Loaches Online Forum

iv'e just purchased 4 lineolata's, the tank they are housed in is 36x15x15
estimated water volume is 23 imperial galls, ive taken a pic of the tank it's not yet finished in design but would like to know your comments, the filter i'm using has an output of 2500 ltrs per hour at full strength, i have also bought an 802 power head at a date it's needed,

i have S corica, L dispar.
and danio sondhii to include in the setup.
i will be getting more sewelia to add, but is the selection ok.




your opinions could help me on my way.

thanks
mick

Keep an eye on those S. corica, nasty little loachies in my opinion (although very pretty).

The tank is looking good, although I would say you should try and add a few more shady areas for them - more wood and caves etc, maybe a few piles of smaller cobbles too. They are also very active under blue moon lighting, if you have room for this.

If you plan on breeding the Sewellia lineolata, the Devario sondhii will be a major threat to the eggs & fry. I had to remove my Danio sp. hikari from my river tank for this reason....

Emma

thanks emma, i'm planning to get more pebbles but it's that cold up here i don't feel like going to the garden centre, as to the other fish i'm only thinking of movement in the tank, i need to learn abit more about this sp first as ive never had anything like this in my tanks before.

i can see why everyone likes them, they are brilliant to watch their antics.

thanks
mick

just another couple of questions,
how many sewelias would be alright for this size tank?.
and how do i stop the sand and gravel being shifted by the flow of water, ive tried deflecting the current to eradicate this but it's still doing it?.

thanks for any replies

mick

This is one of the beauties of Martin's manifold design - water at the furthest point from the powerhead gets drawn back down and underneath the substrate rather than hitting the glass and creating pockets of random 'whirlpool' turbulence which can disturb the substrate. Of course, even with the manifold, there is a certain amount of disturbance, but it isn't usually quite as major. Careful positioning of piles of cobble stones usually deflect the fiercest part of the flow away from the substrate. Or if the powerhead is positioned low down enough in the first place and is able to take a 'flow diverter' attachment, you can angle it upwards at the most minimal setting you can (so it still flows just a fraction up from the horizontal).

Emma

I was forced to add a gravel patch in one bit of my river tank where I couldn't stop the current digging out sand. Not a bad thing for me because it gives my cheni somewhere to spawn.