Fish Caves

[haleem8777]

hi
Like i have said before i have decided to do a planted tank and in that tank i want to keep some Pakistani loach and they need some where to hide and best thing would be caves. I would normally use pots but they ruin the appearance so i was wondering what caves could i use.
 
The only 2 i could think of was home made slate/rock caves and coconut caves.Are there any more and which ones do you recommend.
 
Also has anybody made slate/rock caves a home, if so how?

 

[Elrohirthehasty]

Strong hot glue and small chunks of slate. (or any other aquarium safe rocks).  Make an afternoon of it and start gluing stuff together.

 

[Sickbound]

I bought a cave from Petco from the terrarium section and then placed a piece of curved driftwood in front of it in the aquarium to make it look like a wooden cave.

 

[haleem8777]

Will hot glue be safe in a aquarium

 

[Ch4rlie]

If you want to splash out, get some bogwood (about £6 for a decent sized one), get one thats the right shape with a curve that can be used as a cave.
 
This is what am using at the moment.
 
I found that using coconut caves is that algae likes to grow on these especially if placed near front glass and can be pretty tricky to remove algae from that type of surface.
 
I like the idea of having homemade caves as you can make exactly the right size and shape you want. Cheaper too!
 
Good luck if you decide to go and make some. Show some pics while you at it! 

 

[Tim_UK]

I made some with some old pipes and slate have a look here

http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?/topic/420962-my-aquarium-housingcabinet-project/?p=3567355

 

[haleem8777]

Tim, very impressive. I have seen the pots that have been coated in gravel how have you done this

 

[Tim_UK]

To cover in gravel just get some silicon - make sure it is aquarium safe, you can find it cheap on ebay, cover the pots with this and then just sprinkle the gravel on them. It's a bit of a messy job so use some disposable gloves or you will get covered in silicon !

 

[haleem8777]

will it work with sand

 

[Welshweeks]

Small terracotta pots can also be used, you can pic these up from 49p from your local garden centre.

 

[haleem8777]

Originally i have the terracotta pots but they ruin the appearance but Tim just  showed how u can use silicon to cover the pots with gravel and they are hidden. So i will probably try this and try to make the slate caves.
 
Keep the suggestion coming in if there is any
 
 
Thanks

 

[Tim_UK]

I don't see why sand wouldn't work so worth a try too.

 

[sputnick]

get some PVC pipe and silicone. Pick up some extra substrate that matches the stuff in your tank. Cut the PVC pipe in half so instead of an O its a U then spread silicone everywhere on the PVC and put it in a some kind of container with the substrate. The substrate will stick to the silicone and once it dries it will match your substrate and make it easier to hid the cave in you tank. You could bury everything but the entrance and really hide it if you so desire. 

 

[haleem8777]

thanks sputnick, i have pieces of unused pvc pipe lying around in my dads shed  

 

[sputnick]

thanks sputnick, i have pieces of unused pvc pipe lying around in my dads shed  

haha not a problem! 

Its normally pretty easy to do and you can make a tunnel system too if you want. Just keep in mind how easy/hard its going to be to clean it out. It can be a trap for debris and cause ammonia problems if your not careful