coolie loach

[aquariumlover10]

I've been thinking about getting a coolie loach but they don't sell them at the petsmart in my town so I have to go a hour and a half could they survive in a bag for that long and if they can can I only have spots of sand or do I have to have the hole aquarium sand.

 

[bettaowner]

What substrate do you have right now? If the substrate is not sharp, I wouldn't be too worried.

 

[aquandrew]

as long as your rocks arent jagged it will be fine. they cant burrow in sand because its too compact but they will bury themselves in your gravel. they will be fine in the bag for that long i would suggest getting a foam minnow bucket though to put the bag in so it stays the same temp and so there is no light because they will stay less stressed. also its spelled kuhli loach :] i have three and they are awesome little guys and can live for up to 20 years

 

[aquariumlover10]

wow I didn't know they could live that long. Some of my gravel may have rough edges but I also have a small catfish and hes fine so I'm guessing that it should be fine. how many can I have in a 10 gallon tank.

 

[Rivercats]

Since you only have a 10g what is your current stock and what type of catfish do you have? This will determine if you even have room for them and if so how many.

 

[aquariumlover10]

hes a up side down catfish and he hasn't hurt any of my fish the cat is the one that i'm keeping with the loach and i only have 1.

 

[Rivercats]

A little confused... you have an upside down cat and he's fine with other fish... what other fish is in the 10g tank with him right now? If he is the only fish in there then you could do 3 Kuhli loaches. The do better in larger groups but I personally wouldn't keep more than 3 in a 10g.

 

[aquariumlover10]

right now there's 3 mosquito fish 1 male guppy and the cat but I'm putting the mosquito fish and guppy in my other ten gallon. (it doesn't have any algae in it yet my other one has a lot )

 

[candacecook1025]

Here's my two cents, just from my experience with Kuhli loaches:

First, 10 gallons is way too small. It can work, but only with a very small group of kuhlis. And they are VERY social fish that prefer a large group of 10 or more. I would definitely recommend a larger tank if you can.

Second, they do prefer a sand or at least a fine gravel substrate. They will be okay in gravel as long as it isn't too rough. They love to burrow but gravel is hard for them to move, and some sand is too compact. I changed out my substrate to a fine gravel and they LOVE it. But if you want to keep your gravel, just make sure they have other ways to hide, like caves and rocks, etc.

They will do fine in a bag for your trip. I do agree that you should get a small styrofoam container to help manage the temp, and also put some newspaper in it so the bag doesn't slosh around so much.

These are my absolute FAVORITE fish that I have. If you have enough of them, they feel very secure and come out all the time! They are playful and fun, and they will "play dead" sometimes, which is so funny. They will also eat just about anything, so they are really useful as well as fun. Mine have never bothered fry or shrimplets and are just a great addition to my fish family! Enjoy yours!

 

[Rivercats]

right now there's 3 mosquito fish 1 male guppy and the cat but I'm putting the mosquito fish and guppy in my other ten gallon. (it doesn't have any algae in it yet my other one has a lot )

The post above mine is right on and says everything you need to know. One thing tho if your having a lot of algae in a tank only run your lights 6 hours until it goes away or mostly goes away and then run them a max of 8 hours and see if that helps. Another thing you don't have a high bio-load which is great but watch your nitrate levels and be sure to do weekly WC's to keep nutrient levels low which will also help keep algae down.

 

[aquariumlover10]

ok I want algae in there so i'm not spending $10 a month for algae wafers for my catfish and i'm moving in 2-3 months so i thing going to upgrade to a 20 gallon

 

[Rivercats]

Yes they do graze on algae but they love insects which is a lot of their primary diet. I fed mine frozen blood worms and such which they went crazy over.

 

[aquariumlover10]

ok how much sand do I exactly need.

 

[Goldfish loach boy]

Hey cool to see another kuhli fan!

Ok, so for now in the 10 gallon, you can add three, they are very social, I have four in my 29 gallon, but I am probably going to add one more
If you are upgrading to a 20 gallon, I would suggest a 20 long, same footprint as a 29 gallon, just 6 inches shorter, if the kuhlis are going to be the only bottom feeders, then I would add like5-7 of them in there, but I would consider your substrate first, with sand, sometimes it will make a difference and sometimes it wont, because sand is too compact, I sometimes can't find my kuhlis and when I do find them, I just see their head peeping out if my gravel, I have a smooth gravel, because you have to take into consideration that kuhlis have very fragile scales
So over all, great hardy fish
Oh, and one more thing, if you can get someone to drive with you to the other store, so on the trip you can open the bag, stir it up a bit for oxygen, and then close it, but don't shake it too hard because you will stress out the fish
Good luck!

 

[Khuligirl93]

I have 3 in my 10g with flora max substrate. They are very happy, and my favorite fish!

 

[aquariumlover10]

Can only put two big spots of sand or what

 

[candacecook1025]

you can. Mine are all over the place so it made sense to me to have only a soft substrate. they will appreciate any soft place to burrow and play though. and they will be okay in gravel, as long as it can't hurt their barbels. and they won't be able to burrow.

 

[Jev12]

I have three in my 20l and I am planning on getting some more...they are one of my favorite fish I have lol they are so entertaining to watch

 

[Buu]

You can have spots of sand, but if your upgrading anyways I would just do it all sand. Either way just have SOME sand for them, they love it.

I have 4 in a 30 and they're always filtering, digging and playing in the sand. They are awesome and my favorite fish! They play all day and nap during noon hours. Basically I'm saying I always see them (unlike how some stay hidden). They are so funny to watch. Just don't freak out if they're tangled in plants upside down or looked smooshed under a rock/decor, they're sleeping! They're known to sleep in silly ways. And almost give their keepers heart attacks (from thinking they're dead).

 

[candacecook1025]

Oh my gosh soooo true. Just found this little guy the other day! Thought he got stuck but was just taking a snooze. They are weird little things!