DP tank startup

[timtim]

Hi all,

since I haven't bought any DP's yet, and have plenty of time to prepare for everything, I am now reading up on these little fella's as much as I can.

I have read most topics here on DP's, but still have some technical questions, which I hope you guys can help me with.

Tank decoration:
- lots of plants, stones and hiding places are without a doubt very necessary. But what about the bottom substrate? I have seen lots of gravel on pictures here, but I read (on other sites) that they sometimes like to dig themselves in. So you would definately need fine sand. Any comments on this?

Tank techniques:
- I have read that DP's are messy eaters, so you need a very good filter. I have an old (+12years) Sicce Shark model (http://www.aquatics-online.co.uk/bigpics/sharkadv.html) that I want to use in this 54L tank (14US gallon). Is this enough, or would you recommend a bigger filter model? (e.g.: BluWave 03, which I also have: http://www.ferplast.com/marexeng/produc ... fault.aspx)

Tank size:
- as stated above, I have a 54L (or 14 US Gallon) tank. According to what I read, this should be enough for 3 DP's. Is this correct, or should I cut back to 2?

Feeding:
- As I have read on this forum, on a daily basis frozen bloodworms are good enough, although I think this is a bit out of balance... Treats of snails, which would be necessary to keep their teeth from overgrowing, can be given every few days. This is no problem, as I have enough pool snails in my 240L tank (63.5US Gallon)

Water Quality:
- temp should be: 23-28C (74 -82,5 F)
- pH: 6.5 - 7.2
- NO3 & NO4: as low as possible!
but what about:
- GH?
- KH?
- Fosfate, Iron and Copper?

If you can help, please quote the piece of this topic you are replying to, to keep it readable

Thanks!

[Pandora]

Tank size:
- as stated above, I have a 54L (or 14 US Gallon) tank. According to what I read, this should be enough for 3 DP's. Is this correct, or should I cut back to 2?

Hi Tim,

first off well done for doing your homework before jumping straight in (I am guilty as charged!) I have 4 dp's and an oto in a 15 gallon with no problems, though I am going to upgrade their tank in a couple of months and I do a 30% water change twice a week. I don't know much about the filter you have but I have an Aquavital 'hang on' and it works brillianlty, it was £19 but well worth it

[OkieMavis]

Sounds well planned! My only suggestion would be to try to get 1 male and 2 females if possible. They're pretty difficult to sex when they're young, but it'll help minimize aggression. Also, don't cut it down to two, three is better because it spreads out aggression more instead of the bigger one just picking on the smaller one.

[timtim]

one thing I haven't asked yet: the tank-mates

I have seen several cases where DP's are kept together with kuhlii's. As these are small fishes that crawl on the bottom, hide underneath stones and sand, and are mostly only active at night, it seems very reasonable to me that kuhlii's make good tank-mates.

Any experiences?