New Tank Set Up - Suggesions/tips

[Tory]

I am looking at getting rams actually, I have only jsut discovered them through this forum, and think theyre beautiful.

I have just discovered how cheap play sand is - £2.89 for 15k. How do you clean it? I think I may invest in some, especially if it will benefit the fish

 

[Curiosity101]

Just to echo what Truck said, although I appreciate your rams may be fine, you really would enjoy seeing them on sand AndyWatson.

I regularly see my Bolivians take a mouthful of sand just to see it come shooting out of their gills as the search for food and dig little pits.
It's quite funny when I feed them too, they'll have a cichlid pellet in their mouthes and then you'll see all these orangey specs come flying out of their gills and the tetras come speeding over to scavange. Really makes me laugh.

Back to the point...
Cleaning is easy but time consuming.
Stick some in a bucket, get a hose, swirl sand around in water (whilst hose is on), pouring away excess cloudy water at the same time...
You'll never get it perfectly clean, but do your best, a bit at a time and the filter should hopefully do the rest for you.

 

[Tory]

Cleaning is easy but time consuming.
Stick some in a bucket, get a hose, swirl sand around in water (whilst hose is on), pouring away excess cloudy water at the same time...
You'll never get it perfectly clean, but do your best, a bit at a time and the filter should hopefully do the rest for you.

Thanks Curiosity101, thats great. My temp is usually aroud 26 degrees c...would that be ok for them?

 

[Truck]

Cleaning is easy but time consuming.
Stick some in a bucket, get a hose, swirl sand around in water (whilst hose is on), pouring away excess cloudy water at the same time...
You'll never get it perfectly clean, but do your best, a bit at a time and the filter should hopefully do the rest for you.

Thanks Curiosity101, thats great. My temp is usually aroud 26 degrees c...would that be ok for them?

for bolivians...but not german blues (they also come in a gold form too but theyre the same species)

 

[Curiosity101]

Mine are at 26ish (poss 26.5) and I have fully coloured, active, healthy fish.

Though just to make it very very clear I'm referring to Bolivian Rams. Not German Blues (Mikrogeophagus ramirezi), If I had them then I would have them at no lower than 28C

 

[ALW]

If i ever was to get sand it would be black and i cant find it anywhere local, i am thinking of getting rid of the gravel and going for a peat/aquarium soil substrate though.

 

[Tory]

Thanks for all your help guys, I really appreciate it - It was bolivians I was looking at, Im trying to get some colour in the tank as all I seem to have is silver, black and a couple of yellow

With regards to the sand thing, how do you maintain once in the tank?