Loaches Online Forum

theyre eating voraciously and are making clickity clack noises so I think they're going to me ok. One still has very washed out colors... and they all look like they were run over... The corys look great though I think...

Also here's a video if someone who knows more than me can tell me if their behaviour appears normal?

http://s110.photobucket.com/albums/n88/ ... 0_5020.flv

All looks good to me, although I thought the gravel was going to be small. Doesn't look too small to me..

Martin.

Its still ok though right??

This is the smallest gravel I could find... it is like 2 or 3 mm though... really...

all those fish are just tiny. Those corys arent even 2 inches

They're acting just like mine do. They love algae wafers. Only difference is that when mine root around like that they actually stick their heads down into the substrate. I don't know if they ever find anything down in there, but they go in up to the gills. The gravel is probably too heavy for them to do that. Keep an eye on their barbels to make sure they're not trying too hard to dig. Other than the wait and see method, there is probably no way you could know if the gravel is OK. Unless someone who has had identical gravel speaks up.

I have neither gravel nor sand, but a very fine clay based substrate called soilmaster, usually used for erosion control in baseball fields.

Its really quite fine... I think it looks bigger in the tank

Those loaches must be tiny if the gravel is that small! Maybe once they grow up they'll be able to dig in it. My soilmaster is about the same size but not even half as heavy as rock.

Theyre like little breadcrumb loaches atm

Consider yourself lucky. You get to watch them grow, and know they'll be well taken care of and well fed from the start.

TammyLiz wrote:Consider yourself lucky. You get to watch them grow, and know they'll be well taken care of and well fed from the start.

Thanks

What is the largest fish in this image...he looks like a cool character... would he be compatible with my 5 loaches and 2 silver dollars? How much?

USFMarine wrote:[img]

What is the largest fish in this image...he looks like a cool character... would he be compatible with my 5 loaches and 2 silver dollars? How much?

That's the Bolivian Rams I was telling you about.

You should be able to get them for about $5, $10+ for super nice big ones. If you get this kind of fish check the google images and look at what the proper body shape and eye size is. You want small eyes and proper shaped body. There is a lot of junk quality stuff that people sell when it comes to this species. You really have to look around for nice ones. I found mine at Big Al's by fluke once...
This Cichlid is near impossible to sex until you see their behaviour with eachother at home, so get a group. You can't choose a pair at the store. Get four or five, get a pair or two, remove the losers, they get picked on.
But remember, two silver dollars aren't compatible with two silver dollars. You need to get them buddies.

And I still think they're a little too zippy for your loaches to ever feel truly comfortable.

And ya Bolivian Rams are about as offensive as a rock with no sharp edges

Check into all those leads I sent you for the fish clubs and stuff. You won't believe the deals and species and stuff those guys can plug you into. Fish you didn't even know existed...

Nice fish. Great pictures. I had scanned down the pics a short while ago before you stated Bolivian Rams. I had thought mabey Biotodoma Cupido. Then I looked closer and saw some red edging and spotting. Nice fish.

I am using sand from a outdoor landscaping supply. It is 6 dollars US for a wheelbarrel full. Has a dark color. I underbedded the sand with SeaChem flourite so plants would grow well. This is going to be how I bed my new 150 gallon river tank. Very nice set up. Congrats and good luck.

Chris

chris1932 wrote:Nice fish. Great pictures. I had scanned down the pics a short while ago before you stated Bolivian Rams. I had thought mabey Biotodoma Cupido. Then I looked closer and saw some red edging and spotting. Nice fish.

I am using sand from a outdoor landscaping supply. It is 6 dollars US for a wheelbarrel full. Has a dark color. I underbedded the sand with SeaChem flourite so plants would grow well. This is going to be how I bed my new 150 gallon river tank. Very nice set up. Congrats and good luck.

Chris

thats not going to work Im affraid. The sand will fall though the cracks and mix and you'll have a mixed bed. Its not possible to do what you want to do.

you might try laterite, the super super fine stuff, and get a coarser grain of sand or microgravel and mix...

Ya Cupidos are nifty. Impossible to find a decent one here. They always look near death.

Actually, I have laterite under sand in one of my tanks too. As long as you don't dig into the sand with your gravel vac (or have very active burrowers) there is next to no mixing. If you decide to plant or redecorate later on, however, you will find they will mix up alot.

I am not very concerned with the sand getting down in the flourite, I just wanted to make sure I had a good plant substrate for the roots. I lucked out and a pair of cupids a few months ago. They are in a tank with 6 corys and the more they grow the better they look.

Chris