Good Fish For Turning Sand?

[Plecc]

Hi all, 
 
Can anyone recommend a suitable fish for turning play sand? 
 
I know many fish will pickup a mouthful of substrate and sift it through there gills, looking for food. 
And I have had limited success with assassin snails, but there just too slow, the volume i would need to turn the substrate would be massive. 
 
I'm looking for a keen burrower that will happily dig down to the bottom of the substrate. 
any ideas? 
 

 

[eaglesaquarium]

Why do you need them to dig down to the bottom of the substrate?
 
 
 
 
Cories are avid sand sifters, but don't really "burrow".  Plecos are also very good at disturbing the sand and rescaping the substrate to suit their own wishes and desires, but not really a "burrowing" action... they just dig out a cave for themselves, if they can under a piece of decor.
 
 
Khuli loaches are more into the 'burrowing', but I don't know how deep they dig into the substrate either.
 
 
The best option for burrowing into sand would be Malaysian Trumpet Snails.  These will actually burrow into the sand and fairly deeply.  They can be a bit of a nuisance specie, if you are an over feeder as their population would explode with a larger food source.

 

[Plecc]

I have play sand, (only 15mm thick) 
which over time packs down and the lower layer begins to stagnate. 
 
When I clean, I just vacuum the surface of the sand and then run my fingers through all the areas I can. 
But large areas under rock piles and wood can't be turned without making a real mess of my planting.  
 
I was hoping to find a fish to do that bit for me. 
 
Yep, plecos are good at mixing up the sand, but often only around their own cave. 
 
I think I would have issues with khuli's, getting sucked into my filter. 
All my LFS's sell them so small. 
 
And the tank already has 20 assassin snails, so any others don't really stand a chance. 
 
Are there any smaller burrowing catfish? 
 

 

[nortonmad213]

horse faced loaches burrow through the substrate,
i'm struggling to find them because my lfs is shutting down,
but i hear they are quite the burrower