# clown loaches in mbuna tank



## ASTYLIN

Our tank is a 125g but about 75 g wide..........Im wanting to add clown loaches and try em......How many should I add? Its also a new tank....How long do I need to wait...My mbunas are small....


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## Number6

IMO, mbuna and clown loaches are not compatible. In hard water with aggressive fish versus soft water where they are free to roam, there is a night and day difference. If you've never seen a Clown loach before proper care and then during, you won't be able to appreciate me talking about the difference.

Now, there are plenty of people who mix these fish... and will post pics claiming the loaches are doing great, but I wonder how they judge that. I wonder if those same people have ever kept them correctly. 8)


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## ASTYLIN

I have two clowns in my tropical tank....*** had botina also.......I see people keep them all the time with milder mbunas......I have read that the conditions are diff and that they are prone to ich....I thought they would be a nice addition... Im a newbie at this.....I will reconsider...


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## afr..cichlids

Why not try sedontis cats, they are neat looking and come from lakes, rivers in africa, and are compatible with mbunas..

They are not black and orange like the loaches but make a nice addition to your tank. I have also seen chinese algae eaters with them, you may want to look at that as well..


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## Number6

ASTYLIN said:


> I see people keep them all the time with milder mbunas.....


 I see it often. I also see people speeding down the highway and speed often myself, but I'll still warn anyone that it's not a good idea! :wink:


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## El Zilcho

I reckon Syno cats would be a better fit... i have two featherfins in a community tank and they are fun to watch and dont seem to bother anybody.


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## CichMomma

El Zilcho said:


> I reckon Syno cats would be a better fit... i have two featherfins in a community tank and they are fun to watch and dont seem to bother anybody.


I agree.......Why would you want to keep a species in an environment where they would not thrive, but merely try to survive. It's not a good idea and it's not fair to the fish.


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## oldcatfish

Botia loaches, including clowns are very adaptable regarding water conditions. There are better choices within the botia genus for an mbuna tank though....my personal favorite is the red-finned loach (Botia Modesta). They are a nice blue/gray color with red fins. They are a bit more pugnacious than clown loaches and will thrive in any mbuna tank...even a very aggressive one.

As mentioned though, Synodontus catfish are also excellent choices for an mbuna tank.


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## ASTYLIN

Im going to go with the catfish. I had a botia loach in my first cichlid tank...it did good but never came out of hiding.......I ended up trading him in......thx for advice......


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## vfc

5 Clown Loaches with various African Cichlids for over three years. Rock hard water, high PH. No sickness or deaths. Clown Loaches are very active. ACs pretty much ignore them.


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## afr..cichlids

You seem to have proven that clown loaches can exist in a cichlid tank. Beautiful, nicely done. I can not wait for my mbunas to get as big as yours, nice cichlids too.


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## Number6

afr..cichlids said:


> You seem to have proven that clown loaches can exist in a cichlid tank.


 no one ever said they cannot. "exist" is an interesting choice of words... one I would use as well. :lol:


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## liquid134

yea grandpa has a clown loach, with a couple cichilids (a bumblebee and a few others) and the clown loach is very active and the cichlids may chase, occasionally.... but otherwise perfectly healthy.


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## walleye

It'll work. It's your personal choice. If you want them, go for it. Don't let others deter you. I've heard people not like to add syno's with mbuna cause they are tangs and not malawi.


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## jfly

agrees my loaches have NEVER had a problem with my mbuna and are soooo active. the two pair up and always swim figure 8's.


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## JDL

jfly said:


> agrees my loaches have NEVER had a problem with my mbuna and are soooo active. the two pair up and always swim figure 8's.


What do you guy's feed your loaches?

My LFS told us that they were compatible with Africian cichlids, but what he failed to tell us was that their diet (at least the ones we bought) were mainly bloodworms.


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## The_Big_Chill

I have 4 loaches with Mbuna cichlids and they are doing just fine. High pH in tank. Interestingly they have very bright distinguished contrast color. They look and act ok, but again I am no expert and don't know what is going on internally, but if they were sick it would seem they would show it in there activity and on their bodies. They are growing quite nicely and very active.


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## velenc

I've got 4 clown loaches in a 110g (5ft) tank with about 16 haps. The loaches are doing very well. One of them has quadrupled in size. I also have a clown loach in my 75g (4 ft) tank with rusties, yellow labs, socolofis, aceis, and a dragonblood peacock. The loach is healthy but is a bit skiddish. The mbunas leave him alone. I plan on moving him to the 110g at some point.


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