Kuhli Loach and Hardscape

[dmpfishlover]

Hi all, I am new to Fishforums... I am not new to the Hobby, but it has been several years since I have kept fish. I recently bought a 55 gallon tank and I plan to set it up as a freshwater community tank. I have everything I need to set it up and will be in the next week or so. One fish that I have never kept before that I really would like to keep in new tank is the Kuhli Loach. I purchased a bunch of Driftwood and Rocks for the Hardscape and as soon as I got home I realized that I might have made a mistake. I was originally planning on using Seiryu Stone, but in my research l learned that it can effect the water chemistry (pH and dKH) so I decided to go with Lava Rock instead because it is an inert rock and won't alter the water parameters. So I bought 4 Lava rocks to landscape my tank with. Then I realized that Lava Rock is a very sharp rock and that this might be a problem for Kuhli Loaches who are scale-less fish and sensitive to sharp substrates. I am using Sand and a rounded gravel for my substrate, bit I am worried that Lava Rock is not the right choice for Kuhli Loaches. Any advice is greatly appreciated!??

 

[Retired Viking]

Hello and welcome to the forum, I had a kuhli loach many years ago and had 3mm pea gravel which it seemed to like tunneling into. I also had seveal large rocks piled up that he would hide in cracks between rocks. Back then I did not know you should have several of them. I have several pieces of lava rock and yes I agree it does have a rough/sharp feel to it. I would advise not to use it with them.

 

[dmpfishlover]

Hello and welcome to the forum, I had a kuhli loach many years ago and had 3mm pea gravel which it seemed to like tunneling into. I also had seveal large rocks piled up that he would hide in cracks between rocks. Back then I did not know you should have several of them. I have several pieces of lava rock and yes I agree it does have a rough/sharp feel to it. I would advise not to use it with them.

That is what I thought...Thank you so much for your advise!!!.. I plan on getting 4-6 of them so that they feel more comfortable in a group.

 

[DwarfCichlidLvr]

@NCaquatics

 

[Retired Viking]

From what I read from other forum members the more the merrier. Just like my tetra they feel more comfortable in a crowd.

 

[CassCats]

In a 55... get a group of 15-20. You wont regret it. The more they have around them, the more they come out. And they love love love leaf litter to hide in. Hollow logs, rock crevices, etc.

As for the lava rock, maybe dont use a whole lot of it if you opt to use it. I use a few pieces of lava rock with my cories in one tank, which are also "scaleless" fish. No problems.

But give them options of places to hide and they will choose their favourite place. Also, watch your filter intake tubes. They will get inside the filter

 

[dmpfishlover]

In a 55... get a group of 15-20. You wont regret it. The more they have around them, the more they come out. And they love love love leaf litter to hide in. Hollow logs, rock crevices, etc.

As for the lava rock, maybe dont use a whole lot of it if you opt to use it. I use a few pieces of lava rock with my cories in one tank, which are also "scaleless" fish. No problems.

But give them options of places to hide and they will choose their favourite place. Also, watch your filter intake tubes. They will get inside the filter

Thanks for the advice!! I agree, I will probably shoot for stocking the tank with more than 6. As for the filter intake tubes, I have two hang on back filters and I have covered them with sponge pre-filters which should prevent the little guys from getting inside. Thanks again!