starting a loach tank
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starting a loach tank
i have a 10 gallon tank, and i was wondering if i put a 50 gallon accu clear waterfall filter in it, would that be too powerful for 2 clowns and a polkadot?
How many gallons per hour does that filter move?
A 10 gallon tank is suited to fish that max out between 1 and 2". A school of foot long Clown Loaches would never make it.
A 10 gallon is OK as a quarantine tank for half a dozen small Clowns, but be ready to move them into a larger grow out tank as soon as they are through quarantine. The 10 will stunt their growth if they are in it for any length of time.
Kubotais also get too big. By the time you get a school of them they are better suited to a tank at least 3' long.
Have a look through the species pages and think about every one as a school of at least 5 fish, not just a single. Most Loaches are social, and need tank mates of the same species.
http://www.loaches.com/species-index
A 10 gallon tank is suited to fish that max out between 1 and 2". A school of foot long Clown Loaches would never make it.
A 10 gallon is OK as a quarantine tank for half a dozen small Clowns, but be ready to move them into a larger grow out tank as soon as they are through quarantine. The 10 will stunt their growth if they are in it for any length of time.
Kubotais also get too big. By the time you get a school of them they are better suited to a tank at least 3' long.
Have a look through the species pages and think about every one as a school of at least 5 fish, not just a single. Most Loaches are social, and need tank mates of the same species.
http://www.loaches.com/species-index
38 tanks, 2 ponds over 4000 liters of water to keep clean and fresh.
Happy fish keeping!
Happy fish keeping!
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- Joined: Wed Mar 04, 2009 8:39 pm
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No one means to discourage your interest in loaches, altima, but take a look at the link below and see why we say that a 10g tank is unsuitable:
http://www.loaches.com/articles/information-posters

http://www.loaches.com/articles/information-posters
books. gotta love em!
http://www.Apaperbackexchange.com
http://www.Apaperbackexchange.com
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- Joined: Wed Mar 04, 2009 8:39 pm
A few weeks is fine, that is just long enough to quarantine and treat for internal parasites. Make a set schedule: The fish ought to be moved out as soon as it is clear that they have no disease or parasite problems.
Longer than a month and this is too small a tank for them. I would treat for parasites in this tank, though.
Get the fish in stages, so there are not so many at any one time in quarantine, for example 2-3 Clowns, then another group of 2-3 Clowns, then 5 Kubotai, then the other fish that you may want in the larger tank. Perhaps a school of Congo Tetras or other upper water fish.
Look for a filter that turns over the volume of the tank about 10 times per hour. I am not familiar with the filter you mentioned. Read the label and see how much water it moves.
Have the larger tank ready and waiting, perhaps doing a fishless cycle on it before you get the fish. If this tank is something close to 4' long then they could live in here for a year or so, then move the Clown Loaches up again. The Kubotai Loaches could stay in this size tank.
As seen in that poster, getting Clown Loaches is like getting a horse: They are not just a little fish, they are a commitment.
Longer than a month and this is too small a tank for them. I would treat for parasites in this tank, though.
Get the fish in stages, so there are not so many at any one time in quarantine, for example 2-3 Clowns, then another group of 2-3 Clowns, then 5 Kubotai, then the other fish that you may want in the larger tank. Perhaps a school of Congo Tetras or other upper water fish.
Look for a filter that turns over the volume of the tank about 10 times per hour. I am not familiar with the filter you mentioned. Read the label and see how much water it moves.
Have the larger tank ready and waiting, perhaps doing a fishless cycle on it before you get the fish. If this tank is something close to 4' long then they could live in here for a year or so, then move the Clown Loaches up again. The Kubotai Loaches could stay in this size tank.
As seen in that poster, getting Clown Loaches is like getting a horse: They are not just a little fish, they are a commitment.
38 tanks, 2 ponds over 4000 liters of water to keep clean and fresh.
Happy fish keeping!
Happy fish keeping!
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