Lake Malawi African Cichlids...help...

[jaynyfl]

Hello. I just set up a 10 gallon tank and I just recently used a substrate that I made.. It is about 60 percent Flourite and 40 Percent Florida Crushed Coral 'Arogonite Mix'. Is this a good combo for Lake Malawi Cichlids?? The reason I put the Flourite in is to possibly house some live plants.

I rinsed the crushed coral and flourite NUMEROUS times and it was still a bit dirty and now my tank has a white milky look due to the crushed coral dust.. How long does it usually take for the dust to settle.??

Any advice on keeping Live Plants with Lake Malawi cichlids and any certain type of plants I should try??? Any general advice would be greatly appreciated. thanks.

 

[Raf]

Okay. Its great you are trying to do some research before you buy. Too many people go ahead and do things without researching about it first. There are numerous things that I need to say.... firstly is gonna be this:

There is no way you can keep Lake Malawi cichlids in a 10 gallon tank. They need AT THE VERY LEAST a 30 gallon tank, and that is just for the smallest most docile fish. I reccommend a 55 gallon to anyone starting with malawi cichlids, and most likely they'll still be upgrading in the future depending on which species they will keep.

So if you are still interested in Malawi cichlids and are going to be getting a bigger tank (30+ gallons) then read on.... (Also if this is just gonna be a fry tank thats okay... fry can be kept depending on how many and the species in a 10 gallon until they are about 3/4-1 inch).

You cant rinse flourite before adding it to your tank... it says right on the package not to do that. Your rinsing away needed nurients within the substrate. Rinsing is not required. Also, you cant mix flourite. Its to be used on its own as the only substrate (and about 1.5-2 inches of it). On top of that even if you did mix it crushed coral is the worst substrate to mix it with because many species of plants cannot handle a high ph, which is caused by the crushed coral. Laterite is meant to lower pH to neutral which is now being negated by the crushed coral.

There are very few plants that can be used in Malawi Cichlid tanks because the cichlids eat the plants. There are three species or genus of plants i use: Anubias, Vallisneria, and Java Fern (dont know the sci name). Even the succsess with these plants is varied, but I've been able to keep them flourishing in my african tanks.

If you cant afford to buy a larger tank then your gonna have to scrap the idea of keep lake malawi cichlids. You could try some Lake Tangynika shelldwellers, but I didnt have any success with them in a 10 gallon. The male killed off all his females. They are small enough though, so maybe try a pair (1 male 1 female). With these guys you could keep more plants, but only plants that will be able to handle the high pH that these fish need, and your crushed coral is gonna create.

Or you could do a planted tank, and get all new substrate of just plain laterite.


Hope That Helped...
-Diana (Oops... This is ~*LuvMyKribs*~, I posted as Raf ).

 

[mooman]

Ditto

a pair of Juliochromis transcriptus or J. ornatus will also work in the 10g. Maybe even in cunjunction with a pair of shell dwellers (probably pushing it though).

 

[MattyJFly]

But please note: A pair of juvenile malawi's can easily, happily, and comfortably live in a 10G tank for a good several months. I had a couple in my 10G before I got a 55G, and they did quite well. Two m.auratus in fact. At the size they're at now (approx 2 years old), they certainly wouldn't be comfy at all. But if you're planning on upgrading, feel free to give them a temporary home. :dive2:

 

[PumaWard]

But, it would be better to put a suitable species in a 10g where they can be happy and live the rest of their days. In the mean time, it's not a big deal if somebody busts your car window and your can't get your tank now 'cause you had to spend it on a new window. You can also always get what ever needs the bigger tank once you have the money for the new tank.

 

[wooz29]

I set up a 20L over a month ago with crushed coral and it still looks a bit cloudy. When I vacuum it alot of the particles are removed from the coral bed. BTW: I have 3 Kenyi's and 2 Melanochromis cyaneorhabdos in this tank....

 

[Orbital]

I set up a 20L over a month ago with crushed coral and it still looks a bit cloudy. When I vacuum it alot of the particles are removed from the coral bed. BTW: I have 3 Kenyi's and 2 Melanochromis cyaneorhabdos in this tank....

That is a dangerous mix for a 20 gallon long. Keep your eyes peeled. Most adult mbuna will not work long term in a anything under a 40-55 gallon. Some will work in a 29/30 but care needs to be put into selecting the types you keep and should be smaller types.

Kenyi get quite large, males can reach 5" pretty easy.

As for the 10 gallon, I don't know of any Malawians other then fry that will work in the tank. 10 gallons are ok for growouts.

 

[~*LuvMyKribs*~]

If your fish are growing at a normal rate then they would not last more than a couple months in a 10 gallon from the point of being spit from the mother (at 2-4 weeks of age). Most malawis you buy in the pet store are way beyond the size limit for being able to be kept in a 10 gallon.


And just because you can doesnt mean you should.



-Diana

 

[MattyJFly]

The problem with generalizing to all situations is that often times perfectly fine scenarios are deemed inappropriate. In a situation of high, high agressiveness, a 10G wouldn't work after two months. With a pair that gets along well, we're talking up to a year easily. Two cichlids of this type will not outgrow a 10G bio-load wise (at least within 9months-year), particularly given proper care.

 

[~*LuvMyKribs*~]

Two adult Melanochromis auratus will definately stress the bioload of a 10 gallon. They are 3-4" of fish each. Dont even bring up those stupid "inch of fish per gallon" rules, they are in no way accurate when your dealing with africans. No fish that grows over 2" IMO should be kept in a 10 gallon.

Under proper conditions these fish will be adult in about 6 months. That means they should be long gone out of a 10 gallon by the time they are 3 or 4 months old (At the very latest!). (And thats not 3 months since you got them, but since they were born).

I dont care about aggressiveness. Its not fair to keep these fish in such a small tank. Even 1 specimen. I would never do that to my dog, why would I do it to my fish?

I dont really want to get into this with you, as I have done so in the past I believe. It all depends on your ethics of fish keeping and how responsible you are. Also, how much you actually care about your fish.


-Diana