will this work?

[IWANTCrx]

an marble angel+betta(should i get male or female?)+two clown loaches into about 10gal tank
don't know about my water yet because i don't have a tesst kit as of right now temp will probably be around 75-80ish

 

[mike the zealot]

minimum tank for an angel is about a 29 gallon

minimum tank for loaches is about a 55 gallon

the betta will be fine, I'd get a male, they're prettier =)

 

[IWANTCrx]

i have an 50gal tank too
if i more the loaches in there will they work?

 

[IWANTCrx]

also...how fast do clown loaches grow?
the ones i want to buy are about 1.5"

 

[mike the zealot]

loaches don't grow terribly fast, a 50 gallon should be fine, depending on it's dimensions.

 

[IWANTCrx]

one more thing...what should i look for when buying a betta and loaches?

 

[AndyL]

Um, lets revisit what mike said...

The rule of thumb is 10g/angel (29 is commonly used for a breeding pair). Loaches are pretty darn slow growers, I've had my 1.5" clown for just about 6 months, and I haven't noticed much growth (nice decrease in snail population though). I'd be more worried about the angel outgrowing the 10g in short order (they get pretty cramped, especially if they're a veil or super veil).

As for buying loaches, about all I can tell you is get ones that look decent (darker black is better). Make sure to QT them, as they will probably get ich due to the stress of the move. Cure with salt (slowly raise level up to around 2tbsp/gal) and higher temps (86), make sure you're doing very regular water changes (daily or twice daily is prefered) while the loach is recovering.

don't know about my water yet because i don't have a tesst kit as of right now

I'm assuming you mean ph and hardness... Do yourself a favor, don't bother with those kits... Make sure your water conditions (ammonia, nitrite, nitrate) are good. pH and hardness are pretty irrelevant unless you're breeding. Never mind the fact that the fish you have chosen are from radically opposite ends of the water spectrum.

I personally wouldn't do it in a 10g, a 20-29 would be better, keeping in mind the loaches would need to be moved in time.

 

[IWANTCrx]

thanks for all the help guys

 

[Managuense]

i would further say that ph, kh are not even important for breeding as far as angels go. i bred several in ph-8.0 kh-12
M

 

[Leopardess]

As with any other fish, just make sure that the betta you choose doesn't have torn or ragged fins and looks healthy overall. It is hard to tell with them because they are often cramped in those little "cups" and their temperment/health can't really show through.

 

[IWANTCrx]

UPDATE

Well...I got two clown loaches and a male betta (blue and white) i was going to get a female betta also for a different tank but the ones that the LFS had for sell look half dead plus they only have three females left so i didn't get one
so far they all seem to be doing pretty good... the two loaches explore the tank together(makes me think of Lewis and Clark....maybe i should call em that)
the betta swims around minding his own business and i haven't seen him flare his gills at anyone yet

also one more question....I want to get more loaches(maybe 1or2), will it be ok if the newer loaches are a inch or so bigger then the ones i have now?
thanks guys/gals

 

[jaws2]

Please DO bother with test kits it helps a lot when a hidden fish is dead and the ammonia skyrockets and you have a wipeout