tank setup questions

[raseii]

Hi,
I have a 50 gallon tank ( same size as my 55, but a few inches shorter). In the tank right now I have:
2 swordtails
4 platty's
2 cory's
4 Yo Yo Loaches.
Filter on the tank I have a penguin 125 bio-wheel & Penguin mini bio-wheel.

I have been looking into what I need to do to get my tank set up for Cichlids.
I like the Cichlids from Lake Malawi like the Electric Yellow lab and Peackocks.

I am guessing I need better filtration, right? Would a Penguin 330 work?
I am also wondering if my cory's or Loaches would be safe if left in the tank? If not, I can move them over to my husbands 55g.

One other question is, Do you need to add salt for the cichlids?
My water is testing at
Hardness: 300
Alkalinity: 180
Ph: 8.4

Thank you

[Capps]

I have been looking into what I need to do to get my tank set up for Cichlids.
I like the Cichlids from Lake Malawi like the Electric Yellow lab and Peackocks.

I am guessing I need better filtration, right? Would a Penguin 330 work?
I am also wondering if my cory's or Loaches would be safe if left in the tank? If not, I can move them over to my husbands 55g.

One other question is, Do you need to add salt for the cichlids?
My water is testing at
Hardness: 300
Alkalinity: 180
Ph: 8.4

Thank you

The more filtration the better. A turnover rate at 7-10 times per hour is ideal for cichlids.IMO

You can't have the cory's and loaches with Africans(or any non african cichlid for that matter). In my experience the result was terrible.(common pleco didn't stand a chance)

No, you don't need salt.

You water is excellent for them. Since they like very hard water, this would be a great choice for you.

[~*LuvMyKribs*~]

That water chemistry and tank size would be great for some Malawi Cichlids.

BUT

All the fish you currently have will have to go, or they will be eaten.

I would add more filtration. I'm not familiar with the bio-wheels, but from what i remember they dont put out a lot of flow? I would suggest getting a canister filter... Eheim, Fluval, or Rena to name a few. Malawi cichlids can be very messy.

They like sand and rocks, so if you could get some sand substrate in there they would love it. They like lots of caves to establish territory, so lots of rocks are great.

Get a trio of one type of peacocks (1 male 2 females) and maybe 5 or so yellow labs. You could also do another species, maybe some P. acei or another type of hap, such as S. fryeri.

HTH
-Diana

[Capps]

That water chemistry and tank size would be great for some Malawi Cichlids.

BUT

All the fish you currently have will have to go, or they will be eaten.

I would add more filtration. I'm not familiar with the bio-wheels, but from what i remember they dont put out a lot of flow? I would suggest getting a canister filter... Eheim, Fluval, or Rena to name a few. Malawi cichlids can be very messy.

They like sand and rocks, so if you could get some sand substrate in there they would love it. They like lots of caves to establish territory, so lots of rocks are great.

Get a trio of one type of peacocks (1 male 2 females) and maybe 5 or so yellow labs. You could also do another species, maybe some P. acei or another type of hap, such as S. fryeri.

HTH
-Diana

Good advice Diana.
I would also like to add on the tank setup, I use texas holey rock and pool filter sand in mine and they love it.
I also keep both P. acei and Yellow labs. They are both great begginer cichlids.
You should also check out this site it is the best cichlid site out there.
http://www.cichlid-forum.com

[~*LuvMyKribs*~]

And for a Malawi-specific site try http:/www.malawimayhem.com :D ;)