Would African Cichids Suit My Water

[cms091]

Hi All,
Hoping for some advice. I've got a jewel rio 180 with a tetratec1200 filter currently empty. I live in the south staffs water area which supplies very hard water from aquafers. I've got a 200l tank set up as a community tank and I was trying to think of something for the Rio that would work with, rather than against, my hard water. I've tried guppies and found them to be far too fragile. I wondered about platies, but then saw an article about lake Tanganyikan cichlids. Is this a good idea and if I go this way, what should I be aware of. Or should I stick with an easier, or more familiar, livebearer option? 
Thanks for your input.
Cathy

 

[DrRob]

Ohhh, now you've touched on some lovely fish there. If you're keen then they are good to keep and there are some lovely options out there.
 
Overall what to go for depends on what you want to do. If you want livebearers then go with them. They're good fish. Their husbandry isn't all that different to the other fish you'll see, they just tend to be relatively hardy and easy to breed, which makes them popular with beginners. There's nothing wrong with them as such beyond that, but that's what tends to make people go for other options, they want something different to the general aquarium.
 
As for what you should be aware of, it's the same with everything, read up about them, provide the conditions that they like, and you'll have a happy, successful tank. Drop into the LFS to see what they can get, read up about it and put up here what you're thinking of doing. People will let you know if you're about to make a mistake that has been done before and others can also then learn from your experiences.
 
If your LFS can't help you then have a scour of the local sites for options. There's bound to be someone out there who can get you a selection of suitable fish. Again, read up. The worst thing is to have a fish and then need to be changing things around a lot to get it to settle.
 
Finally, worth noting as it puts people off. Individually these fish are expensive by comparison, but if you get a pair of fish for £10 then there's a whole load of fish there compared to a shoal of guppies for £1 each.

 

[webbie]

you wouldnt regret going tangy,facinating fish,do you know your exact water parameters, in a 180 ltr you could go for a shellie group,multis are facinating,not overly colourful ,not many tangs are compared to malawis,but bags of character,there are  julies ,calvus, punks ,sandsifters so many to choose from,where abouts in south staffs water area are you?

 

[cms091]

Thanks for your ideas. I'm in Sutton Coldfield. Don't know the exact parameters. Just that it's very hard and high in nitrates.

Trying to work out if it's practical. I'll have to go round the LFSs and see what's available. Ripples at Wyevale is my usual haunt, also Erdington aquatics and Holly Bush at Cannock.

Cathy