My Loach Tank - w. 10" Loaches

[Glostik]

Some people requested pics of the new 10" loaches I got, so I figured since Ive never shown anyone pics of my tank, I would do so as well. Ive been obsessed with loaches since I was 12. I took a 5yr break when I was about 20, but im right back into the thick of things. My oldest clowns Ive had for about 5 years.

It is a 150G Long tank with a 39G Sump. Its been setup for about 6 years now. I filter it with an Eheim 2260, Eheim 2217 and a AC500. I use the spraybars to create a river like current and supplement the current with 2 maxijet 1200's. The Koralia 4 is for testing purposes, havent decided if I like it yet.

The fish include :
10+ Tiger Barbs
1 Bosemani Rainbow
2 Macculochi Rainbow
1 Australian Rainbow
4 SAE
2 Bristlenose Pleco
5 Schistura (No Idea on Species) *Temporary*
35+ Clown Loaches

It used to be heavily planted , but as my loaches got bigger, they uprooted everything and I gave up on plants for now.

I'll be moving soon to a large house, so I plan on having a 10x2x2 tank built for the loaches.

Heres a general shot of the tank -

An attempt at a group photo -

Another attempt at a group photo -

The big eater of the group *notice large belly* -

This guy was the largest of the group till I added the 10"ers -

Heres 10" #1 -

Heres 10" #2 - notice the greying out of one of his stripes

Heres 10" #3 - suprisingly he still has lots of color, he might be younger than the other 2, but his tails are ragged and he might be showing signs of ich =\


Thanks for looking.

I wonder how my former biggest would react to the new guys who are much bigger than him, but so far no noticeable fights or anything, pecking order just got bumped a few places. The big ones are noticeably more skittish than the others, but I think they will adjust over time.

[Tinman]

Clowns galore..... The last pic could possibly be from getting picked on a bit IMO.....

[Doc]

Wow. Impressive. Most Impressive.

[Glostik]

Actually I got him that way, unless it was from being picked on where he came from. He was bagged by himself , shipped from Indonesia I believe.

Im turning the temp up in my tank right now, and I just put a 25W UV on the tank. Im waiting to add any medication to see if im just being paranoid about the ICH or if its really there, I dont see any dots on the big ones body, but I see what I think are small white dots on his fins. He is flashing, so makes me think ICH. Good thing is I can see clear fin growing on his back fins, so the fins are starting to grow back,

[Boomer]

First off - wow...I would love to have the space for that (still convincing my husband to let me buy a 180g - but his thought is if he can't have a 180 reef - I can't have a 180 loach tank).

Secondly: what do you feed them? They look nice and full!

[Glostik]

I feed Omega One Flakes, Omega One Shrimp Pellets and Aquarian Algae Wafers on a daily basis. Im thinking about switching to Kens Food soon though. I usually let them fast one day a week.

I feed bloodworms and frozen salad shrimp about once or twice a week.

I also will feed zucchini or lettuce once in a while.

And whenever i get a bunch of snails from my sump or other tanks, I'll throw those in. I usually end up finding all empty shells by the next morning.

[ckk125]

Nice fat loaches..especially the rounded belly clown. The last clown, about the tail, better do something about it..it doesnt look like being picked...

Those 10 inchers...do look much better than my 2 11 inchers when i first got them..Something to note, they have LOTS of parasites and even worse, bacterial infection..you can search it under vibrating clown to see one of many problems to hit them.

would be great if you could put a ruler beside them because for some reason, they dont look 10.

[Botia Robert]

Those pictures show just how good a large group of big clowns look. Good work.

[Glostik]

Maybe I can put a ruler next to them when they acclimate to the tank, but they are too skittish right now for me to mess with. I measured them in the bag before I brought them home, and they were all just under 10". Im measuring from head to tip of tail.

Tried feeding prawns tonight , but the big ones didnt bite, prolly be a while before they start to feed.

[ckk125]

The big ones won't eat in front of you for awhile..but do try bloodworm..good way to get them to start eating.

[mickthefish]

great looking group, i can just imagine them in a 10 footer.
superb

mick

[cybermeez]

WOW!
I'm speechless!

[Emma Turner]

Very nice group of clowns, Glostik. Did you receive the new large ones directly, or through a store? I was just wondering if they have gone through any sort of quarantine before adding to your existing group? I wouldn't be too alarmed if they don't eat for a while, Marge took 7 weeks to feed. Larger clowns have much more in the way of fat reserves to live off of, until they are settled and gain confidence to feed. Keep up with plenty of water changes and keep an eye on those ragged fins and treat if they appear to be getting any worse. Have you any plans to upgrade to a longer tank in the future? I'm hoping to provide mine with a much longer tank within the next couple of years (it's currently an extra wide and high 7 footer).

Emma

[Glostik]

They have gone through some quarantine at the LFS, but I think one of them is showing signs of ich, I started up my UV filter and bumped the temperature gradually to 90F.

His rear fins are showing signs of regrowth (the clear replacement fins).

I will be moving to a larger home within the next couple of months and I plan on having a 10"x2"x2" custom tank made.

[Emma Turner]

Fantastic news about the planned 10 ft tank. Hopefully you have spotted the whitespot quite early on and are able to nip it in the bud.

Emma