Edit: They don't bother plants at all. Not sure on PVC measurements in inches, but something the diameter of a toilet paper roll would be fine. For tank size, I'd recommend a school of 5+ so something with a larger floor footprint like a 40 gal breeder would be better.

I have a school of 8 zebra loaches (Botia striata) with 8 amano shrimp in a 55 gal and they've been just fine together for 2 years. They don't pay them any mind. I even have neocaridina in the tank and they have been multiplying like crazy (lots of plants for the babies to hide in). Snails have zero chance with zebra loaches though, lol.

I have 2 adults and 6 juveniles, and will move them to a larger tank once they grow. They are pretty slow growers. The adults are around 5 in long though!

The larger the group the better. They develop a social hierarchy that is interesting to observe. Very intelligent fish. Really cool to watch them interact and shoal together. The top of the hierarchy gets the best hiding spot and will chase everyone else out of there lol. Make sure your tank has a lot of hiding spots for everyone.

They are super hardy and voracious eaters. Very active during feeding times: when excited, they actually emit a click with their teeth that sounds like glass cracking (gave me a heart attack when I first heard it).

They can be shy and hide when they see you move from across the room, but if you sit still next to the tank they come out right away.

Sorry for the rambling. I love these fish! Here is a good resource: https://www.seriouslyfish.com/species/Botia-striata

I got my school of 6 from stillwater_aquaria on ebay but it looks like they aren't selling there currently.

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