Ram cichlids in a 29 gallon?

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Stefan3289

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So some of you may remember that I have been talking about what to stock my 29 gallon tank with, and I finally came up with the idea to stalk it only with a variety of ram cichlids. How many would I be able to stock it with? (9?).

I have moderately soft water, easily can get high temperatures, and can maintain a low ph for them like in my South American cichlids tank.
 
Its always better to keep a pair of them, but first we'd need to know your pH, GH and KH as rams are soft water fish.
What kind of rams do you want? Most rams need higher temperatures.
 
Ph is 7 (from tap) but I use for my lower cichlid tank a ph stabilizer for 6.5 and I haven’t had any issues with it.
GH is about 160 ppm, which I was told was moderately hard but on the softer side.
KH is 0 ppm
I was thinking of getting a mix of electric and golden if possible, but it all depends on how many you recommend I can have.
 
I don't know about water hardness, but i wouldn't recommend using any stabilisers, useless chemicals in water IMO.
 
A few issues here. Beginning with the tank size. Male rams [I'll come to the species momentarily] are (like all cichlids) territorial, and sometimes individual males can get very feisty. Two males of either ram species in a 29g would usually mean one dead ram before many weeks. A pair of either species could manage in this tank quite well, but this brings us to the next issue.

These fish must select their mates. They will then bond, and this may last their lifetime or may not, but if they do not bond the female (usually) will be dead before very long. There are ways to ascertain a likely bonding pair by observing the group of fish in the store tank. You could buy 8 or so yourself and then let a pair form (usually works), but then you have the others to dispose of. Better to do the selection in the store group.

Now to the water parameters. The Bolivian Ram is Mikrogeophagus altispinosus and it prefers water than is more compatible with many species. Temperature in the 24-28C/75-82F range, GH on the soft side, and pH slightly acidic but 6.0 to 7.5 roughly is OK. So it works with many peaceful fish. It does very well as a solitary fish, or in a bonded pair. A small group should have more space.

The common or blue ram, Mikrogeophagus ramirezi, has several varieties developed by selective breeding, but all are the same species. It needs warmth, with 80F/27C absolute minimum, but preferably a few degrees higher. Same behaviour/bonding issues. But given the warmth needed, this species is more difficult to find tankmates for. You might try a small group, but a 29g is still small space (surface area of the substrate is the size issue) and trouble is not always avoidable.
 
Ph is 7 (from tap) but I use for my lower cichlid tank a ph stabilizer for 6.5 and I haven’t had any issues with it.

Alost missed this. Chemicals to adjust pH are always detrimental to fish. The only way to safely deal with pH is by dealing with the closely-related parameters of GH and KH as well. The three are inter-connected.

Substances added to the tank water generally end up inside the fish's bloodstream. Fish "drink" by taking in water via osmosis through every cell, and substances dissolved in the water that are able to penetrate the cell membrane thus end up in the fish's bloodstream. At best, this weakens the fish, making them susceptible to other problems down the road; other more dangerous issues can also occur, depending.
 
If I decide to only get one Bolivian ram, what are the options for the tank mates? If there aren’t many, what else could be a good center piece for a community tank? Also for my 75 gallon cichlid tank, where I used the 6.5 ph stabilizer, would acaras and severums be ok with a 7 ph? If not, is there any way I could lower it without chemicals?
 
If I decide to only get one Bolivian ram, what are the options for the tank mates? If there aren’t many, what else could be a good center piece for a community tank? Also for my 75 gallon cichlid tank, where I used the 6.5 ph stabilizer, would acaras and severums be ok with a 7 ph? If not, is there any way I could lower it without chemicals?
You could go for some cories, but we'd need to know your dimensions of the tank.
 
If I decide to only get one Bolivian ram, what are the options for the tank mates? If there aren’t many, what else could be a good center piece for a community tank? Also for my 75 gallon cichlid tank, where I used the 6.5 ph stabilizer, would acaras and severums be ok with a 7 ph? If not, is there any way I could lower it without chemicals?

There are many options for tankmates with a single Bolivian Ram. You want to avoid any species with even a slight tendency to nip fins because the ram is sedate and an easy target of such nippers. But that leaves many of the tetras, some pencilfish, hatchetfish, rasboras. You also want to avoid active swimmers (danios, barbs, and some tetras) as this can annoy sedate cichlids, especially in smaller tanks (to the Ram a 29g, which I assume is 30 inches/75cm in length, is a small territory).

A pH of 7 is no problem for a great many fish. But as I have mentioned previously, it is the GH you/we need to know, that is more important. What is the GH of your tap water?
 
I'm afraid angelfish need a bigger tank than 29 gallons. A 29 gallon is 30 x 12 x 18 inches, isn't it? Angels needs at least 40 x 16 x 20 inches.


GH is more important than pH. As long as your GH is within a fish's range, pH can be outside their range.
Adding chemicals to a tank is never a good idea, the less we add the better.
 
I will then stop adding the ph chemicals and I thought it would be too small. I think I’m the end I will just make a single species tank of tiger barbs. Would that work? And how many would I be able to put?
 

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