Loaches Online Forum

Setting up a new 75g planted tank for my Botia Kubotai with a sand substrate and I'm wondering what would be a good choice of fish to help me keep the sand stirred and gas free. I was considering kuhlis, horsefaced, dojo, and zippers for the task. I'm concerned my Synodontis Eupterus will push around kuhlis or zippers though. Of these 4 which is the best choice to go with Eupterus / Kubotais, or is there some other fish I should consider?

I've noticed that Horseface loaches are very good at stirring up the sand. Mine loves to swim around in it. It will poke its head out most of time and only very rarely come out completely, but it usually dives right back into the sand. I imagine if you get a group of Horsefaces, they will do what you need them to Just be prepared to never get them out of that tank again!

With keeping a Synodontis eupterus, i wouldn't imagine the life of a Horsefaced loach pleasant. As you would know, the Synodontis eupterus are nocturnal feeders and *stroke* predatory in the night. Same applies with the Horsefaced regarding their favorite time of feeding.

I agree that the Horsefaced loaches are good with stirring up the substrate but i fear that this would cause the Synodontis eupterus into thinking that food is moving around in the substrate. Problems i foresee.

Why not just observe the tank and stir the substrate every week with a stick. Simple task that only takes 5 mins at least.

alternatively get some malaysian trumpet snails, they will breed like nobodies business and live within the substrate moving it about and eating detritus. you can usually get them free at your lfs if they have some as 'pests'

Graeme Robson wrote:Why not just observe the tank and stir the substrate every week with a stick. Simple task that only takes 5 mins at least.

Going to do this regardless of whether I have a sand stirring fish since better safe than sorry. I actually find burrowing fish fascinating, sand stirring is just a nice side benefit. Since you think the Syno will pick on a horseface what about kuhlis? Will they register as catfish to him? He territorily chases/harasses anything that looks like a catfish and ignores all other fish currently.

I wouldn't recommend Pangio's aka Kuhli's. Nothing other than removing the syno is my preference before introducing either a Horsefaced or Kuhli.

Ooooops I was wrong about the Synodontis, I forgot what they were. I have no clue how aggressive they really are, but I've heard some things here and there. If it's predatory, a horseface might be a bad idea, since they definitely stir up the sand. I would say, if you still want a sand stirrer, and want to hang on to that Synodontis, a loach that stirs sand and is semi-aggressive might be best. Problem is, most sand-divers aren't semi-aggressive.

But since I'm not an expert on catfish like that, I'd go with the advice above my post.

My 4 smallish kuhli's disappeared mysteriously over 3-4 weeks, and my two Synodontis eupterus were the main (and really only possible) suspects. They have been moved to a larger tanks where they share with some large redfin sharks, one large yoyo (not my tank so I can't take responsibility for it being lonely) and three common plecos - all of a sudden they are quite timid!!! So I would lose the Syno's - don't a lot of other Botias like to dig in the sand so you could pick a species based on that? Yoyo's are written up as 'excellent diggers', but I don't know if that means that they stir the sand, exactly. Martin?

I've not found b. kubotai, b. striata or b. almorhae to be really good sand stirrers. They typically just dig out a hole somewhere under a piece of driftwood/decor and hang out there. I've never observed any "random" stirring/digging around the tank.

I don't know how deep your sand is but I never have the airbubble/gas problem in my tanks
my p;anted tanks have 2 inches of sand