New 55 Gallon Tank Set Up

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presto351

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Jan 12, 2007
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I started a tank about 18 months ago, a 44 gallon, corner (pentagon shaped). I wasnt really knowledgeable about Cichlids at the time (still dont really know a lot, but getting better). I am upgrading to a 55 gallon right now to give them a little more room to spread out.

In the tank right now there is just your standard run of the mill gravel as the substrate. The fish seem to be thriving in it, digging etc. The fact that I have Africans and S. American conbined has never been a problem.

I have 4 firemouth, 2 Convict, 1 Yellow Lab, 1 Albino Red Zebra, 1 Common Pleco

I would like to change the substrate with the new tank.

I was thinking of crushed coral or sand.

2 questions ---->

1.) What are some or your thoughts on coral vs. sand? Or if you have something else that you prefer.

2.) Since it is an established tank and i will be moving the fish in there, will the change in substrate bother them?




Any other words of wisdom would be appreciated. I have grown fond of these fish and want to make it as easy as possible for them.


Thanks !!
 
First concern that comes to mind is the effect crushed coral will have on your pH. What is your current pH?

The second caution is that when you switch tanks AND substrate you will have a real potential for cycling problems as you will have eliminated most of the (established) platforms for bacteria. You'll need to be mindful about fully cycling the new tank.
 
rmcder said:
The second caution is that when you switch tanks AND substrate you will have a real potential for cycling problems as you will have eliminated most of the (established) platforms for bacteria. You'll need to be mindful about fully cycling the new tank.
Click to expand...

A simple answer for this is to do what my aunt and uncle did when they were breeding cichlids. Keep a small percetage of the gravel you already have and blend it into a fine gravel or coarse sand substrate. You keep some of your beneficial bacteria and also provide a smoother, smaller medium which you were desiring. I personally don't recommend sand. It's difficult to keep clean, I hear it can collect in your filter, and also cleaning it can prove haphazardous, since noxious gas pockets can build up in it and when you release them during vacuuming, it can wipe out your entire community!

So mixing small and large substrate (maybe having one area rocky and another smooth, or blending it all over the bottom) might be less worrisome and difficult, would have some bacterial benefits and also is more the look you are wanting for your new tank.

Plus, it'd mean the difference between having to buy that extra couple of pounds of substrate to finish covering the bottom. :P
 
I was just going to ask about the filter. I have a Bio Wheel right now and am going to use that, at least to start. I was also planning on bringing over most of the gravel from the 44.

My pH is sitting right about 7.3 . So i imagine that the coral will bring that up slightly. Which, from what i understand is good.

I have decided to go with Coral, the sand looks great, but is a pain in the butt to deal with, not to mention more dangerous (with the gas pockets)

Thanks for the info.

I just finished building the tank stand, the tank will go up tonight or tomorrow to get the temp. right.
 
I'm just going to offer a different opinion on the sand. It keeps stuff on the surface where it shows, but that also means that stuff isn't building up under the gravel. My loaches keep things pretty clean, and since I vacuum every week, my sand is mostly clean all the time, and I don't have to worry about food rotting under the gravel.

If you keep the sand level less than 2", it is unlikely that you will get a build-up of toxic gases (from aneobic bacteria). Also, cichlids naturally dig around, so the sand usually doesn't just "sit".

If sand is properly washed so that the really light stuff has been removed, it is very unlikely that your filters will suck up any of the sand. The first time I used sand I didn't do it correctly, and I did have soem problems. Since that time, I haven't had any issues at all. I much prefer sand to gravel overall, and find it no harder to work with.
 
It seems to me that if both the African and the NW Cichlids are currently happy, I would not add crushed coral to the tank and raise the PH. It could very well stress out your NW's.
 
After reading many many different opinions. I have changed my mind and decided to go with sand.

I like the way sand looks and my guys love to play in the substrate. I would hate it if they injured themselves on the coral.

Thanks for all of your help, i will post pictures as soon as my tank is ready.

Mike
 
If you haven't run across my method for washing sand in some other post, and are interested, let me know, and I'll be happy to explain. I've gotten it down to where it takes very little time and is very efficient at removing problems ahead of time. Also, I'd advise using pool filter sand which is pretty clean to start with.
 
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