Substrate for loach aquarium

[sabresonic]

Hi, I'm new to this forum and I am wanting some advice on setting up an aquarium for my clown & kuhli loaches. I am trying to find a substrate that would suit my tank. I have read loads of comments online that suggest that I need alluvial sand, I have been looking today a an industrial sand supplier and ended up buying silica sand. This is white and is really fine, it feels ok not sharp. Will this sand be suitable for the fish, and will really fine sand sit ok in the tank or will the current unsettle it? Some advice would be greatly appreciated.

[brochtune]

I use Silica sand and am quite happy with it as a substrate. the only think I can say that might be a negative is that it does reflect a lot of light and that might spook the clowns since they prefer more subdued lighting. This isn't fact, though, it's just a guess (though it is a fact that white sand reflects more). My clowns seem to hide a lot.

Cleaning's a breeze, though, once you get the hang of it. Easier than gravel.

Just make sure that you rinse the sand a TON before you put it in the aquarium. I rinsed mine until it ran clear even when I stirred it up in the rinsing bowl. It settles extremely fast and I never had to worry about cloudiness from finer particles. When filling the tank initially, I poured the water right onto the sand without dispersing it and still had no cloudiness.

If I had to do it again, I might use a darker sand, like playsand, but I have to say that the white certainly looks great.

The Kuhlis should be fine with it, from what I've read, and they'll help with keeping the sand aerated.

The current shouldn't unsettle it, unless you're aiming directly at it, and even then it'll settle somewhere else with no problems, creating a hole in the sand.

good luck

-Thomas

[sabresonic]

Thanks Thomas,
Good point (bout reflecting light), currently I have a darker gravel and I wouldnt want to stress them by such a sudden change, I also have some darker coloured sand so I might try mixing them and see what kind of result I get. Thanks.

[Emma Turner]

Hi sabresonic, and welcome to Loaches Online.

Ideally, you'll need two separate aquariums for your clown loaches and kuhli loaches as their needs are very different. Have a read through our species index at the clown loach and kuhli (Pangio species) entries for more details: http://www.loaches.com/species-index/species-index

I use silica sand in all my tanks at home (I have both a golden colour silica sand and a black silica sand) and we also use silica sand at the shop where I work. It's great for bottom-dwelling fish with delicate barbels.

Emma

[sabresonic]

Hi Emma,
Thanks for your post. Unfortunately I was one of those people who just assembled a tropical trank from species available locally, my tank was set up several years ago, and was based on the advice of staff at the aquarium centres I visited, unfortunately that info was less than adequate. In the beginning I lost a very small clown I had only just introduced - to white spot, but since then my 5 clowns and multiple kuhlis have always done ok - some of the other fish I introduced sadly didnt. More recently it dawned on me that that I might not be looking after my clowns correctly (clowns being my absolute favourite fresh water fish) and I started to do some research about the species I have and yes I have seen the error of my ways and I realise that I have had a whole lot of species that shouldnt be kept together....so now I have to make it up to them! So I'm putting together a 430L tank, 137cm long x 60.5cm front to back x 58cm deep, I was running a 220L tank (too small I know). I'm trying to learn as much as possible as quickly as possible so I get it right. I am including in my new tank a 'river tank manifold' which will be based on a slight modification of the one featured on this website and am wanting to get the environment right also. I also realise that another tank upgrade will be required in the future, so I am keeping numbers of fish down for now, but have purchased two more clowns which I will obtain after easter. I do realise that my clowns are going to be with me for a long time and am committed to ensuring they are as happy as possible, but in future I will only be adding species that are suitable for the clowns environment. I have to say this forum and website are fantastic I have learnt so much already!

[Emma Turner]

Your plans for the loaches sound excellent and you have a great attitude towards their care. Would love to see some pics when it's all set up.

Emma