Kuhli Loaches

[c_paan]

Does anyone have any of these fish? I seen them an my lfs the other day and thought of geting one or two since they like to pile on top of eachother.

How big do they get? These were very very small, like maybe 1-1 1/2 inches long and thin. Will they do good in a cichild tank when they grow if they get big. I would put them in my 20 with the tetras until they were the right size if they could be transfered.

Also do they clean the tanks of algea and stuff? Im geussing they like to bury in the substrate as well. I dont want to get a fish that always hides if they arent really serving a purpose in the tank.

 

[fishface]

dont get em they suck my bros got 4 and hes seen em like once they bottom feed and get to about 4" long

 

[420Loach]

if ya dont like fish that hide ya wont like kuhlis! most are nocturnal, but ive seen a different coloratin of them that seems to cruise around in the day time so im not really sure. they like to be in groups of 5 or more, they get from 3-5 inches long, and love to bury themselves in sandy substrate and dont really like big sharp gravel. they like to eat what all loaches do (flake,shrimp pellets, tubifex worms is what i feed mine, with a vegetable twice a week.)

i dont think they clean algae at all, and dont do much but eat and sleep, but if you like loaches(as we all know i do) and dont mind not seeing them half the time, theyre a cool fish to have. i havent had any for a while(none at the lfs) but im gonna get some when they do. ive never kept them with cichlids, and to some cichlids, kuhlis may look like noodles so i wouldnt put them in with a fully grown jack dempsey, but it might work.

its highly reccommended that you use sand as substrate and give them plenty of caves to hide in.

 

[c_paan]

I seen one at the lfs that they had for like a year and was still only like 2 nches long. do they grow slow? My 20g has a sand substrate. Will a twenty be big enough for say 2 or 3 of them? The tank has four tetras and 2 guppies. do they clean while they are barried down there?

 

[420Loach]

yeah 20gallons would be good for them. im not sure if they clean when theyre buried.

mine usually came out around 11:00 pm and i have dim color lights on in my tanks at night so i could watch them swim around.

 

[Matt]

fishface. little bro, i have actually seen them more than once as you put it. they took a while 2 get settled into the tank but now they come out everynite i love them they are great loaches to keep.

 

[fishface]

A WHILE?!? it took em a year to get 'settled in' the problem with his tank is there is no hiding places apart from 1 piece of wood (where they all stay) so they do not feel safe but if he just put some pipe or something in they would come out more

 

[420Loach]

mine used to hide in a long peice of pvc i put in my tank. i imagine you could use a ghost tube for a hiding space for them, and you could look at them during the day.

 

[c_paan]

Thats a good idea loach, I think i may try that if i pick some up.

 

[KimandRob]

Had one before and he jumped out of the tank and died. Make sure you don't have any holes for them to jump out of.

 

[Brockway]

The only loach I would put with those aggressive cichlids would be clowns. They can adapt to the ph of a malawi rift tank (I wouldn't just drop them in though), and my kenyis (well known aggressive cichlids) don't bother them, although I have a mini girl convict that's ~1/2" that chases them, (it is really disturbing to see a 1/2" fish chasing a ~3" loach). I really don't like that fish... grr.... my other convict is cool though. Plus clowns are cool, and you would actually see them!

 

[c_paan]

If i got the kuhlis i was goin to put them in the 20g. I have been wanting to get clown loaches for awhile now, I have been waiting on an orde from my lfs for them. Dont think they will ever get them though, so next time i make a road trip to toronto I will get some down there for the 55g.