I Found Them~

[fishwatcher]

Finally I stumbled upon a new lfs today! Well, not too local, it's a 45 min drive. Anywho, I'm supposed to call them in the AM with the names of which/how many shell dwellers I want, and they said they should be able to get them within a week! I've been asking around about these for a year now, and finally found a place that can actually get them!
I am going to get either 4 brevis or 6 multis, and then hopefully end up with a pair of brevis or a trio of multis. I can return any others once they can be sexed.
Now, I just need to know the best way to keep my ph up. Out of the tap it's an even 7.0, and the dealer said he'll find out if they are wild caught or tank-bred, and what ph they have been kept at so we'll know what to get my tank to. He mentioned that I could use some sort of cichlid ph stuff that you add to the tank, but it makes it high (around 9) so he wants to be sure if it'd match up to what they're used to first.
I have a large chunk of tufa rock I am going to add, along with a pile of shells (some sea shells, some snail shells). Hopefully that will up it enough. The only question i really have is how to up the ph of the water I add when I do water changes. Should I get another piece of tufa rock and soak it in the water a day or so, or add some sort of ph chemical to it, or what?
Thanks for any help!
I'm just so excited!

 

[dthoffsett]

You can buy african cichlid buffer, or mix your own, just add it to the bucket along with your dechlorinator, and make sure it dissolves before adding it to the tank. You'll have to experiment a little to find out how much you need to add to get the ph amount right.

Here's a recipe for homemade buffer:
http/www.cichlid-forum.com/articles/buffer_recipe.php

 

[fishwatcher]

Thanks so much! That helps a whole lot!
I think I may try the store-bought, at least until I get the guts up to try making my own. I'm so scared of killing them.... not only are they oh so cute, but they're running me $6-10 each!