Loaches Online Forum

Okay, I haven't been around in awhile, though I have been known to "lurk" a time or 2 because I have been way too busy with my father and his illness. He passed away in Feb. and although it is extremely distressing to lose my dad, the upside is that he was independent right up until his last hospitilization and although the spreading cancer did cause some moments of worry (it was in his brain, lungs and at the end liver and spleen), he had a relatively content life and remained able to take care of himself with some close watching by me. I know it may sound horrible to some, but we were all pleased to see the cancer take him quickly and painlessly when it did decide to take him rather than making him miserable for months on end. He was able to come home to his home with me as his hospice caregiver and gently went to sleep never to wake in less than 48 hours. Anyway....I digress
Some of you may remember I was having problems keeping clown loaches, possibly due to the internal parasite issue so common. Last Sept. we tried AGAIN and only 1 of the 3 smaller clowns we bought made it, then hubby decided to try some slightly more expensive but larger clowns. The group of 4 has done great, although they ended up staying Q'd in my 20 gal long for a longer time frame than originally planned due to the issues with my father.
They are now in my larger tank, footprint of 36X18 and still seem quite happy, active and clicking away when they get their favorite foods . The next tank purchase for around here will be the final tank they will need, and it will be centered around what will hopefully be some beautiful tankbusters! So, what size will I ultimately need to house 4 full grown clown loaches? I know the profile suggests 75 gal for a group of small loaches, I am a few gallons shy of that right now. 1 of the loaches is only 2 inches, the other 3 are around 3". Maybe someone can come up with some recommendations for tank sizes for groups of 2-3-4-5-6 etc because I can't picture even our 90 gal being suitable for these guys at about 6" each! Once I know what the final tank size should be I will start keeping my eyes out for a deal on that size, and then figure out where I will put it. There has already been talk of making the garage suitable for some of our tanks as we seem to keep expanding!

Hi Kimmers318,

As I was browsing around the forum, I read your reflections on your father's passing, and I was deeply touched. May you find peace and comfort during this time.
As for your question about tank size, the only advice I can give is to direct you to this link which states that the minimum tank footprint for adult clowns should be 6ftx2ftx2ft:
http://www.loaches.com/articles/an-intr ... ping-botia

Here is another interesting article about Martin Thoene's clown loach tank:

http://www.loaches.com/articles/my-clown-loach-aquarium

Thanks for the reply and I will start looking for a 6x2x2 tank if not larger this fall. With spring sports and summer around the corner it will as usual be busy around here. The plan for the summer is to remove sliding glass doors we have in the kitchen and replace with a wall and smaller window. This will open up an 8foot area that will make the perfect setting for a 6 foot tank with cabinets on either side for storage since our fishy supplies are currently stashed all over the house and we frequently here "where is..". That will make these guys the center of the busiest room in the house which should not be a problem for them as they are not shy at all. They will probably look pretty silly in such a large tank for a few years, but that is okay.
As for the other tips, decor etc. that is the way the tank is set up now.....bogwood, 2 large cave structures with silk plants scattered around and a large open swimming area in the front.

Hi Kimmers, sorry to hear of your loss

I would agree with Loachmom and say 6'x2'x2' or as big as you can manage and afford. I was going to go to 6'x2'x2' myself but thought I would go with the maximum size I can which is going to be 7'x2'x30", if it was for other fish I may have gone smaller but its for my Clowns so the bigger the better and my large Barbs and Rasboras will enjoy it to

Kimmers,

We also have a large dining/kitchen area, and that's where our loach tank is located. Since I am home all day with the kids, it is our busiest room, too. We really like having the fish so close by. When we are eating at the table, it is not uncommon to find all the fish congregated at the end of the tank watching us! Our tank is a 55gal right now, but we are working towards getting something much larger, and it will be going in the same spot.

Both hubby and I can't wait to have a large tank with these guys as the center of attention. When I first got into the hobby and saw clowns I wanted them but until recently had NO SUCCESS keeping them so we are really looking forward to watching these guys grow!
Thanks for the tips on the tank!

Just for the fun of it, thought I would add a couple of pics I nabbed yesterday when they were having a feeding frenzy on frozen (thawed) krill....man they love that stuff!

Beautiful clowns, Kimmers.

Your tank looks like a nice place for loaches. I also noticed that you had a rummynose tetra. I first saw a school of those 2 weeks ago at a lfs. They were so beautiful; I could have stood in front of that tank for a long time watching them.
I'm not sure that they would like my higher pH water, though. Oh well....

That poor rummynose is a loner. A mistaken purchase when we first started out with aquariums and didn't know any better. I let my daughters pick out fish and we ended up with 1 rummynose, 2 dyed white skirt tetras, and a pregnant platy! He seems happy on his own though.....always has that bright red nose and just runs around hangin with whomever will have him