View Full Version : New Tank Soon - Need Ideas
Hey guys,
My parents are about to buy a new house, and my dad said that he wanted a fish tank. And since I'm the most knowledgeable animal keeper in my family, he asked me to set one up for him. I'm not sure about the dimensions or how big the tank yet, but it will be at least 75 gallons. It will most likely be a long tank and not a corner/cube one. The tank will be a planted (very much preferably), and stocking will be some sort of Cichlids that do not eat or destroy vegetations. My dad wants many small Cichlids (as small as they can be) rather than a few big Oscars, Discus, or other big Cichlids, but he doesn't want those ones that live in shells. Any idea what type of Cichlids I can keep and how many of them I can keep?
Thanks,
Hunter
Dwarf cichlids would be the way to go then. They don't get much bigger than 3 - 4 inches, they are carnivorous so they won't bother your plants, & you can keep them in community tanks. By carnivorous I mean they'll eat fish food (i.e. pellets, worms, live foods, etc), they are generally peaceful so they won't bother other fish.
Some dwarf cichlids you might want to research are ram cichlids (e.g. German blue rams, Bolivian rams) or Apistogrammas (e.g. blue apisto, yellow dwarf cichlids, etc).
You can keep dwarf cichlids in groups of the same species provided that the tank is big enough (75g is big enough for I'd say 3 - 5 along with other community fish). By getting & keeping them in groups you have a higher likelihood of fish pairing off & possibly reproducing.
And like I said before you can keep them in community tanks with other easy going fish like tetras, rasboras, & bottom feeders like cories etc.
Good Luck
Out of those options, what would be the smallest in size, hence the most in number, that I can keep in a 75G?
Chrisinator
08-11-2010, 11:40 PM
If you want to have a colony, try Shelldwelling Cichlids. But the downside would be no plants. Upside, lots of rock work.
They are all relatively small for cichlids (hence the designator "dwarf") measuring in at or under 4". The issue isn't really their sizes. The real issue is that even though they are GENERALLY peaceful fish, if you keep too many of them in too close of a proximity of each other they can/might get territorial & start to go at each other. This is especially true if you are keeping more than one male (even more so during breeding time). Cichlids in general tend to be territorial. The dwarf species are much less territorial than the larger species of cichlids, but nonetheless I wouldn't push it.
In a 75 gallon tank, heavily planted with lots of hiding spots, I'd got with 3 - 5 at first. Observe & see how that works out for you & if all seems to be going well you can always add a couple more later on as you see fit. And like I said before, you can add peaceful non-cichlid fish in as well to "fill-in" the tank for aesthetic purposes.
With that said, research some dwarf cichlids (just google "dwarf cichlids) & see which ones are the best fit for your taste & level of experience. Some are a bit more demanding & sensitive to water conditions (such as the German blue ram) & others are a bit hardier and relatively easier to care for (like the Bolivian ram). All have something to offer visually.
At least now you know what to start researching, so good luck!
Kristinann
08-12-2010, 1:22 AM
I agree with Denj 100%. The apistos and rams are small, but each needs a significant territory, which is why you can keep so few. To keep more, you would have to go with shell-dwelling species.
I myself am going to be getting some apistogramma cacatuoides. Very beautiful fish. 3-5 would work for you, 1 male and 2-3 females, 2 males and 3 females would really be pushing it as far as agression goes. But again, They would be nice. Them plus a large school of neon or cardinal tetras would look great IMO.
What does anyone think of a pair, or harem, or apistos, a pair of angels, and neons? Or would the apistos and angels cause problems for one another? I think it would look awesome.
cobfreak
08-12-2010, 6:32 AM
In addition to dwarf cichlids, there are a lot of tetras that would look nice in a heavily planted 75. Or rainbows.
I think I will most likely end up getting either the Bolivian or German Blue Rams. I looked at all the dwarf cichlids on www.dwarfcichlids.com, and those two seem to be the most aesthetically pleasing ones. I will have to check with my LFS and see what they carry before doing more future research.
archer772
08-12-2010, 8:16 AM
I agree with Denj 100%. The apistos and rams are small, but each needs a significant territory, which is why you can keep so few. To keep more, you would have to go with shell-dwelling species.
I myself am going to be getting some apistogramma cacatuoides. Very beautiful fish. 3-5 would work for you, 1 male and 2-3 females, 2 males and 3 females would really be pushing it as far as agression goes. But again, They would be nice. Them plus a large school of neon or cardinal tetras would look great IMO.
What does anyone think of a pair, or harem, or apistos, a pair of angels, and neons? Or would the apistos and angels cause problems for one another? I think it would look awesome.
Apistos, Angels and Cardinals worked for me until I got rid of the apsitos so I could keep more cories, otos, ABN plecos and amanos.
Kristinann
08-12-2010, 2:48 PM
Keep in mind that the rams also need territory space about the same as the apistos. Rams also need pretty clean water, with very few nitrates. They can also be very picky about their pairs, and problems with pairing can lead to aggression problems.
Just stuff to be aware of.
I think I will most likely end up getting either the Bolivian or German Blue Rams. I looked at all the dwarf cichlids on www.dwarfcichlids.com (http://www.dwarfcichlids.com), and those two seem to be the most aesthetically pleasing ones. I will have to check with my LFS and see what they carry before doing more future research.
Well whichever ones you choose I wish you the best of luck with them. Just make sure to do plenty of research first & take full advantage of these forums. There are a lot of knowledgeable/friendly people on here that are more than glad to share their experiences & knowledge with others so use that to your full advantage.
If your LFS doesn't carry what you are looking for you should browse the "classifieds section" on this website. There are some good deals on here & even if you don't get anything from the classifieds you can at least get an idea of what you can expect to spend elsewhere.
Thank you Kristinann for reaffirming my original posts. Second opinions are always good & appreciated.
What does anyone think of a pair, or harem, or apistos, a pair of angels, and neons? Or would the apistos and angels cause problems for one another? I think it would look awesome.
That does sounds like it would be a real stunning combo, of course their are variables to consider such as tank size, temperament, etc. I've generally had good experiences with angels in community tanks. But I've had a couple of bad ones too. One such experience saw me lose quite a few fish to an angel.
But I've seen apistos in set ups with larger cichlids without issues so it might work just fine. Personally if I was going to try the combo you suggested, I would do it in a heavily planted 75g- 90g or larger (preferably 90g) & I'd use cardinal, lemon, or maybe diamond tetras (just my preference) instead of neons just because the aforementioned tetras are slightly larger than neons & that might deter the angels a bit from getting "frisky".
TLe041
08-17-2010, 5:13 PM
How about a school of Bosemani Rainbows? They resemble cichlids, and you can keep a sizable number of them. Plus, they're gorgeous.
http://badmanstropicalfish.com/articles/rtr/boes604_sm.jpg
goldenpond
09-06-2010, 12:29 AM
I am in the same boat as this guy, but slightly ahead. I am bringing forward from my 55g a silver dollar, a false upside down cat, and a pleco. I am concerned about the high pH required for Cichlids would prevent from having other species? I already bought some Cichlids not know their requirements and the guy at the fish store more interested in selling fish than what I had to work with.
He also sold me some Pikes that gobbled up some Yellow Labs..
Anyway, I am interested in what other fish can tolerate a higher pH that I can put in with some Yellow Labs and Acei?
The new tank is a 90G.
Thanks!
verbal
09-07-2010, 6:03 AM
I am in the same boat as this guy, but slightly ahead. I am bringing forward from my 55g a silver dollar, a false upside down cat, and a pleco. I am concerned about the high pH required for Cichlids would prevent from having other species? I already bought some Cichlids not know their requirements and the guy at the fish store more interested in selling fish than what I had to work with.
He also sold me some Pikes that gobbled up some Yellow Labs..
Anyway, I am interested in what other fish can tolerate a higher pH that I can put in with some Yellow Labs and Acei?
The new tank is a 90G.
Thanks!
You probably want other rift lake fish. Synodontis catfish are a common tank mate to cichlids. You also may be able to add one other cichlid species.