Advice for a (soon to be) first time Cichlid owner?

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yodafett

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Oct 15, 2005
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I am getting a 125g this weekend, and once set up, some of it's residents will be my first foray into Cichlids. The main population will be Dwarf Flag Cichlids, accented by Boeseman's Rainbowfish and a pair of mature Opaline Gouramis. I will be starting the tank with starter water and media from my established 55g tank. It will have a sand bottom, with a little colored gravel for accents, natural rocks and wood, for lots of hidey-holes and territory for them.

I go into this knowing Cichlids are more delicate than a lot of the other fish I've kept before, AND that our city has ludicrously low pH (I have to do every other daily tests to keep from crashing below 6.0 in a planted tank with rocks)

Aside from watching pH like a hawk, and keeping "pH Up" on hand, what can I do proactively, while setting the tank up and with it's initial cycle, to help it start off optimized for them? Is there anything other than what I do with any other freshwater community tank?
 

ppetropulo

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Well, some cichlids take only certain water parameters, and won't tolerate anything outside of it. So, before you stock your tank, do your research, and make sure that all the fish have the same basic water needs, and food needs so you won't end up with any "missing" tank mates.;) Other than that, I kinda just stuck mine in with the rest of my freshwater fish, and they've been doing great so far! Oh, and the last thing you should do for them, is create natural territorial lines. I actually have no idea if this applies to you and your fish species, but check it out and decorate accordingly. Have fun with the new tank!
 

yodafett

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According to AqAdvisor.com, I'm in compatible ranges and community friendliness, so assuming their info is solid, I'm ok on that regard (I'm assuming it is, based on the recommendations I've seen for that site on here). :)
 

yodafett

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That was based of comments that cichlids in general like tiny caves, and I know the Gouramis do... I just thought it was a good option to play it safe. If not, the plecos will take them. :)
 

oo7genie

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Nov 18, 2010
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I'd recommend using a crushed coral substrate, or one designed to raise and buffer PH/KH/GH, or another more stable method, in stead of PH Up. PH Up & Down aren't very reliable for keeping a stable PH, and are very expensive to use for trying to maintain PH even in small tanks, let alone a 125g. To the best of my knowledge, they also do nothing for KH or GH, which are important to buffer the tanks PH to avoid experiencing dangerous swings, which sound common considering your water supply.

Your stocking sounds good to me. Gouramis at the top, rainbows all over (mostly in the middle), and cichlids on the floor. I keep an opaline with my SA/CA cichlids, and have rainbowfish in the other room, so I especially look forward to seeing your tank once they're all settled in!
 

Star_Rider

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Dec 21, 2005
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dwarf flag cichlids as in curviceps??

they actually thrive in low pH , tho most are captive bred and are able to adapt to higher pH.
but if you want to help get pH up I would agree with 007geni(rick)
 

yodafett

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@ 007genie (rick) - Good things to know. As far as crushed coral substrate, would that replace the sand, or the gravel accents? Would it be too coarse to keep banjo cats or pitbull plecos in, as i know they both like to burrow? (I was planning on a few of each for "clean up duty" in the tank)? I also read about people using "bags" of it in their filters, would that be feasible, depending on my filter size? or likely not, for that large of a tank?

@Star_Rider - Yes, these guys. http://www.aquahobby.com/gallery/e_curviceps.php Based on that page, and AqAdvisor, their pH looked compatible enough with the rest that I wasn't worried. Should I be more mindful?

And I use the term pH Up, because that what I always used to use, but it's actually Alkaline Buffer powder, but yeah, it's pricey enough I don't really want to keep doing that with every-other-day micro doses... Not to mention the stability issue. I want to provide as even quality water as possible.
 
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