Hillstream tank?

[ScaryFatKidGT]

So someone has spurred my interest on hillstream loaches and building a tank for this environment.

After looking around and on here Hillstream Loaches - The Specialists at Life In The Fast Lane — Loaches Online I want to make one of these. His 2004 tank is so beautiful almost like a rocky iwagumi or like a real river bottom.

His PVC pipe and powerhead method confuses me tho, why not just use a sump? or like a huge canister filter? FX or Marineland 530... that should be enough flow in a 40g tank right?

I want the tank smallish as the loaches are small and I want to put it up higher to look into. I'm thinking either a 33 breeder or 33 long or a 40 breeder or a 40 long, which would be best? Now nothing that size is drilled for a sump, and even if it was, it wouldn't be drilled on one end, but the sump would allow a larger water volume, a consistent water level in the tank and I have heard cooler temps?, but most importantly more oxygen. It seems to me something like a Fluval FX or maybe 2 406's or the Marineland C-530 would generate a lot of current in a tank like that but where would the oxygen come from? I could put a big airstone right under the outlet tube?

I really wish I could make like a rocky water slide between 2 tanks but I have no idea how I would accomplish that...

 

[azmodan]

Sorry, not sure if that article links to this one but here's this invaluable article just in case: http://www.loaches.com/articles/a-river-runs-through-it

Edit: whoops, I see it linked on the very bottom. Anyway, I think you're right in that something like 1-2 strong canisters could very well accomplish the same thing. A 33 long would be a great footprint, but any of those tanks you mention should work fine.

 

[ScaryFatKidGT]

Sorry, not sure if that article links to this one but here's this invaluable article just in case: A River Runs Through It — Loaches Online

Edit: whoops, I see it linked on the very bottom. Anyway, I think you're right in that something like 1-2 strong canisters could very well accomplish the same thing. A 33 long would be a great footprint, but any of those tanks you mention should work fine.

Ha its ok I didn't see that till you posted it. I'm jelouse of his tank as it is exactly what I was looking for but I can't seem to find one, a tank 48 long and 18 wide but shorter than a 75g.

I want some of the rocks sticking up above the water line, I could maybe even angle the tank so one end was deeper? I'd really like to make a river of sorts and have a long skinny tank flow into a larger one but I still haven't worked out how to either keep them in the river portion or what I would do if one of the hillsteams ended up in the larger pool tank...? And I don't know how large of pump I would need to keep a consistent flow? Probably a pond pump or something.

An Aqua Clear 70 (formerly 802 that he used) Powerhead does 400gph, a Fluval FX does 563gph and the C-530 does 360. Other than the flow, which is desired there is no issue in over filtering is there?

Also in a house with A/C is it fine totally un-heated? I really like my Fluval E200 as it heats, is adjustable, tells me what the temp is, and beeps if anything is wrong, without it I would have to use a hard to read thermometer and if the temp is off what do I do? Only choices I can think of are putting in a heater or drop ice cubes in? lol

And last what would I use for light in something with only 10-15" of water? would a single 48" Fudgeray planted+ work? I feel like a BML, ecoxotic or Marineland planted tank light would be way to powerful and I would have algae issues?

 

[ScaryFatKidGT]

Soooo what I think I'm going to do is get a glass cages 50g 48x18x13 tank and some inline pumps to pump water out of one end and back in to the other, along with a canister filter.