New Tank

[fishymann]

alright, well after realizing that angel fish wouldn't really please me i'm deciding to go with african cichlids in my 55G that i will be getting soon. I want some really colorful fish so i'm up for suggestions, both on fish, and decorations, and substrate.

 

[nelly3164]

hi, after doing a lot of research on this subject with books, this forum and advice from friends i think to start off a malawi tank you could do a lot worse than to go with something like MAYLANDIA ZEBRA this fish has so many colourations and morphs you are sure to find something very pleasing to the eye. you want plenty of stones for hiding places and to make caves and bolt holes. i have found the best substrate to use is coral sand which is very good for keeping the ph of your water very stable. have a look round your local fish shops to see what is stocked, if you do not find anything to your liking dont just buy "malawis" because quite a lot of these fish, when placed in the same tank, guess what DISASTER!, fighting, territory struggles, etc, etc and you can lose a lot of fish this way. just do a bit of homework and your new tank will be brilliant. good luck.

 

[fishymann]

is coral sand crushed coral? and as far as the rocks any amount of pounds? or just buy some and start fillin the tank with caves and what not? My sci teacher has a cichlid tank and i help him out a lot with it and i know that hiding spots are very important he has a huge amount of rock in his 55g. i really like the Demasoni Cichlid and the Electric Yellow Cichlid.

 

[nelly3164]

yes crushed coral. as for rocks, i think that is just personal taste, obviously enough to make plenty of caves i have mine in a sort of stretched out pyramid shape because the top third is very rarely used by these fish. i am not familiar with demasoni cichlid but by electric yellow cichlid i presume you mean labidochromis caeruleus "yellow", a very pretty fish but can be a nasty piece of work when it wants.

 

[fishymann]

i had choosen those fish from this list
http/www.liveaquaria.com/product/scateg.cfm?pCatId=1825
not sure what my lfs has so i'll look when i go. what kind of bed should i do with the crushed coral(1"?)?, and i know there are different kinds of rock like Figi and others? any specific ones i should go with or just what ever i like? also, should i get fake plants (i know they'll tear up real ones), or is the cover provided by them not necesary? t hanks for all the help

 

[nelly3164]

i have about 2 to 21/2 inch of coral sand in my tank, as long as this is agitated with every water change, about once a week changing between 25% and 40% of your water this should be okay. you stir the sand to release toxic build up of gases. some of those fish are really nice but i would stick to things like the labidochromis caeruleus and the zebra cichlids. as for plants there are a few that cichlids find not very pallatable so they leave them alone. just dont plant loads just 2 or 3.

 

[Ginge]

Yeah dont jsut get them of line you have around a month of cycling ahead thats if youve already got the tank spend the time wisley doing reasearsh sounds boring but 1 its interestng and 2 it helps soo much.

 

[fishymann]

i got two other tanks, i'm gonna start the filter for the 55G in my 20 to get thAT going, than going to put the filter back in the 55 along with my 4 danios. With my sci teacher i do weekly water changes and i add cichlid salt, and a buffer, should i also purchase these mixes for this tank?, i really like both the zebra cichlid and the electric yellow cichlid (labidochromis caeruleus), I also know that my lfs has buffalo cichlid, at some point would i be able to put them in this tank too?

Also if i was to stick with the zebra, electric yellow cichlid how many of htem would be a good idea, and also could i get a "center piece" cichlid to just like finish off the tank? thanks for all the help guys i love it here

 

[mamafish68]

Maylandias can be hyper aggressive to the point of having ONLY zebras left in the end.
dont forget Haplochromis, very colorful group!!

COPADICHROMIS BORLEYI (KADANGO):

OTOPHARYNX LITHOBATES (SULPHER TOP):

some examples sorry for the size of pictures
(takes off the "show off hat")
just make sure you pay attention to food requirements,(you dont want a bunch herbavoures with a bunch of MEATavoures )
adult size,
aggression!

eewww pics are all fuzzy

 

[nelly3164]

nice fish mamafish are they yours?. i thought i was being clever getting an aulonacara hansbaenchi (photo in signature) beautiful fish, did not do my homework, killed 1 johanni, 1 lombardoi, and even a female hansbaenchi, just because i did not do my homework and find compatible species.

 

[mamafish68]

ty, yes their mine, some of us like to call them BANSHEE'S like a lady indian, screaming madd & mean!!!
good luck with that one

 

[nelly3164]

luckily found him a new home. have now got labidochromis caeruleus, maylandia zebra including 4 so called albinos (very pale pink, with slightly darker pink stripes) beautiful when they get to about 4 inch.