Paludarium Novice...This Stocking Too Much?

[Loach Land]

Hi guys,

I have kept tropical aquariums for several years now, & I'm feeling the need to take the plunge into paludariums, given some of the beauties I have seen on this & other websites.

My question is what size tank would you seasoned keepers recommend for the following stocking...

10x Kuhli Loaches
10x Neon Tetras
1x Siamese Fighter

I have had success with this mixing in an aquarium setting previously. I'm acutely aware that a tank only half or one-third full has a far lower volume of water, & therefore needs to be maintained more diligently. Add to that the fact most paludariums look best when heavily decorated & you have many items displacing water & further making quality more at risk. Do you guys think a 3' tank would work? Id prefer a tank no larger, but Id be willing to go 4' if you guys thought it would make a critical difference. There will be no additional livestock --- just the fish. Would an airstone be a wise addition to supplement the filter?

Thanks for any help guys.

[LittleGecko]

Will there be a land portion taking away from the water, also how many inches deep of water will there be?

[x5tr41ghtj4ck3t]

It depends on how you build it.
In this case, having 21 fish, I wouldn't make it where one side is land and the other is water. Having too much water means taking away from the beauty of the land, and having too much land takes away water volume. It's also not as sightly as something more "randomized"




However, if you were to construct it in such a way where the water is beneath the land (that is to say, either the walls support the land, or the "pillars" of the land are in the water", you could effectively have both large water volume AND scenery.

Check out this thread for some idea of what I'm talking about:
38 Gal Paludarium Build

Here are some other examples of what I mean: