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I want to make caves for my BN out of PVC pipe, what size should i buy? or is this not a good idea

I believe L.Vires wrote this : the proper dimensions for a cave are 1.5 times the width, same height, and 2 times as long as the males body not including fins.

this I understand to be good dimensions to use, with the caves in a vertical position and the top blocked off, I use a small peice of slate as a sort of lid, with the entrance in the center of the pipe.

As an added question though, would cuts or small holes on the top and bottom of the pipe aid in circulation or is it more important to keep the inside of the pipe dark.

Cheers,Birger

Hello,

I've always assumed that the dark is more important. Male Ancistrus are quite capable of taking care of their eggs with the limited currents inside a cave, so I've never bothered with experimenting with adding any circulation.

For a vertical cave, the opening should follow the recommended formula. The pipe size should be slightly larger to allow the fish to get around each other inside the cave as they are spawning.

Larry Vires

On a related note....

I have a piece of driftwood which has been placed so between it and the gravel is a little tunnel. Recently, I bought a piece of PVC pipe(not as long as the reccomendation however) and "attached" it in the back. The plan is that when the male lays eggs and they hatch(when I get a male, that is), to remove the pvc pipe. Otherwise, I'd prolly have to siphon the babies out. So,

How far back in the caves do BN plecos lay there eggs?

Should I lengthen the pvc pipe cave to 2x the length, of is about 1.5 fine?

If this plan fails, would the male BN eat the babies after seeing the threat of the airline tubing coming to suck his babies away?


Does this thing automatically change the word to pl*co? Assuming that this is so if someones pleco dies they won't take it out on the board....

Hello,

Bristlenose lay their eggs in the very back of the cave. I would recommend just pulling the male, cave, and babies to a seperate tank with the same parameters as the breeding tank as opposed to siphoning them out. The yolk sacs are usually fairly large while still in the cave and may become damaged in something as small as airline tubing. The current piece should be fine. Ancistrus are usually not as picky about cave size as the other genera.

Larry Vires

Thanks a bunch! looks like the plan work out!


Btw, is there any way to get him to choose this particular site? It would be really cool to see a little head peeking out from the tunnel. The only thing I can think of is after releasing him... "guiding" him toward the entrance of the hole.

Btw, if they'll get stuck in airline tubing....how big are they? My assumption was that they would be about the size of baby kribs.

mmm can't imagin how the cave would look like.
any pictures?

I dont understand the length width and height of pvc?

what is meant by 1.5 times the width?>

Hello,

Here is a pic of what I normally use for Ancistrus. Some species, such as L34 and LDA08 because of thier uncommon shape prefer fabricated caves with the prior dimensions. The dimensions described are based on the body size, not including fins, of the fish. A fish which is 1 inch wide, would get a 1 1/2 inch wide hole.



Larry Vires

thanks for the pictures..