which kind of loach?!

[al-gator]

hi. i have heard about this group on other site and saw for myself that it was really useful.
i just joined today, and was wondering if i can get some expert opinion on some loaches.

certianly i have a 30gal planted tank with (around 1 year old)
java moss
java fern
amazon sword
5x rummy nose tetra
5x cardinal tetra
and a pair or german blue rams
at 80F
with moderate hard water

i have never owned any loaches before and this 30gal is my first tank.
recently i been having problems with snails eating my batch of GBR eggs at night. (i have already seperated my other fish)
and was told that loaches are great for clearing snails.

i was wondering what kind of coach would be the best for my aquarium and would not outgrow my tank.
i also heard that keeping at least 4 loaches is best. but is it possible for me to keep 1-2?
here is a picture of my tank for a better understanding

[Sharkscott2]

I'm not an expert on rams and how territorial they are towards other bottom fish. And I wouldn't be surprised if loaches eat your eggs

I'd think Dwarf Botia (Yasuhikotakia sidthimunki) or Kuhli loaches(Paingo Kuhli) would be perfect. They are smaller loaches, and I believe you'd have enough room for a group of them. These two are also peaceful species.

You can keep these loaches solo but they'll likely hide more, although some people say they never see their Kuhlis anyway.

I've had good success using Dwarf Botia to combat ramshorn and pond snails. They won't eat the larger ones but will eat the smaller ones and go after the eggs. There will of course be some survivors but keep your eyes open and pluck them by hand. Maybe crush their shells to make it easier for your loaches to get a snack.

In my opinion Botia Kubotai, Zebra loaches (Botia Straita), and Yoyo loaches (Botia Almorphe) get too large for a 30. But I bet some people do it. These species are very efficient snail killers, they get larger and are able to eat the larger snails.

Also keep in mind that just about any loach prefers a good amount of water movement and high oxygen.

[al-gator]

oo ic thanks.
im not worried about the loaches going after the egg
just the snails =\ i'll see if any of my lfs has any dwarf loaches thanks