"Multies" Tank

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Farow

AC Members
Jun 15, 2010
27
0
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33
Broomfield, CO
I have a 20 gallon tank. Sadly, it is not a long tank which I am guessing would be more ideal for these fish. I will likely eventually convert over to a longer tank when I have the opportunity. For now this is what I have.

For substrate I am just using regular play sand that I have had a lot of success with from my other tanks.

As the tank goes through its fishless cycle I have been doing a lot of research. I do have a few questions left though.

My questions are:

How many multies could I fit in there?

What is the best method of determining their sex?

What are the most ideal shells to get for them?

Are there any recommended places to purchase them online?

Now this is a project I am working on with my roommate. I wanted to do a species only tank but my roommate wanted potentially some other types of fish in there. Is there any potential tankmates that could be housed with these cichlids or should I stick to a species only tank?

Lastly, I was thinking of creating a shelf about midway up the tank. I have not decided what to use yet. My idea was to create another surface on which shells could be layed upon creating more floor space. I do not know if any members have any ideas on how to do this or if this even a good idea.
 

Pittbull

ALL BOW DOWN TO THE FIN GODS
Apr 14, 2007
7,549
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Louisville Kentucky
Real Name
Mike
All of the ideals you have are good.. As for the second shelf you could use the water proof epoxy and adhere a piece of egg crate aka light diffusing material or a piece of plexiglass to a corner of the tank place some sand on it and a few shells of course you would have to drain the tank probably to do this and also not put too much sand or shells to make it unstable.

As for the size i would stick to only Multi's a species setup these guys are little but carry a huge attitude, I have bought shells on line from www.cichlidbreeding.com with great success, I would only start out with 6 Multi's when they are young and the same size it is very hard to tell sex on these fish unless you buy them grown in which case the males are bigger while the females stay rather small.

As for shells i usually get whale eye, Turbo, escargot shells and really they are not picky about shells just provide plenty of them in the area of like 2 to 3 shells per fish. As for sand i only give them about an inch of sand or they will bury all of the extra shells and huge piles of sand at each side of the tank..

I have 2 males and 2 females with 5 juvies in a 10gal right now and they seem to be fine. I have kept them in larger setups before where they will explode with generations of fry..
 

jpappy789

Plants need meat too
Feb 18, 2007
26,364
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Gainesville, FL
Real Name
Josh
A few of my thoughts...

Personally, in this size tank I would keep it to just a species tank BUT other fish you could consider would be smaller livebearers like endlers, guppies or platies.

The shelf idea is neat however with multies they like to dig and rearrange their shell pit A LOT. My guess is that most everything would be moved together and the sand dug into a pit with sand piles on the side. It is pretty neat to watch them move the sand in their mouths around the tank.

I would start with maybe 3-5 adults and that should at least give you a good enough sex ratio for some breeding. Remove immature fish as things start to get crowded.

You can try sexing by size (mature males are larger) but individual size may vary. Venting is the only 100% method.

For shells I used escargot shells which can sometimes be found at your grocery store, emptied and cleaned out of course. Otherwise there are lots of other options (whale eye, etc.) and basically anything large enough is ok to use.

I purchased mine at a LFS but there are plenty of places online.
 

Farow

AC Members
Jun 15, 2010
27
0
1
33
Broomfield, CO
Thanks for all the quick responses.

I do have one more question, that was not answered and that is where I can find an online source of multies? My local LFS can import them but they tend to keep things a bit pricey. Whenever, I can I try to support them but if there are fish of similar quality for a lower price I will take it.

As for the shelf I will look into it more. My main worry was the weight but if it does not work out I will just get a longer tank when possible. If it becomes too much of a pain then I will drop it. If I do go forward with it I will try to keep everyone posted.

I am really excited about these fish and cannot wait till I can get started.
 

jpappy789

Plants need meat too
Feb 18, 2007
26,364
5
89
33
Gainesville, FL
Real Name
Josh
I don't see problems with the shelf, just there is no guarantee that the fish will use it...my multis hardly ever went past the half way part, even when feeding.

I tend to see them pop up quite a bit on Aquabid (under the Tang section) and every once and a while someone here lists them in the classifieds.

Here would be another place to start looking: http://www.cichlid-forum.com/sponsors.php
 

Farow

AC Members
Jun 15, 2010
27
0
1
33
Broomfield, CO
I will PM her when I am ready to order. The tank is still cycling and it could be 2-4 weeks before it is finished as most of you know :). I am looking to get some Cherry Shrimp and Pygmy Cories both of which are on her vendor list. Probably be better to order them all at once to save a bit on shipping.

Thanks again for the help. I decided to drop the shelf idea for now. I would like to see how my fish behave and such before doing such a project. If it seems like they would use one I will look into creating a shelf for them.
 

Pittbull

ALL BOW DOWN TO THE FIN GODS
Apr 14, 2007
7,549
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Louisville Kentucky
Real Name
Mike
I agree the shrimp will be an expensive treat and the little Pygmy's will be attacked.. Just an observation..
 
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