Needing Some Help With Fire Red Apisto

[ridewake210]

Picked up a male and a female fire red apisto off of Aqua Bid.
Having some concerns.


The female, shes doing great.
I've put some meat on her and she's grown quite a bit since I've had her.
I've had these for 2, going on 3 weeks now.
The male was terrific the first week, i have noticed him hiding alot now.

Am having to luck under every piece of wood in my tank to make sure he
is still alive.

What do these fish like as far as water conditions go?
I've got zero nitrites and zero nitrates. Ammonia level is at zero.
Havent checked the PH in a couple of days.

Other tank mates-

4 juvenile angels
3 cardinals and 3 neons
9 glow light tetras
8 serpea tetras
4 cherry barbs
and 1 blue/orange gourami, he's about 2's long and fully grown.



Any suggestions?

 

[LIflynn]

Most Dwarf Cichlids inhabit soft acidic blackwater. The recommended values are as follows:a pH from 5.5-6.8, a water hardness from 0-8 dH, and a temperature from 75-84°F (24-29°C). So your apisto should be no different.

 

[ridewake210]

My PH is around 7.4, im going to try and lower it a bit more.
My temp was a smidge too high IMO. It was sitting at 88 degrees.
I backed the heater off a couple of degrees.


Im hoping for a different attitude from the guy tomorrow.
Wish me luck.

 

[karin]

If they are tank bred I think they can go with a wider range of Ph. I would recommend a quick email to the seller and find out what his Ph is before you get into lower it with chemicals and such. My apistos are doing well in a Ph of 8.