Some eel/setup questions

[SDguy]

I'm going to be upgrading my FOWLR to a 240 (8') shortly. I really want some eels in the tank. Nothing crazy... maybe a ribbon, skeletor, and/or spotted snake eel. I don't, however, want sand. I do want to use PVC pipe along the back of the tank, with maybe 3 or 4 openings facing forward, specifically for the eel(s). Here are my questions:

1. What size pipe?
2. What can I cover the pipe with to disguise it? I don't plan on having a live rock "wall" in the tank... just a few pillars. So the bare PVC would be a huge eye sore.
3. Will a snake eel be OK in such a setup? Way back in the day I had one (probably my favorite fish I've ever owned), and I had a PVC pipe buried for him since the giant crushed coral on the U/G filter :lol: was too big to burrow into. He seemed fine for years like this. But is being able to actually bury in sand necessary for this species?
4. Do ribbon eels require multiples? I thought I remember reading that somewhere... Yes, I know they are difficult, require lots of attention, etc. If you've seen any of my other fish threads, you'll know this is acceptable to me
5. Do eel keepers use the same netting/framework as wrasse keepers, or will I need something more substantial?

TIA for the help with planning this!

 

[NEK-ap24]

Good thread, I hope you get some good answers.

I just build a screen for my 225 set up, (app. 1/4 inch clear screen from BRS) I tested it by pushing on it with my fist, and was surprised at its strength. I will definetely need to weight it down or make a bracket/clamp to ensure that the eel won't lift it off and escape at the edge.

I was planning on doing many pvc pipes along the bottom (tapering the size as it got closer to the front i.e. 4",3",2",1.5",1", 3/4" at the front) so that they would be easily covered up with sand. I wanted to avoid a DSB, not sure if that is why you don't want sand or if there are other reasons.

I just ordered a Whitemouth from my LFS, I can't wait to see it but hopefully 4" will be adaquate for him/her.

A skeletor just popped on Diver's Den WYSIWYG FYI, good looking eel.

I see that you are not interested in sand, which poses a problem.

One thought that came to mind is drilling the bottom of the tank and making a closed loop so to speak with two 90s and a horizontal piece connecting them. I don't know how big Skels get in diameter, but for the ribbon you could certainly get a bulkhead that would accomadate it, then the eel cave would be concealed under the stand.

Post a picture of your set up when you get it all figured out, and good luck

 

[gmate]

One thought that came to mind is drilling the bottom of the tank and making a closed loop so to speak with two 90s and a horizontal piece connecting them. I don't know how big Skels get in diameter, but for the ribbon you could certainly get a bulkhead that would accomadate it, then the eel cave would be concealed under the stand.

Great, great idea. But detritus is likely to get trapped in that tube and gunk it up real bad, create issues with water parameters. If you're comfortable flushing that tube out every week or so (maybe a long clear plastic hose attached to a decent powerhead so you don't have to get waist-deep into your tank) then I'd say go for this idea.

 

[SDguy]

Thanks for the input. The tubes being plumbed under the tank sounds great, but I don't think I want to drill the bottom of my tank for that. How about gluing sand/gravel/rocks to the outside of the PVC to conceal it?

I saw the skeletor on LADD. I think that's the first large one I've seen. Very nice, but I think it reminds me why I'd prefer the snake or ribbon eel...

 

[Moray keeper]

Thanks for the input. The tubes being plumbed under the tank sounds great, but I don't think I want to drill the bottom of my tank for that. How about gluing sand/gravel/rocks to the outside of the PVC to conceal it?

I saw the skeletor on LADD. I think that's the first large one I've seen. Very nice, but I think it reminds me why I'd prefer the snake or ribbon eel...

They had a few around 20" not too long ago but they were half the price

 

[SDguy]

They had a few around 20" not too long ago but they were half the price

I was referring more to the girth, not the price

 

[Moray keeper]

I was referring more to the girth, not the price

Me too, they had a few that were the same size as the one they posted yesterday but they jacked the price up on this one.

 

[NEK-ap24]

I made the mistake on a PVC set up with my 125 and left a couple of vertical openings which absolutely became detritus traps. I modified it to have a 90 elbow to a short stretch of horizontal pipe and that reduced the problem a great deal.

So I guess you could drill the lower part of the back of the tank, and then you would have a horizontal PVC cave behind the tank and you could extend it forward from the back glass out toward the center or front of the tank to make a good viewing spot for your moray. (and no drilling the bottom

Does anyone see any issues with plumbing a closed loop system to an eel cave? Just enough to keep a slow current of water pushing out of the pipe work? This would keep the detritus out of the cave and even help flush out some rejected food that he or she may pull into the cave and discard.

Peter,
an 8 foot tank would be pricy to do, but I am trying to keep throwing you ideas... how about a false bottom that covers some pipe work and still gives you the BB look you are after. (also, I guess you would see the pipes through the glass in the short term, until the coraline covered it up.)

I considered doing that on my 225 because it is 30" tall and I don't need all that height, but I am leaning toward the PVC pipes plumbed together to provide a variety of diameter of pipes for the eels to inhabit as they grow.

 

[namxas]

You could use black ABS and instead of 90* els, you can use the 45* Y fittings. They are more easily hidden because they're black, and will likely catch less detritus. If you want to clean them out every so often, you could use a PH to blow them out into a small filter sock (preferably with the eel out of the pipe!).

They could easily be covered with rubble or CC on the exterior.

JM .02...

 

[SDguy]

I was fully planing on cleaning them out using a powerhead, which is why I planned to leave them open on at least both sides. Sorry if I didn't make that clear in the first post.

How would you cover them with rubble or CC?

 

[NEK-ap24]

perhaps rough sand the PVC to make it a bit course
Put a towel on the ground and cover it in CC or rubble.
Goop the PVC up with a thin layer of silicone all around.
Place PVC on CC/rubble at the edge of the towel and roll it up.

compress towel all over to ensure decent contact and let dry.

will probably still want to go back and fill in places that don't stick / fall out.

it may look a bit "artificial" in a BB tank though. I would consider making some off shoots or flat spots or ripples etc. to disguise the cookie coated pipe look.

 

[SDguy]

Is silicone the best bet? I once used Marine Goop to make a DIY skimmer... sticks to plastic REALLY well.

I agree, create some sort of sloping effects away from the pipe, to hide the shape a bit. Or also somehow attach irregular rubble in some places?

 

[NEK-ap24]

I don't know for sure what is best, I am sounding thoughts and ideas, I wish I could tell you from first hand experience, but I am at the same stage as you are. (aside from just having tubes sitting free and ugly in my tank) The Marine Goop sounds good to me, I've no experience with it. Of the two, I think the rubble will be the easy part to adhere, so I would focus on the product that works best for sticking to the PVC.

 

[namxas]

You could also roughen-up the ABS a bit to insure good adhesion since it will be covered up anyhow. Maybe a couple of passes with 32 grit paper just to take the sheen off.

 

[helicoprion]

Are you interested in covering the piping with a DSB? That seems to be what most people do.

 

[NEK-ap24]

Helicoprion,
The OP was not interested in sand at all. Which adds to the complexity of the solution.
I have considered it for mine, but fear the DSB time bomb that I hear about in older tanks. Have you had any long term DSB's with your eel tanks? If so, could you show a picture, I am curious with the appearance of the front glass with 6" of sand.