STARTING AN AFRICAN CICHLID TANK ADVICE NEEDED

[bert]

I am re-starting my 100 gallon tank after a move and the water here is HARD, it leaves white crusty deposits on fixtures and water spots on glass. I want to raise fish that will thrive in this hard water and think african cichlids would be a wise choice. I am not fond of changing PH around with chemicals so africans seem the logical choice. Now for the substrate, I want to go with some kind of sand if possible and I am not familliar with the different kinds available. I see people who have african cichlids using a buffering sand such as crushed coral or cichlid sand that has small shells in it. Can I use the sand sold in fish stores that are used for marine tanks such as reef sand or argonite ? if not, why not ? I don't want a dark sand or a white sand, something in the middle like a tan reef sand. The cichlid sand i see is a black & white mix that looks like salt and pepper and I don't like that because my black gravel i had in my tank before the move turned white when some of the black faded away and i hated it. so what sand can i use and does my hard water need to be buffered to stay hard ? ALSO, which african cichlids do best in very hard water at a PH above 7.9 ?
Bert
DAYTON, NEVADA

[Pittbull]

aragonite reef sand is tan..


with a PH 7.9 thats not entirely to high for africans its good and would be ok for mbuna and others, as for the ph list values malawi expect a ph up to 8.6 tanganyika ph up to 9.0 lake victoria ph up to 8.6 they all can adjust to certain ph values just as long as the ph doesnt drop below 7.8 and if your ph is at 7.9 and add the buffering capacity of substrates i really dont see it raising it to high maybe a few levels higher if at all, would be my guess so you may end up with a ph around 8.0 or a tad bit higher and the sand should maintain the ph and hardness as well, as for my local water we have hard water as well ph is 8.2 and hardness is 375 to 400 thats straight from the tap and i stick with the analogy of keeping fish that meets my water perimeters its a good rule and i so hear you on the manipulating of water to make it harder or softer why bother aye, call me lazy, hehehe, later buddy..

and as a side note if you perform your water changes weekly your ph shouldnt decline its only when you neglect the water changes when you have a drop in ph over time..

[bert]

I do my water changes every 2 weeks because i like a clean tank. I picked up some light tan pool filter sand and after checking with my LFS in Reno, he downsized to salt water only and walled up 3/4ths of his store. he is low on stock and he said go with the pool filter sand for the africans since tap PH is very high, it may be higher than 7.9 i still have to unpack my gear from the move. I picked the sand up for $11.00 for a 50LB bag and got 3 of them for my 100 Gallon. His ( lfs) sand was $25.-35 bucks for a 20 lb bag of reef sand. the stuff i got is almost the color of the argonite reef sand tan.

[Pittbull]

cool deal yeah it should be fine my friend and i am so about saving a buck here and there..

[bert]

more money for some fish to get started.

[Pittbull]

:lol: so true my friend.. :dance::dance::dance::dance::dance:

[bert]

here are a couple of pictures of what my tank looked like before the teardown.

[bushwhacker]

if your worried about the ph dropping mix some crushed coral into the sand your using as a buffer, then when you do your water change toss in a few teaspoons of baking soda that will keep your ph up

[Pittbull]

cool setups bert cant wait to see what you do next aye..

[bert]

Thanks. I have my rockscape set up after a lot of trial & error and i am eager to get it filled up. I bought a new filter to replace my 5 year old Magnum 350, I got a Rena XP-4. I am still trying to decide how I want to load my bio-media basket (s) since this thing has 4 large baskets. It came with a few stars but not nearly enough. I am deciding on how to cycle it, with/without fish. I have been studying an african cichlid book i bought and really want to research and stick with certain region and not mix regions in order to keep as much peace as possible. I want to get ones that don't grow very big and stock say, no more than 20-25 in my 100 Gallon if that many. What kinds of scavengers are safe with these fish ?

[Pittbull]

cool XP4 are sweet i have 2 XP3 on my 120gal one is chemical and the other biological i bought those lee's pin size bio balls they work fine and are a little cheaper in all, i use albino chinese algae eaters for bottom control and synodontis they fit the bill with the aggression the cichlids will belt out.. later buddy..

[bert]

thanks Pittbull, i see a lot of choices for bio-media out there and with 4 baskets it will hold a lot of it. do you use the jet nozzle or the spray bar for you outflow into the tank ? I also see that rena gives you choices for outflow depths for the outflow tube. on top, under a little and under a lot i think 2 inches then 4 inches and i think the longer one is 6 or 8 inches down. do these africans like slow water or faster water ?
Bert

[Pittbull]

my XP3 are setup with the jet spray i don't utilize the spray bar cichlids will be fine with a somewhat type strong filtration just as long as you don't create a jacuzzi i have my intake tubes to go almost down to the substrate as well yep there are several ways to setup those baskets the theories are endless aye, good luck buddy.

[bert]

OK, I have my tank up and running for 1 month now and have 8 Africans and 6 sedontis catfish ( i think thats how you say their name ) I have about 130 LBS of the #20 mesh pool filter sand and my rockscape is exactly how I wanted it with holes and caves and nice cavework under the rocks. let me know what you think of my African Cichlid tank setup.

[Pittbull]

I like the rock work on the left buddy good job i would have done two rock piles one on the left like the one you have and a smaller rock pile on the right and left the middle open but hey this is your tank have fun with it man looks pretty cool..

[efors]

If your tank is a 100gal, I think you should add more African cichlids in it. IMO, it would be better to add larger groups of fewer species; it is more interesting and pleasant to observe.

[bert]

Thanks and I agree. as soon as it cycles completly I want to add a single species so they will group up. I like that too. The 8 that I have in there are my cycling fish and my next fish group will be added as soon as i find the best looking group.

[Pittbull]

cool deal buddy it will look sweet i bet..

[efors]

cool deal buddy it will look sweet i bet..

:iagree:.

[bert]

Thanks !!! I got the helpful info. i needed from you guys here when i was searching for an idea for my tank and i really appreciate all of your help and input. I rescaped that tank so many times in the 20 years that i have had it that, this time when i moved to our new home, I had just run out of new ideas.

[Pittbull]

Funny how that works aye me as well there only so many ways to do something til you exhaust all ideals just keep on doing what makes you happy my friend and all will be good..

[bert]

I never cease to amaze myself with the combinations i have come up with over the years with that tank. This time it will stay as is.

[Pittbull]

man i have said the same thing before hehehe..

[LadyBarbara001]

If this is your first time using sand, you have to remember to stir it on occasion. Trapped gases can become lethal to the fish, and will develop ugly black spots. I stir with a wooden spoon (I'm short) and use my python to suck up the ick. Takes a little practice, but it's not very difficult.

[bert]

I know Pittbull, I have said that about a million times and this could be a million 1. Thanks, i heard about the sand issue and appreciate the reminder, i have a few things i can zig zag through the sand and a kind of plastic pasta forked ladel. I did 1 water change so far and used my python to move the sand around and even use my hand or a cup to pick it up and turn it over. You can really see the stuff that needs to be taken out right on top of the sand and it is so much easier and cleaner than gravel used to be.

[Coler]

Great looking tank ! - both ways, although I am biased towards the AC's :D

[bert]

thanks coler !!!

[bert]

I have had the tank up & running now for almost a year & a half. All is great and the Africans have been very healthy & happy and I started with 16 and giving away 6 BIG ones to make room for all of the babies i have had from the most colorful of the group. I now have 40 very colorful medium size fish that are as big as they will get and they all get along with each other, no fights or bullying. I have changed the aquascaping around a little and with each water change, i get my hand down deep in the sand and turn it over to bring the bottom layer to the top. I need to take some updated pictures to show what it looks like today.

[efors]

Hey bert, welcome back! It's great to know the tank is running so well. I can't wait to see those pics!!!

[FishInMaryland]

We need pics, pics, pics!! I really liked what you had done earlier, and am now eager to see what else you've done. Also, can you provide us with your stocking list? I'm also re-setting up a 125g, and haven't decided what to put in it yet, and like you, would like medium sized fish (ACs, of course!), rather than larger fish.

[Pittbull]

Cool deal my friend welcome back fo sure cant wait to see the new photos..