55 Gallon Mbuna (P. saulosi) Project/Build
- Thread starter Zbbal
- Start date
Looks good so far! I like that diy sump. I had one about the same for my 80g mbuna tank I had once upon a time (tear, lol).
Hello everyone!
I don't have any pictures today, but I should have some Wednesday.
As for a background, I'm still debating about what I want to do. Suggestions are always welcome!
Glad to hear people are liking the DIY sump!
I don't have any pictures today, but I should have some Wednesday.
As for a background, I'm still debating about what I want to do. Suggestions are always welcome!
Glad to hear people are liking the DIY sump!
For the background it's really up to you. Most cichlids dig the whole stacked rocks scene, but I'm seeing a lot of 3d backgrounds lately...considering it's a species tank you could do either and be alright as long as the cichlids have their little hideaways.
:cheers:
:cheers:
Yes, yes! I know I haven't updated lately, but it's rather hard to do when you don't have internet at home. Anyway, time for some updates!
First off, I went and purchased another Aqua-Tech 30-60 filter for a little more current. Together the two filters have really keep the tank clean and pristine. I also received my 300w Rena heater from SubRosa (Thanks dude!) and it's easily heating the tank. The 200w heater has been demoted to a smaller tank.
The biggest thing that has happened so far has been the search for rocks. I was originally going to use slate from the lake, but it's not slate...it's shale. So I've been scouring the lake bed for the best rocks I can. Here's some pictures of my excursions.
Douglas Lake Bed:
Leftover Water in Bed:
Rocks:
Shale:
This is only a very small portion of the lake....really it's a large cove, but in comparison it's small. Right now I'm testing the rocks and silicone-ing them together, so when I'm done I'll post pictures.
Thanks for your patience during this process!
First off, I went and purchased another Aqua-Tech 30-60 filter for a little more current. Together the two filters have really keep the tank clean and pristine. I also received my 300w Rena heater from SubRosa (Thanks dude!) and it's easily heating the tank. The 200w heater has been demoted to a smaller tank.
The biggest thing that has happened so far has been the search for rocks. I was originally going to use slate from the lake, but it's not slate...it's shale. So I've been scouring the lake bed for the best rocks I can. Here's some pictures of my excursions.
Douglas Lake Bed:
Leftover Water in Bed:
Rocks:
Shale:
This is only a very small portion of the lake....really it's a large cove, but in comparison it's small. Right now I'm testing the rocks and silicone-ing them together, so when I'm done I'll post pictures.
Thanks for your patience during this process!
Hook it up with some of that shale! Lol 
Pretty sweet dude. With that shale, and egg-crate as a base under the sand, you probably wouldn't have to silicone them. I used rounded river rocks with the egg crate, and even with all of their digging and whatnot I had no massive accidents.
:cheers:
Pretty sweet dude. With that shale, and egg-crate as a base under the sand, you probably wouldn't have to silicone them. I used rounded river rocks with the egg crate, and even with all of their digging and whatnot I had no massive accidents.:cheers:
Hook it up with some of that shale! Lol
:cheers:
The shale is too brittle to use, so I'm just going to use rounded lake rocks.
I started thinking about siliconing the rocks together, but like you said....I can probably do without the silicone.
New update, but no pictures. Sorry.
Anyway, I started to detect ammonia in the tank even though I hadn't started cycling yet. My friend and I brainstormed where the ammonia was coming from and decided that the small amount of ammonia was probably coming from the old filter I got with the tank, since the only other thing in the tank was sand and I had already tested that. The filter had lots of algae film on it from the previous owners, and I was just too lazy to clean it before starting it. So since there was already a small amount of ammonia in the tank, I decided to start cycling! I'm doing a fish-less cycle on this tank, and right now I have a thin sock filled with leftover fish food (bloodworms) in it. I'm already noticing a rise in ammonia, so I guess that's going well.
I've tested all the rocks with one of the corrosive API test kit solutions and none fizzled, so I fairly sure they are safe to use. I'm going to wash all the dirt off them, then let them sock for 24 hours before adding them to the tank. I've decided that siliconing them together would be a mistake, as they already fit together rather well and I would like to be able to change the rock formations in the future.
More updates soon!
Anyway, I started to detect ammonia in the tank even though I hadn't started cycling yet. My friend and I brainstormed where the ammonia was coming from and decided that the small amount of ammonia was probably coming from the old filter I got with the tank, since the only other thing in the tank was sand and I had already tested that. The filter had lots of algae film on it from the previous owners, and I was just too lazy to clean it before starting it. So since there was already a small amount of ammonia in the tank, I decided to start cycling! I'm doing a fish-less cycle on this tank, and right now I have a thin sock filled with leftover fish food (bloodworms) in it. I'm already noticing a rise in ammonia, so I guess that's going well.
I've tested all the rocks with one of the corrosive API test kit solutions and none fizzled, so I fairly sure they are safe to use. I'm going to wash all the dirt off them, then let them sock for 24 hours before adding them to the tank. I've decided that siliconing them together would be a mistake, as they already fit together rather well and I would like to be able to change the rock formations in the future.
More updates soon!
Wow, total idiot moment on my part. I got the two confused and was thinking to myself "why doesn't he just use that..." lol. Hopefully your cycle doesn't take too long!
:cheers:
:cheers:
