Setting Up An Ideal Environment For Khulis--water Hardness

[mikev]

There are several questions below...perhaps someone can answer some of them.

What I'd like to do is to try to set up an ideal environment for khulis (with the goal is to get them to breed). (I understand that nobody knows what may induce breeding, but in a good environment they might).

To keep things under control (and be able to observe), I've set up a 10g *lightly* planted tank which currently has two khulis (will add 2-3 more when I can find them-- I assume 4-5 is the right number). *lightly* because I'm not sure if there are some particular plants which may help (?). I'm keeping it at 78F and 6.4-6.6ph. (For now, the tank has a few small rasboras to keep the cycle stable...I'll remove them later if needed). The filter is a quiet air-driven one (which unfortunately does not allow to put anything inside it---perhaps it needs to be replaced).

One obvious problem is gH: it is currently at 8-9 which as I understand is certainly good for survival but not for breeding. I assume that kH is not important.

The big question is just how low I should get gH and what is the right way to do it.

Given that it is only a 10g, I can use distilled water and add some salt to it (which one?--Kent Freshwater specs mention presence of Ca); but I'd rather prefer to avoid chemistry if there is a "natural" way of doing it. (I understand that it probably would take months so ideally I would like to have some easy routine of maintaining the tank and hardness).

What is the best way to fix gH?

Is there anything else I should be aware of or do?

Should I try to vary the temperature daily? (say +-5F between day and night)
Should I do something else?

Any advice you could offer will be very much appreciated.

 

[osteoporoosi]

Try to mimic their natural enviroment. Peat and oak leafs in the bottom are brilliant, as they soften the water and create the natural feeling. Plants are aslo important, kuhlis lay their eggs into the surface plants. Most fish breed when the rainseason begins; maybe suddenly lowed temperature and large, frequent waterchanges mixed to a versatile diet after a "dry season"would help.
Usually kuhlis breed accidentally, hopefully you'll hit the right spot

 

[nashnut]

I've added an Indian Almond Leaf to my kuhli tanks. I went thru a bunch of them before getting two black kuhlis and three regular kuhlis to settle down and live in my 10 gallon tank. They've grown and almost doubled in size since I got them.

Here's the set up I have in this kuhli tank

Below is the set up for the black kuhli/yo yo tank.

 

[mikev]

Thanks to everyone for the comments.

Try to mimic their natural enviroment. Peat and oak leafs in the bottom are brilliant, as they soften the water and create the natural feeling.

I have peat in the tank, albeit not in the filter itself. In my other tank, with peat in the filter, gH is at 7, so it seems that adding peat softens the water from 9->7. The problem is that I don't know what gH I should be aiming for (the description in the gH kit says that 3-6 is appropriate for loaches but it is not clear if this is appropriate for eggs or not). And before I know that gH is right, it would not be right to try to encourage them....

Oak leafs is a new idea...I assume you mean fresh green leafs which would not exist until spring?

(Cry for help...hopefully someone around experimented with gH and could suggest what exactly should be done...)

A simple idea I can try: when doing water changes, use 50% of distilled water, 50% of tap. Presumably, this will lower gH to 4-5. Unf., I still don't know if this is good enough and if this is a sane approach.... please say...

 

[The-Wolf]

according to fishbase
Pangio kuhlii are found in waters with a gH of 5
and a pH of 6.5-6.5

the best way to lower gH has already been stated the use of peat.
I have found that adding bogwood and also using a blackwter
extract, in conjunction with peat, will lower this more than peat alone.
you could also use RO water, either 50/50 or 100%

HTH
and good luck with breeding them.

 

[mikev]

Wolf,

Thanks you!!!!!

This makes me feel much better...5 is surely achievable, in the worst case with 50/50 R/O changes.

Just one clarification: bogwood rather than driftwood, or is it the same?
(tank already has a large driftwood piece).

and good luck with breeding them.

Thank you.

The chances are pretty slim -- you possible remember that the idea is to breed one particular khuli, and it has to be done twice at least to create a line.

OK, I'll fix the tank and give them three months. If nothing happens, I may bother start asking questions about how to try to stimulate them...