Getting A New Tank.... Cichlid Setup?

[joel4]

Hello all,

I'm new to this forum, so go easy on me

I'm getting a new tank this weekend, a Juwel Vision 180 from one of my friends, and I've been wondering what to put in it. I don't know whether to do a full cichlid setup, or do a community tank.
I'd like cichlids because I think they have much more personality, but I'm not sure what to put in a 180L? I'm basically looking for something as colourful as possible (to keep the missus happy), but not too small, I know I'm not going to be able to have massive fish in that tank, but I'd like something as big as possible.

So any suggestions as to what would go in there are more than welcome.

Thanks for reading

Oh ps, It'll have the standard filter in there, but I'm thinking of getting an external as well just to keep the water crystal clear

 

[garyspence84]

Hi joel and welcome aboard

Iv kept severum in a 180ltr before but they did get a tad too big for it and had to sell them on. But this was after having them in it from infants so I got a good 7years before having to move them on. They are stunning fish with excellent colour.

Blue Acara are a nice cichlid too that have some real nice colour in them when they get a bit bigger, although im not to sure how big they grow?

The dwarf cichlids would prob better suit your tank, like rams and such, although I know you'd like something a bit bigger.

Parrots are quite nice too although they tend not to play well with others, which is a no no if you would like something a bit more communial.

Good luck

G

Oh, Angels would do well in your tank. They do get to a fair size right enough, but not monsters like some of their other cichlid cousins

 

[joel4]

Thanks for the reply! I'd like to get all of them from a small size first, and if they get to big it's a perfect excuse to upgrade the tank

Could I get a young severum in there? Only a small one. And yeah maybe some Acaras, but don't they grow to abut 6", is this too big? What about rainbow cichlids?

And what kind of bottom dwellers could I keep? I'd like a plec, then some others as well but I'm not sure.

 

[dbanner]

A Severum would be ok in your tank and maybe 1 acara. When it comes to south American cichlids it's ideally a case of the more filtration the better as they are big eaters so produce a lot of waste.

Many people look at plecs in the wrong way, they seem to think they clean up the bottom of your tank feeding on excess food and waste... In reality this is not true. Plecs actually make more mess than they clean and add to your bioload.

Not really sure what bottom feeder you could get though other than a plec as a lot of south American cichlids tend to be semi aggressive.

I have a smaller species plec in with my cichlids (an orange spotted plec). It's in a 450 litre with an Oscar, a Texas, a green severum, 2 dempseys and 2 jewels. Iv got a fluval fx5 external filter and even with this and my biggest fish only being around 6 inches so far and te smallest at around 2-3 inches I still have to do a 30% water change and gravel vac every week to make sure it's clean

What about....

1 sev
1 acara
2 jewels

Or

1 sev
1 acara
1 firemouth

You could have zebra loaches as bottom feeders

 

[onidrase]

Too small for any severums tbh. I'd also avoid jewels, they tend to be horrific in aggression. Rainbow cichlids would be good, as well as key holes although they're dull. A Honduran red point would work well, just make sure its not a convict.

 

[Wills]

180 liters is wayyyy too small for Severums!! Its at the border line of acceptable for Blue Acaras as well.

Severums are massive fish when adult which is under 3 years in good conditions they are tall and long fish and deserve at least 300 liters you can often get away with a Rotkiel or true mouthbrooder in 250-260 liters.

I agree with Onidrase as well with regards the Jewels they are so aggressive it would be a massive risk. Also Rainbow Cichlids or Keyholes sounds pretty good Krobia would be nice as well. A group of Cupid Cichlids would be nice.


Wills



- dbanner - please stop giving out such flawed advice, Ive said it before you are getting through this on luck alone and the people you tell what to do will probably not be so lucky.

- gary spence - sorry mate but 180 liters for severums for 7 years is way to small they should have been up at about a foot in size by about 3 years.


What has happened to this section

 

[onidrase]

+1 to everything that Wills says, types, walks on, and touches

 

[dbanner]

My bad, my lfs told me a sev would only get to around the 9 inch mark.

Jewels can be aggressive but none that iv come across yet... Maybe at feeding time but that's about it. All the cichlids iv kept get along great, apart from my dovii but they are known to not get on with anything.

Every fish has their own temperament so it just trail and error, you can't really put a fish down to being aggressive due to rep, you may get a jewel like all the ones iv seen, or you may get an aggressive one. I'd agree with on the convicts being aggressive. Every lfs iv been to had said they cause havoc in most tanks.

It's like most people think Dempsey aggression is over rated but iv had 2 that would attack everything in the tank and was only 3 inches. Iv got more now and they don't bother a thing.

 

[dbanner]

Hi joel and welcome aboard

Iv kept severum in a 180ltr before but they did get a tad too big for it and had to sell them on. But this was after having them in it from infants so I got a good 7years before having to move them on. They are stunning fish with excellent colour.

Blue Acara are a nice cichlid too that have some real nice colour in them when they get a bit bigger, although im not to sure how big they grow?

The dwarf cichlids would prob better suit your tank, like rams and such, although I know you'd like something a bit bigger.

Parrots are quite nice too although they tend not to play well with others, which is a no no if you would like something a bit more communial.

Good luck

G

Wow.... 7 years!! I don't think I'd have a fish that Long lol I get bored quickly... Think the longest time i or should i say my parents had a fish was just over 3 years. They had a red Oscar, 2 green terrors and a red devil. They all got alone fine but they were in a 6x3x3 so they had plenty of room. They had to sell the tank a good few years back when my dad fell ill and couldn't maintain it I wasn't interested in fish at the time, my world evolved around downhill mountain bike racing which i still do now but struggling to pay to keep the fish, race and run the car and motorbike... Expensive hobbys lol £4000+ on a push bike is crazy to a lot of people lol

Anyway... Iv got into Fish keeping properly a couple of years back and them having a 6x3x3 is the reason I'm looking for 1 now, seemed the ideal size... That and I can't fit bigger in the house without the other half complaining

When it comes to fish, if its not big and/or predatory then I usually won't look at it twice lol anything else bores me.

 

[dbanner]

Ok, just had a quick check up so i don't give anymore wrong info and i found if you was to get a green sev like i have they only get to 8 inch and minimum tank size with no tank mates is 30 gallon but preferably 40 gal. Tank needs to be at least 20 inches high.

 

[Liam2368]

green sevs are one of the bigger sev species. As wills said minimum tank size is 300 litre, have you ever seen a adult green or gold sev? they usually top out about 12 inches and are very deep body, me personally in a 180 litre i would maybe get a pair of sajicas for the more aggressive setup or rainbow cichlids for more peaceful or something along those lines and some dithers my favourite would be emperor tetras, to be honest that tank is more suited to dwarfs.

 

[Dieses Madchen]

Too small for any severums tbh. I'd also avoid jewels, they tend to be horrific in aggression. Rainbow cichlids would be good, as well as key holes although they're dull. A Honduran red point would work well, just make sure its not a convict.

+1 On that!! Onidrase knows I could tell some horror stories about jewel cichlids

http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?/topic/383233-quiet-jewel-cichlid/page__p__3216746__fromsearch__1#entry3216746

 

[onidrase]

My bad, my lfs told me a sev would only get to around the 9 inch mark.

Jewels can be aggressive but none that iv come across yet... Maybe at feeding time but that's about it. All the cichlids iv kept get along great, apart from my dovii but they are known to not get on with anything.

Every fish has their own temperament so it just trail and error, you can't really put a fish down to being aggressive due to rep, you may get a jewel like all the ones iv seen, or you may get an aggressive one. I'd agree with on the convicts being aggressive. Every lfs iv been to had said they cause havoc in most tanks.

It's like most people think Dempsey aggression is over rated but iv had 2 that would attack everything in the tank and was only 3 inches. Iv got more now and they don't bother a thing.

Even a 9 inch severum is too big anyway. I'd say 7 to 8 inches is the limit for the tank in question. And not 7 to 8 inches of severum. They're really deep bodied. IMO staying around 6 inches like there keyholes and Cupids and such would be perfect size

I've never had a jewel that isn't aggressive, and dieses had a jewel that murdered everything that was placed in a 75 gallon tank with it. I adopted a jewel when I got my 75 that was attacking everything until I put my bigger and Badder convict in the tank with it to keep her hiding.

though you might get a few nice fish once in a while, its better to give people the temperament that they're known for, not the temperament that they might have.

 

[onidrase]

Ok, just had a quick check up so i don't give anymore wrong info and i found if you was to get a green sev like i have they only get to 8 inch and minimum tank size with no tank mates is 30 gallon but preferably 40 gal. Tank needs to be at least 20 inches high.

I just had a quick checkup so I don't give anymore wrong info and I found if you was to get a pleco it would be alright in a 10 gallon tank cause they only grow to the size of the tank

Green sevs get gigantic, they're definitely better off in at least 75 gallons, the more the better

 

[Wills]

though you might get a few nice fish once in a while, its better to give people the temperament that they're known for, not the temperament that they might have.

So true...

dbanner not sure if your taking this on board but its worth it.


Though i dont want to see your source as it may violate forum policy just want to clear up a source of confusion that you may have found. Heros Severus the true mouth brooding Severum gets to about 8 inches though there are variants that get bigger. IMO they need at least 60 gallons or more rather than a 40.

However the common Green Severus is called Heros Severus which is a common mistake as the Green Severum is H.Efasciatus which DOES grow to 10 - 12 inches depending on strain, gender and upbringing.

The only time I can think its acceptable to use a 40g breeder for Severums is for the purpose of breeding in a fish house - which is common but this is only for a few weeks at a time rather than long term captivity.

Either way Severums are big fish and big fish = big tanks.


Really sorry to the OP for ranting in here.

There are some really great suggestions in here like the Sajicas and Rainbows

Wills