Fish Pick Help!

[Tenchu]

hey all. after doing a few days of reading and reading and more reading and decided that we think African cichlids are not only beautiful but interesting especially when breeding. We have only had guppies in the past so would like help on what fish you think are good starter fish. size tank? we were thinking of somewhere between 20 to 40gallon. the different colors of African cichlids someone is selling those Christmas fulu, and those bi color peacocks oh man their cool. Also plants I know a little about very few aquatic plants can we have plants with those fish? now filters what is good on the market? I have read the thread on cycling and of course will be doing that I just want to make sure that the fish and size of the tank plants or no plants. also I have seen some people said that they can be mean but we would like a few different types of fish. also I think the cichlids will eat cherry shrimp correct?

 

[MrsM]

First bit of advice...get the biggest tank you can fit in your house and afford, or youll only want bigger haha

 

[Yanks15]

First off, you'll love African cichlids. Second, if you are looking at getting Mbuna, I would advise at least a 55gal tank. Most of this species grow to a mature size of at least 4". Most around 5-6" so space is needed. It is mostly recommended to overstock these fish because of aggression. With that being said, over-filtration is needed- somewhere around 10x gph or more. Make sure that your water is pretty hard. They prefer a pH of around 8 and temp of 78. In most cases they do NOT go well with any other tropical fish!! Unless you plan on feeding them the other fish. In most cases plants are useless with them. Most tend to dig and that means uprooted plants. You will need plenty of hiding spaces for them to escape aggressive tank mates and stake their territories. It's best to keep them 1m to 3+f if possible. Cichlid-forum.com is a great source to find profiles on these fish. Good luck.


Thanks,
Steve

 

[Tenchu]

Thanks M I keep and breed reptiles so im actually looking to cut back on the herps for some fish. We do plan on going as large as we possibly can because our ultimate goal is a salt water tank but we wanted to start with fresh first and get a feel for fish. Steve the info you gave me is great! thank you for reaching out. What do you mean by over stocking them like getting more then I normally would? also is it ok to mix the different types or is that frowned upon? what are some good filters out there? which specie of cichlid are easy to keep and breed. part of our reptile hobby the kids love the eggs and raising babies.

 

[Yanks15]

Overstocking is just that. For example, I have a 55gal(US) with 25 mbuna. For their adult size I probably should only have 10. Now it won't stay that way. Right now they are just juveniles- +/- 2". I plan to cull back the stock when I can sex them and get a favorable 1m-3f stocking for some of them. It is usually best to keep Mbuna with Mbuna, Peacocks with Peacocks, etc. I really only keep Mbuna so there might be others that have keep different types together without issues. If you like Peacocks, some people like to keep male only tanks because the males are the colorful ones. My understanding is that they won't color up as much without females but are still quite impressive anyway. As for filters, I myself am in the process of upgrading my system, moving toward a canister. Currently I run Aqua Clear hob filters and have for as long as I have had fish. They are great filters and are easy to service. Others may be able to answer the breeding question as I have not gotten to that point yet. You can post in the African Cichlid section too.


Thanks,
Steve

 

[Tenchu]

awesome. sounds good I went to my local pet smart yesterday to talk to a guy I normally get my crickets from in between reptile shows. he knows a lot about fish and he showed me their cichlids Oscars, bala sharks, tetra's ect. he instructed me that most cichlids stay with their own and don't play well with others so my hopes and dreams of a communal tank is out the window. this just means to me I need a second tank eventually ha ha. I am having so much fun reading up on the different fish its so much info to take in but its helping me pass the time at work. thanks for the help its much appreciated.

 

[MrsM]

I feel the start of MTS starting here


MTS= multi tank syndrome hahaha, ive got it too.....lol

 

[ColR1948]

Ha Ha, yes I have MTS badly, I am dreaming/planning now of my next (big) tank

This is one of the problems of new fishkeepers, I'm not having a go because I too fell in to the trap. If you plan on Cichlids TRY and stay with that plan because once you start looking at other types and mixing then get told you shouldn't put this with that then it's another tank or you taking them back to the shop or trying to rehome them, I ended up with more tanks

Also don't just take the word on the guy in the fish shop if he tells you such and such fish are OK with so and so fish, and check how big they grow as well, come on here and ask or read up as much as you can, good luck in your search and the new tank.