, but I might not have been looking in the right place.

The two smaller kuhliis seem to acclimating well. The larger of the two is actually out and about quite a bit-ought to call him Fearless. He sat quiet while my big Mollie girl pecked the gravel all around him yesterday. She didn't offer to hurt him. I see the littlest guy some-hope he fattens up soon. He looks like the runt that got pushed away from the trough. I don't think he has skinny though.

Hi, Brenda,

You remember correctly. The Kuhlis have the tank to themselves. I originally had regular kuhlis, then added a few black kuhlis. The black kuhlis were larger than the regular kuhlis at the time and the smallest regular kuhlis seemed much less outgoing after I added the larger black kuhlis. The behavior of the largest regular kuhlis, who were about the same size as the black kuhlis, remained unchanged.

The black kuhlis didn't pick on the smaller regular kuhlis, they were just more rambunctious in general and more excited about their food than the regular kuhlis. I believe that intimidated the smaller ones. I moved the black kuhlis to their own tank and the small, regular kuhlis returned to their previous activity level. Now that everybody is the same size, I could probably try mixing them again, but they're awfully hard to catch and I'd either have to get a bigger tank or split them into multiple tanks, so I've left well enough alone.

I've not tried any other fish with either type of kuhli for fear the kuhlis would again be less outgoing than when they're on their own. From reading the postings on this forum, though, it certainly sounds like other people successfully mix them with other fish. The kuhlis were my first loaches and are still my favorite, so I think I fuss & fret over them a bit more than I need to.

The 36" long 30 gallon is one of the standard sizes made by All-Glass Aquariums. I got it at either Petco or Petsmart and recently saw one at my local Petco. If you go to the All-Glass website (all-glass.com), you can find a listing of all the sizes they make. Seems like most stores I've been to carry this brand, so they might be able to get a 30 gallon for you if they don't have it in stock.

The filter thing can definitely be perplexing. I tried many different brands and styles before settling on the ones I use. I almost never see sponge filters in the local shops. I've ordered mine from online stores like Drs. Foster & Smith, Big Al's, That Pet Place, etc. For my kuhli tank, I like the big Azoo Oxygen Plus sponge filter I got from Fosters & Smith. I also get the Fluval internal filters from them at a much better price than I can get them at the local shops and chains. No direct experience with canister filters, so can't offer any advice on those. For what it's worth, I've also found I can sometimes get significantly better prices from the Petco & Petsmart websites, even with shipping included, than I can get at the actual stores down the road. Just depends on the item.

Good luck figuring it all out , and I hope your kuhlis get nice and fat and that you find your albinos.
Lou

[bevans]

Istaunt wrote:

The black kuhlis didn't pick on the smaller regular kuhlis, they were just more rambunctious in general and more excited about their food than the regular kuhlis. I believe that intimidated the smaller ones.

I don't seem to have that problem. My black ones are bigger and livelier, it's true, but the stripey guys seem to like them just fine. I find stripey and black together about as often as stripey and stripey.

From reading the postings on this forum, though, it certainly sounds like other people successfully mix them with other fish.

Nobody picks at them in my tank (the mixed livebearers and the RTS), but it's hard to get food down to them specifically. Bloodworms never get down to their level. I fare better with the algae wafers, but the livebearers also like to go for those, so I try to put one or two under the plants where they don't go as often. The tiniest guy got one all to himself the other day and he was hilarious-turned completely over and was eating it upside down!

The 36" long 30 gallon is one of the standard sizes made by All-Glass Aquariums. I got it at either Petco or Petsmart and recently saw one at my local Petco. If you go to the All-Glass website (all-glass.com), you can find a listing of all the sizes they make. Seems like most stores I've been to carry this brand, so they might be able to get a 30 gallon for you if they don't have it in stock.

Thanks for that link, Lou! I went to the website and we have at least four dealers in my area, so if I want to go that route, I'll probably be able to. I have noticed that people on the forum seem to think there's a definite difference in glass tanks, which sort of intrigues me-I've always just bought at the best price, regardless of brand.

I almost never see sponge filters in the local shops. I've ordered mine from online stores like Drs. Foster & Smith, Big Al's, That Pet Place, etc. For my kuhli tank, I like the big Azoo Oxygen Plus sponge filter I got from Fosters & Smith.

I've got six dogs, so I've spent some time on Fosters and Smith before, but never checked out the aquarium section. That was actually a pleasant surprise! Thanks for the heads-up there as well-I'm definitely going to order a couple of sponge filters for my fry tanks and am thinking about putting one in the 55 in the dead corner. Alternatively, I suppose I could get an external filter for that side as well.

For what it's worth, I've also found I can sometimes get significantly better prices from the Petco & Petsmart websites, even with shipping included, than I can get at the actual stores down the road. Just depends on the item.

That seems very strange to me, but I'll keep it in mind!

Good luck figuring it all out , and I hope your kuhlis get nice and fat and that you find your albinos.

Thanks, Lou! Believe me, if I find them, you guys will be the first to know.

[bevans]

Update on improving the 55 gallon:

Went to the snooty LFS store yesterday, and apparently I talked enough of the right talk that I'm now worthy of notice... The fact that I was genuinely appreciative of the owner's new $2400 + computer controlled blue/white LED light for his reef tank probably helped. That's fish fanaticism on a level way beyond what I'm up to-the thing programs for lunar cycles, depth of water and even cloud cover! He waxed poetic upon how you could pick various cloud incidents and program them in. Never keep coral-that's my New Year's resolution. Those guys are pretty intense about it and propogate a bunch, which is kind of cool.

So in any event, I told him I wanted a water feature for my kuhlis to play in. So he recommended a Surge 500 power head, and to put it down in the lower level of the tank, so it wouldn't bother the livebearers so much. So I installed it about 2" above the sand with a run of big smooth pebbles beneath and in front of it-needless to say, it was blowing sand everywhere.

Just put it in last night. I don't know if I'll ever see the surfing behavior others have described from the kuhlis, though the RTS actually gave it a go for a little while... The male sailfin mollie was also intrigued-until he got caught broadside in the current with his sail up and got blown halfway across the tank! The other fish seem to be cautiously curious at this point.

But when I got up this morning and the tank lights were still out, I could see all five of the bigger kuhlis zipping around. One was doing the corner dance. And the tiny guy seemed happy as well, in his lair under the plants. So maybe they do like that current across the bottom-I don't often see all of them at once.

[Wendie]

The close up corner shot of the kuhlis feeding was taken in the 5 gallon tank at about the 6 month period before I moved them all into the other tank.

Several of mine are very active during the daylight hours too. I can see them out front in the clear area most of the daytime.

[bevans]

Wendi wrote:

The close up corner shot of the kuhlis feeding was taken in the 5 gallon tank at about the 6 month period before I moved them all into the other tank.

Several of mine are very active during the daylight hours too. I can see them out front in the clear area most of the daytime.

It seems to be an individual thing for mine. I used to not see the striped kuhlis because they were in the ruins with the black kuhlis but I think the two black kuhlis have claimed the Foundered Ruins of Numenor for themselves. The striped kuhlis seem to have claimed a particular clump of plants (not the thickest, strangely enough) on one side of the tank-they are almost always in it or near it now. The tiniest striped kuhli hangs out by himself on the other side of the tank where the plants are thickest and the baby fish go. This seems a bit territorial to me, since everyone says they like to be in groups, but hey, no complaints. At least I can see them now.

[Wendie]

I find that half my regular kuhlis stay in one mountain cave by themselves while another group lives in another cave and a third group lives in a log. The black kuhlis like living with the first group and the log group but don't seem to live with the second group. Go figure.