Who Gives A Fish Forums

I've got a 120 litre tank coming and I've reserved a pair of kribs to go in it. When I asked about tank mates, I was told Corys, tetras and rainbow fish would be alright. But I'm pretty sure I've read on here before that Corys aren't a good idea. I've been doing some more reading and now I'm seeing that it's best to keep kribs on their own. I'm getting really confused now.

Can anyone help me out with some suggestions for tank mates or confirm that it's best to go without? Any other advice would be great, I'm open to hearing what you all think.

I've got some Pelvicachromis Taeniatus, they're from the same family as Kribs, and I've had no issues with them. I also have Corys in the same tank and they're fine, although they do love to snack on the fry - Ppffffttttt. I've also got copper harlequins and rummy nose tetras, as well as a couple of L38 and pitbull plecs. They can be a bit feisty when breeding, but I've been lucky so far.

Brillkento4t, thanks for that, just one more thing, I've got coconut shells for caves but I'm not sure how to create an opening, any ideas?

I used a hacksaw for the initial cut, then followed up with a sander to smooth out the edges.

ladydawn wrote: ↑Mon Feb 19, 2024 10:04 pm I've got a 120 litre tank coming and I've reserved a pair of kribs to go in it. When I asked about tank mates, I was told Corys, tetras and rainbow fish would be alright. But I'm pretty sure I've read on here before that Corys aren't a good idea. I've been doing some more reading and now I'm seeing that it's best to keep kribs on their own. I'm getting really confused now.

Can anyone help me out with some suggestions for tank mates or confirm that it's best to go without? Any other advice would be great, I'm open to hearing what you all think.

I've had some success with a pretty straightforward method in the past. What you do is tap along the coconut's equator with a hammer, or whatever you've got handy, while rotating it at the same time. It might not seem like it's doing anything, but trust me, it'll eventually split in two - and it's usually a clean break, which is a bonus.

To create an opening in the coconut shell, I found that using a hammer and carefully chiseling it out worked well for me.

A drill with a hole cutter attachment does the trick nicely.

flarix wrote: ↑Tue Feb 20, 2024 2:58 am A drill with a hole cutter attachment does the trick nicely.

I ended up taking the hammer approach to create an opening in the coconut shells, not the prettiest result but it gets the job done. On a recent visit to a fish shop in Cardiff, I stumbled upon ceramic caves with neat round holes, so I've added two of those to the tank as well. The kribs are on their way, and I'm planning to pick up some rainbow fish too. As for the Corys, I'm leaning towards keeping them in their current tank - just seems safer for them. Once the new additions are settled, I'll start a new thread seeking advice on tank setup and plants, and hopefully figure out how to share some photos here.

I noticed you've added two coconut caves to the tank, which is great, as I've read that Kribs tend to like having a choice in their shelter. Another simple, yet effective cave idea is to create a small stone circle and place a piece of slate on top as the roof. The opening should be just large enough for the Kribs to fit through, giving them a cozy little space to call their own.

Mine tend to spawn in the coconut shell, then proceed to relocate the eggs all around the tank.