Aquarium tips?

[Nathans_Dad]

So it seems I have inherited an aquarium from my children. LOL.

The kids were bugging us for a fish tank so we caved in and bought a 35 gallon bow front tank from the local Petsmart. I have some experience with salt water tanks from college, never did fresh though. I bought a hang on the back filter which is rated for a 50 gallon tank.

Anyhow, the kids decorated it with neon pink/blue/green gravel, a plastic castle and a diver that blows bubbles. Long story short, we got the thing cycled with some mollies, tried a couple gouramis (which promptly died) and then they lost interest. So I have been taking care of the few lone survivor fish for the last few months.

Last week I decided if I was going to take care of the tank, I could at least get fish I liked. So, I did some research on the net and decided on Mbuna African Cichlids. I took out most of the neon gravel and all the plastic decor. I found a super honey hole of a place for rocks, there is a landscaper supply yard right around the corner and I rooted through their trash bin of broken pieces. Got about 18 good rocks for the princely sum of $2.81! What a score. Then I went to the store, bought a few freshwater plants (live ones) and 6 cichlids.

Just got everything situated today. Here is the tank as it sits now:

One without the flash to show the real colors, the fish are blurry though


And one with the flash to show the fish better, the back is mirrored as you can see.


Anyone with Cichlid experience have any suggestions? I am lucky in that we have hard, alkaline water here, the pH in the tank usually sits between 8.2-8.4.

Current stock:
2 Demasoni both about 2 inches long.
1 male Blue Zebra Cichlid 3 inches
1 Yellow Zebra (female?) 2 inches
2 Electric yellow Lab Cichlid 2 inches
5 Tiger barbs
one red molly (last of the mohicans) 1 inch
two ghost knife catfish

I am thinking of sitting as is for a couple weeks and seeing if everyone makes it. If so, I think I can safely add 4-5 more cichlids, the guy at the fish store (not petsmart this time, an actual fish store) suggested slightly crowding cichlids to cut down on aggression.

Any tips? How is my tank setup?

[vash]

holy krap!! those cichlids havent killed everything yet? that poor molly. take her to back to petsmart and give her back to them. looks like she could even be pregnant. i'm not holding my breath for your tiger barbs either.

that tank looks pretty good. for plants, buy some Nubias plants. they grow slow, very slow, but the leaves and stems are very hardy. you will need some driftwood. i remember reading that that one lake where most of the cichlids come from has a great deal of driftwood. apparently, it does something to the water that the fish like. i used to have a cichlid tank. i had LESS fish, and more live plants. all i did was to provide plenty of cubby holes and places for the territorial fish to "call their own". it all worked out. never heard of high populations curbing aggression.

[Nathans_Dad]

LOL, no the molly is holding his own. He isn't pregnant, just fat. Whether or not he survives long term is up in the air.

Interestingly Petsmart won't take fish back. I tried taking the molly back and they refused, even for free. They suggested I put him in a lake somewhere. I figured he has survived this long, he at least should get a shot in the tank.

[vash]

Originally Posted by Nathans_Dad

Interestingly Petsmart won't take fish back. I tried taking the molly back and they refused, even for free. They suggested I put him in a lake somewhere. I figured he has survived this long, he at least should get a shot in the tank.

hahahhaha...sounds like a Petsmart response. that Molly is red..a bass would eat him in a quick second..i have bass lures that are that red! hahaah.

well, i wish him luck.

[porsche4life]

Inspiring...

I've been thinking about putting an aquarium together since I work at a place that sells them and fish now... I've got a little 1.5gal one but I don't see that as being worth my time.... Maybe a 10gal is more fitting....

[Tobra]

More crowded=More aggression, simple as that.

Need lots of holes for them to hide in or they will fight over the good spots.

[Groesbeck Hurricane]

you have already crowded the dears pretty well and provided places to hide and be territorial about. Chichlids LOVE territory!!

Strangely, I'm betting on the molly making for some time but not the barbs. Cichlids can be a bit aggressive. Did the store suggest mixing barbs and cichlids? I am not betting on the ghost knife catfish either. If they are what I think they are do you have tubes for them to back into?

Keep the tank clean, do not over feed. If molly survives, you could get another two. One male, two females. Their babies will feed the cichlids! Just a thought. I might know of a 140 gallon show tank (24" deep, 60" long) about two hours south of you, if you really want to get into it.

[vash]

that molly has no shot. none. once those african fish get adjusted...game on.

[Nathans_Dad]

The ghost cats are leftovers from the prior tank too. I think they are cool, but if all I end up with is Cichlids in a couple months, well that's ok too.

As far as the barbs, my wife liked them, the guy at the store said they would probably be ok. We'll see.

I have talked to her about a bigger tank, not sure she would go for a 120 gallon one though!! Just for *****s and giggles, how much would something like that cost me?

[bell]

Some of you know I've kept freshwater tanks for years, mainly for oscars, I'll post some pics tonite.....
Imo the chain stores are the worse places to deal with, do some research and frind a small privately owned local store to support, they will be actual enthusiasts who know their stuff......you wouldn't buy porsche parts from walmart would you?

[HarryD]

It has been a long time since I kept African Cichlids. They are my favorite for color and activity.

I had the best luck when they were crowded about 1 fish per gallon. They are very terriotorial and if there are too few, they start killing each other. When they do not have much private terriory there seems to be a balance of terror that keeps them all alive. Except for black sharks, clown loaches, and plecostumus catfish, they do not tolerate other species. They will take great joy in killing them off one by one.

[Tobra]

Find a nice aquarium shop, Petsmart ain't it. It is easier to care for a bigger tank, if you ask me. Had a 60 gal, moved up to a 135 gal. You just have to do bigger water changes.

[Dave L]

as others have said the cichlids will eat the other fish, in my experience the plants and then they will start in on each other if you dont have the right mix. I found the African Cichlids: Welcome to The Cichlid Recipe a great resource when I had my tank up and running. For cichlids you can never have a big enough aquarium or enough rock.

[Groesbeck Hurricane]

I'd have to contact my old neighbor. I could not move it when I left (nowhere to put it) and he took it off my hands. If you are really interested, I'll call him tonight to make sure he still has it. I doubt it would cost much. It had the stand, tank, wood top, glass tops, lights, undergravel filters, and wet dry filter.

My only concern about it would be if it has been without water for the last three years. You would have to do a water hold test at home. It did not leak when I had it set up. It was made in Channelview, Texas. I cannot remember the company. Glass is thick and it is HEAVY!!!! Two strong people or four regular people heavy. Wife and I moved it by ourselves several times. Wife used to lift weights and she carries 90 pound hay bales all the time.

[krystar]

the tank is not too bad. it's the stand that u gotta go overkill on heh. i think it used to be that it was $1-$2/gal for a tank. dunno if the figure still stands.

but to hold 100 gallon tank, u need a stand that'll do 1500-2000 pounds...and a floor space that'll support that.

[vash]

glass tanks are getting old school. plexi..nice.

[Nathans_Dad]

Well, we had our first casualty. A little neon bit the dust today. He was also a leftover from the prior setup. At least it looked like the cichlids got a little nutrition out of him...

Otherwise everyone seems fairly happy in the tank, they are still freaked out because I keep tinkering with things in there. I also added another filter to the setup, now I have two aquaclear filters on the tank, one for 30-50 gallons and one for 70 gallons. Between the two I have 500 gallons per hour being filtered!! I know it's a bit of overkill but given that every cichlid site I read talks about crowding them to spread the aggression out I need some extra filtration. Plus, I can get the 70 gallon one up and colonized so whenever I get a bigger tank I will have a bioready filter.

The zebra cichlids apparently do better with one male to 2-3 females so I may go buy another female zebra to go in as my first addition.

[Tobra]

Plexi scratches too easily.

I have a 130 gal tank that is at least a few hundred pounds empty. Figure with gravel and water, it is about a ton.

Do NOT put it on a book case or something.

[ODDJOB UNO]

have you given any thought to becoming a rainbow trout farmer?