Hidey places for synodontis?.

[Maccus]

I tend to use flowerpots and checking what other ideas are out there.
Whenever I find a commercial ornament that seems large enough, it's costly.

[sidguppy]

bogwood? PVC pipes? terracotta pottery?

what kind of tank are we talking about? Fift tank, riverine biotope....

and what size of syno?

[MatsP]

I use terracotta saucers, slate & other stones, wood, coconut shells and plastic pipes in my tanks. All in line with what the overall tank look I want, and what size/type of fish they are. A few fish (not necessarily synos) seem to perfer wood to stone or prefer stone to wood, but most seem to not be concerned either way - as long as it's somewhere the fish feels secure.

--
Mats

[bigamefish]

i use a clay pot with a airstone in it

[Richard B]

Synos really aren't that fussy what they use as long as they feel secure. Given the choice rift lake synos do prefer rockwork & riverine synos (dependant upon species) like twisted roots, branches, plant thickets etc.

The two things i'd say are...
1 - you should strategically create hiding places for synos that maximise the amount of viewing. Many people provide hiding places then wonder why they don't see their fish or remove hiding places so they can see them but the fish aren't happy as a consequence.
2 - if purpose made ornaments etc are expensive, then create your own; depending on how creative you are. Slate, silicon, terracotta pieces etc can all be used to great effect - or even (depending on where you live) befriend your local pottery shop & you can get something custom made very cheaply

[andywoolloo]

mine like driftwood piles, pvc pipes, huge cave decos

[toddnbecka]

Medium or large Cichlid Stones are decent hides for petricola or lucipinnis, particularly juvies. My multi's mainly hang out under rockpiles when they feel like ducking for cover. The younger ones aren't reluctant to show themselves at feeding time, the adults like it better if I turn off the direct over-the-tank lights though.

[Alisana]

[...]
2 - if purpose made ornaments etc are expensive, then create your own; depending on how creative you are. Slate, silicon, terracotta pieces etc can all be used to great effect - or even (depending on where you live) befriend your local pottery shop & you can get something custom made very cheaply

Very true this! I have a collection of riverstones that I glue together with silicone (ensure it's aquarium safe) to create little caves for younger fish/small loaches. The key thing to make sure though is when gluing them together is first try and stack the rocks in such a way that they'll remain in position naturally, then silicone them together. I let mine dry for a week before washing with tap water, then soaking for another week in a bucket of aquarium water before putting it in the tank.

The other option I've done to create "natural" effects is getting a large piece of PVC or a pot, coating it in silicone, then rolling it in a matching substrate for the tank.

Just be very very careful to keep an eye on the size of these hide-y holes to the size of your fish! I had a very bad experience/near-miss not long ago when my

Synodontis Decora

got stuck in a fake log. Given that experience, I'm now keeping an eye out for natural logs that are big enough for the adult.