Conflicting advice

[JeffreyandGina]

I have been a long term Weather Loach owner.

Having owned Jeffrey for over 7 years, he outlived all my Goldfish and Shubunkins.

Recently, we decided to pair him with another weather Loach and today, purchased a lighter coloured one, I think she is a female.

Now I know advice you can get from certain aquatic shops can be conflicting. Speaking to the guy in the store, he mentioned that weather Loaches are usually kept in tropical tanks, but have been known to live in lower temperatures.

Anyway, to cut a long story short, we decided to go tropical,lured by the prospect of a bigger choice of fish in the long time; we now have a heater set at 24'c in tank. The new Loach (Gina) has gone from a tropical tank in the shop, to cold water at home and now gradually being heated up to 24'c again. She is behaving erratically compared to in the shop and compared to Jeff, who is a laid back fellow.

What I am worried about is stories that having these guys living at a higher temperature can affect their lifespan? Is this true? Because I am scared to think what this may do to Jeffrey in the long term.

On another note, I had to rescue Gina today, she Jumped out of the tank and I found her on the floor. I since have found out they are keen jumpers (although Jeff never has jumped). So have sealed the top of the tank with a cardboard top. (Previously it was an open light). Any suggestions how I can get a proper lid fitted, or whether this behavior could be related to stress or temperature change?

Finally, Gina has obviously fed on tropical food before now, is it OK feeding her goldfish flakes now?

Thanks so much for any help.

[DainBramage1991]

Aqueon makes a range of excellent glass tank lids for a wide range of standard tank sizes, and they're usually not very expensive. Check with your pet store to see if they have them in stock for your tank size.

I don't know if higher temperatures will reduce your dojos' lifespans, but logically it makes sense that it would. Higher water temps rev up their metabolisms. Also, the warmer the water is, the less oxygen it can carry. Aeration is vital if you're going to keep dojos at tropical temps.
That's not to say that I recommend doing that. Dojos, like other loaches, should be kept in an environment that suits their needs.

My experience with loaches jumping has led me to the conclusion that they jump most often when the water quality needs to be corrected. They are sensitive to water quality and look for a way to improve their situation. Keep an eye on your ammonia, nitrite, nitrates, and pH. Frequent water changes are a must, as loaches are river fish and need a clean environment.

[JeffreyandGina]

Thanks for your advice! How often and how much do you think I should be feeding them?

[Arden]

I suggest you read this...

http://www.loaches.com/species-index/w ... icaudatus

I have kept weather loaches in the past and absolutly consider then "cold water" fish. Anytime I've tried keeping them in a tropical tank they've not survived. I think tge above link should give you a pretty good idea why.

I keep clown loaches now and have one who's about tge same age ad your guy His name is lucky. My whole tank set up is with lucky in mind first and all my other fish in mind secondary. Because I know how it is to have a fish who's like a member of the family I would recomend you do the same.

[JeffreyandGina]

I purchased a API Freshwater Master test kit from ebay, my tests were as follows:

pH = 8.2
Ammonia = 0 or 0.25
Nitrate N02 = 0
Nitrate N03 = nearer to 40 than 80.

Aqueon don't seem to sell here in the UK, so on ebay I also purchased some plastic mesh to make a DIY lid myself. It looks decent and lets light through as well, which is good since we have a light fitted on top of the aquarium.

From my results the worst thing seems to be pH, so I will try to get that down towards 7-8. The two fish don't seem to be bothered by it, apart from that one jump, they are settled unless fed or I am doing things in the tank.

With Ammonia and N03, it was hard to tell between between the two lowest measurements, but I got a second opinion and we think the lower of each is more accurate.

From the aquatic shop, we bought a tank heater to move to tropical, would you recommend we don' make this move now then? If so, its lucky because the heater didn't work and we have to return it. If you don't recommend going tropical, what kind of fish apart from Shubunkins and Goldfish are best kept with the loaches?

Also, I am use to changing 1/3 of the water each two weeks, is this adequate in the long term? (obviously ill be performing regular changes to get pH down in the short term).

How often and how much should I be feeding the loaches also?

I just want to make sure I am doing everything right to give them the best chances of survival.

edit#

hmm just been reading that water changes can highten the ph, whats my best way to lower the ph a little?