Shy clown loaches?

[daisymac]

I bought a couple clown loaches from Village tropical on Saturday. They were very active after I got them in the tank, but then I read that they were looking for a way out! Now they are hanging out under this decoration and only dart occasionally to find some food, which are sinking pellets. Is this normal?

[Mzungu]

Re: Shy clown loaches?

I'm not an expert on loaches, but I'll throw a few suggestions/questions out until someone more knowledgeable comes along. First, you say a couple, do you mean 2? I do know that clown loaches prefer the company of their own kind, and it's neat to see them in a big group where they seem more comfortable exploring their surroundings. Second, they could just still be getting used to their new home, some fish take longer to come out of their shells, so to speak. And third, have you added any plastic plants or other decorations to the tank? They may be more active if and when they feel more secure in the tank, and sometimes this means knowing that they do have a place to hide when frightened.

Keep in mind that they can get pretty huge, so a larger group may not be in your/their best interest, but I have also heard that it takes years for them to do so.

Hope that helps a little!

[daisymac]

Re: Shy clown loaches?

Yes, I only bought 2. I have been told that you shouldn't add more than 6 fish at a time to your tank, and I wanted some other tetras, that's why only 2. I have NOT added any other decorations.

I think I may go get a couple more this weekend. The ones I have seem to be coming out a bit more, so maybe they are just checking it out.

Thanks!

[daisymac]

Re: Shy clown loaches?

Here's the ? - Should I go ahead a get a couple more clowns, or not?

OR should I get more plants and decorations?

[Mzungu]

Re: Shy clown loaches?

That's a very good question! I don't really feel qualified to answer, except with more questions. First, if you do get more clowns, what do you plan on doing with them in a few years when they are too big? I know you just got into this, and that MTS (multiple tank syndrome) tends to happen quickly, but as with all acquisitions, the road ahead is just as important.  :)  

The other question, I couldn't find in your posts whether or not you bought any plants? And if so, how are you liking them? I remember you saying that you wanted to talk to the guys at Village Tropical...In my opinion there's no harm in adding more plants or things like that as long as the fish have adequate swimming room. Wouldn't hurt to try, right?  :wink:

[daisymac]

Re: Shy clown loaches?

I only want to get a couple more, if it will make the other 2 feel more comfortable. So far everyone is pretty small and expected not to get too much bigger. (The only ones that are the size of the clowns are 2 "graceful" tetras. I got them at Village but I can't identify them anywhere else. They are about 1.25" long, silver, with rounded tails with black spots on the tips of them.) So If I keep it conservative, that should be okay down the road. Of course I have never had a tank this large, so I have never had MTS!    

I did not buy any plants yet. I asked the guy at Village and he showed me this $30 bag of Eco-??? for a substrate. He said you just pour it in the water and then add the plants. He also told me to check my lights to be sure they are okay for plants (they are) but other than that we didn't go any further. That is really expensive!  8O

I am not sure how to add plants at this point, so:

Do I add the substrate to the whole tank or only where I want some plants?

Wouldn't that upset the fish to have dirt falling down around them?

I know plants help control algae but do they have to be planted or could I get some floating ones?

Do I have to spend $30 on a bag of substrate? I read in the plant section about some flourite or something like that but I need to do more research on that.  :?

Looking at other peoples tanks, my tank looks pretty barren. There is a lot of swimming room, and it could use a bit more hiding spots. I set it up so there is tall plants and decorations on the left and right and in the middle it has low plants and small things to swim/hide in.

[Mzungu]

Re: Shy clown loaches?

Eco-Complete and Fluorite are excellent substrates for plants, as are some others, but if I am interpreting this correctly, you really don't want to go all out on plants, right? Here's my suggestion:

Don't get any special substrate. Unless...Do you know the approximate size of the gravel you have now? Are the stones the size of a pea or smaller? If so, you're good. (If not, you might want to buy just a simple bag of small-grained gravel to add here and there for rooting purposes) There are a lot of hardy, easy plants out there that really don't demand anything of you except a little light and maybe a trim here and there. And yes, floating plants are also great! If you want to go a little farther, there are products out there that are basically underwater plant spikes, so you can just push a few into the existing gravel if you want to supplement the plants with some nutrients. And, they're nowhere near $30!

From my experience and that of others, I'll list some great plants that seem to do well no matter how badly you treat them! First, and the one which I think would look great in a 55 because they can get huge and really pretty, is an Amazon Sword. In one of my first tanks I had one growing like crazy with just blue incandescent lights!! (a little embarassing, but true!) Vals (Vallisneria) also tend to do really well without any work. The one that seems the most hardy to me is Jungle Val. Another one you might want to try is Anacharis (aka Elodea). This plant can be either floating or rooted. My opinion - start out by just throwing it in your tank (nicely, of course  :wink: ), and eventually it should start sending out some roots, and then you can decide whether or not you want to plant it. But it seems to do better when it starts out as a floating plant, at least in my experience. And then of course there's Java Moss, which is great b/c it's so versatile. You can tie it to driftwood or any other porous object, or just let it be and it will find something to attach to.

So, if you want to get some plants, those are my recommendations for starting out. I even have some of these at home, so it's always a possibility for me to give you a couple that are doing well in our Houston water. I'd be happy to part with a few of them if you want, they're slowly taking over my tanks! And if you want to buy them elsewhere, the Java Moss will probably be the most expensive, everything else should be under $4 or so. There are Amazon Swords out there that are $25+, but I'd suggest to just start out with one of the small ones, I'm pretty sure that in time it will get much larger.

And, if you want, you can buy some liquid fertilizer or some plant tabs for the gravel, but I really don't think it's all that necessary unless you want to grow fickle plants. The Swords and Vals seem to like a little more nutrients than are normally hanging around in a tank, but like I said, I really don't think they'll do badly without them.

I REALLY hope I helped a little. Sorry for such a long post!! Oh, and those tetras sound interesting...wonder what they are?!? Let me know if anything I said makes entirely no sense!

[daisymac]

Re: Shy clown loaches?

WOW!  :P  Thanks for the offer of plants. I sure would like to take you up on that if you don't mind. My gravel is pea size and smaller, so the plant spikes would work. I would like to try the floating plant, Elodea, first, and maybe something else easy, like the Vals. But whatever you think is best, I'll go with.

What side of town are you on?

So what about adding a couple more clowns? Whatcha think?

I wish I could find out what those tetras are. They are pretty, but I wonder how large they will get. I think I'll call Village and ask them.

BTW - that was not too much info! It was perfect! Thanks!

[Mzungu]

Re: Shy clown loaches?

Of course I don't mind! Any time! I have both the Vals and the Elodea, and if you want I'll throw in some Java Moss also. I live about 15 minutes west of downtown, but Oak Forest, is that northwest? I was thinking of heading "up north" this weekend, probably tomorrow, to visit a couple of LFS. If you want I could drop it off. Whatever's easiest!

About the clowns...I wish someone else would chime in about them! I am not really sure, and I don't want to give any bad advice...Are they still hiding a lot?

[daisymac]

Re: Shy clown loaches?

Yes they are still hiding but they come out as long as no one is standing next to the tank.

Oak Forest is right outside the loop off of 610 (West loop north) close to 290. Think 34th St., E & W. TC Jester, 43rd St, Ella, Northwest mall is close - anything ringing a bell?

What LFS are you going to?

[Mzungu]

Re: Shy clown loaches?

Well, I know the freeways much better than the smaller roads, but yes, it's ringing a bell...

I definitely want to visit Sunny's, and possibly I'll look around for others in the area, I guess it depends on how much time I have!

[Mzungu]

Re: Shy clown loaches?

Okay, well, I think I found the "graceful" tetras. One question, how many fins do they have? Most tetras have an extra fin (adipose fin), and stupid me remembered that in the car, totally forgot when I was there. The other reason I ask is because I thought they looked a little like scissortailed rasboras. But, going along with Village in that they are tetras, they're most likely "Moenkhausia Dichroura." I forgot to write down the common name before I came to work, but it's about as vague as "graceful."    Hope everything's doing well!  :)

[daisymac]

Re: Shy clown loaches?

The "gracefuls" have 1 large fin and a very tiny one (near the tail) on top, and 2 at the bottom. They should be called gremlins! Now they are head butting each other!    Thanks for looking that up for me.

The tank looks great, absolutely gorgeous, and the O'cats are zipping about cleaning everything they can. The clowns have figured out that I mean them no harm, so now they even hover about when I feed them. They are getting very active, playing and rooting around the gravel. Everyone seems very happy. Thanks so much!  

[daisymac]

Re: Shy clown loaches?

I just googled that name. It is a Bandtail tetra. You are right on the money! That is exactly what they look like. Now I need to see what to do with these bad boys!

[Mzungu]

Re: Shy clown loaches?

I'm glad everything's working out!    (Especially the clowns!)