Planning breeding setup of L numbers

[Jackos80]

Well I'm moving soon and sold my last breeding setup.

Planning a new one with bigger tanks and less numbers.

Basically I am getting some pallet racks from Couchy that are three levels 8 foot long and 2 foot wide. What I am looking at is having two levels and one 6foot tank divided into three 2 foots on each level. This I will use to breed bristle nose catfish the normal commons, albinos and peppermints. The top tank I haven't decided what to breed in there probably cichlids.

What I want to do is look at breeding some L numbers as well. More of raise the excitement and actually get me working. My last bristlenose breeders all I had to do was suck out the pooh once a week. And then every 6 weeks suck out the fry and put them in my grow out tanks. So was thinking that they will need more tender care than the bristle noses. So thinking I might get some 2 foot tanks. These I will place at the end of the six foots black out the side that sits on the other tank.

These will hold the L numbers. Thinking something a bit more cheaper than any L046s as my experience with plecos isn't that high. Like the look of L397 and L333s. I have been checking prices of trios and colonies of these and they are in my price range. My budget is pretty good as I have put most of my money away from my breeding setup and stock. Need some experts opinions here thinking of starting with a trio of each. In there own tanks and just a hang on filter, some logs and slate caves so they can have there choice.

So questions I am asking are

1. What substrate

2. Will 2 foots be enough for trios

3. Large hang on filters be good enough

[intern1]

I would be using a bigger tank than a standard 2 ft probably 3ft or 2 x 18"

[chorrylan]

L397's chew wood like it's about to become extinct so you need filtration to deal with that (eg multiple canisters and clean them in rotation.)

Both the L397 and L333 like large and frequent waterchanges (like most plecs I guess) so I'd consider an ideal setup for a trio would be a 2x18' acting as a 'sump' to another 2x18 on the rack above it.

Use a canister or two to lift the water to the tank above it and return via a drain with plenty of current.

Put something like bristenose in the tank above (ie catties that makes a habit of pumping the system full of pheremones.)

[Jackos80]

L397's chew wood like it's about to become extinct so you need filtration to deal with that (eg multiple canisters and clean them in rotation.)

Both the L397 and L333 like large and frequent waterchanges (like most plecs I guess) so I'd consider an ideal setup for a trio would be a 2x18' acting as a 'sump' to another 2x18 on the rack above it.

Use a canister or two to lift the water to the tank above it and return via a drain with plenty of current.

Put something like bristenose in the tank above (ie catties that makes a habit of pumping the system full of pheremones.)

I was thinking of plumbing the two 6 foots together into a sum but not the small tanks. I was just thinking of over kill on the hang on filters or I could go a canister filter on the side. Don't want to fully plumb together in case of disease or parasite.

Didn't know about the pheremones though nice info. And the width of the tank I can do 18" thick. Most of the tanks I'm getting will be custom built over in Perth so I'm sure a extra 2foots won't cost me that much extra.