Hey, I have a 48x18x18 cichlid setup. I have read that overstocking is good for cichlid aggression. How many could I stock to be on the borderline of overstocking and disaster.Also, I hve read that UGF's are good/not good with a lot of contradictions. I realise that cichlids dig a lot. But my guys are small, 2-3" and dont really dig all that much.However,I am more concerned with anerobic bacteria and its effects in case something goes wrong. I have heard that entire tanks have been wiped out like this.TC
stocking and UGF
- Thread starter Aylmer
- Start date
I personally will never use a UGF again, when I took one out of my old ten gallon the most disgusting black liquid came up.
hey man, I'm not an expert on stocking cichlids so I won't lie and act like I know that. I would recommend posting your question about cichlid stocking in the "cichlid" section of this website. You'll probably get quickier answers that way. Also, www.cichlid-forum.com is really useful specifically for cichlids. obviously..lol.
I have had the anerobic sulfur outbreak before. I have no idea why it happened. I gravel vac-ed my substrate every week on the dot. never miss maintenance and it STILL happened to me. So I wouldn't worry about it too much. Seems to be a freak occurance. My only death was a Firemouth, everyone else lived just fine. As long as you do maintenance, water changes, and do everything the right way you don't have to worry about anerobic outbreaks in my opinion.
I would personally just get a HOB or canister filter as opposed to the undergravel filter. They are just more of a pain to deal with. Cleaning is way easier on units that aren't buried. lol.
Not sure I helped, but maybe....
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Overstocking for aggression is ONLY good with mbunas, not with any other kind of cichlid. Mbunas don't pair bond. With some fish that group bond, there's a pecking order that can't be settled with overstocking either. Pair bond cichlids will become increasingly aggressive the smaller their territory gets.
Don't use an UGF with digging cichlids. The water channeling caused by the digging makes the filter useless as water must go through the gravel to be filtered effectively. It naturally flows with the path of least resistance caused by the uneven gravel dug up.
Canisters and HOB filters are your best option.
Anaerobic bacteria is not a problem in a tank with a bunch of digging cichlids. They will turn over every piece of gravel many times.
Don't use an UGF with digging cichlids. The water channeling caused by the digging makes the filter useless as water must go through the gravel to be filtered effectively. It naturally flows with the path of least resistance caused by the uneven gravel dug up.
Canisters and HOB filters are your best option.
Anaerobic bacteria is not a problem in a tank with a bunch of digging cichlids. They will turn over every piece of gravel many times.
Yeah, I realise that its not a good idea with cichlids. I have a lot of filtration going on but they are powerfilters. In India, the kind of filtration you guys are suggesting viz canisters or bio-wheels etc are either not available or out of reach financially as they have to be imported n you pay 4-5 times the price. So i read somewhere that if the gravel is deep enough keep the UGF going and use good filtration, even in a cichlid tank. So I have 3 power filters totalling 2000liters/hr for my 255 liter tank, excluding the UGF. This seems to work fine as I have clear n untoxic water (also due to bi-weekly water changes). Also I have positioned the filters in such a way that the fish are not burdened with class 4 rapids in the tank. My question is should I remove the UGF totally as I fear the hydrogen sulphide thingy happening and wiping out my fish. Or is it safe if I clean the gravel over the UGF regularly. But then one of you(above) said that even after all that, it did occur. So am confused???
UGFs are fine to use with another type of filtration, such as a canister or HOB. gravel vac at least once a week to keep the UGF from clogging, and it will work fine. i gravel vac every week and the fish junk below it is really at a minimum. if you do no though and have high-waste fish, all of their junk will get pulled down and could clog the filter. a reverse flow UGF will work even better, because it will force the debris into the other filter used on the tank which will effectivley remove the it.
correct me if I am wrong, but a RUGF throws waste UP so that the other filters could do their thing. How would this help or let the beneficial bacteria thrive. Also if the UGF has been runnin for a while and then changed to a RUGF, I guess the goop would have to be cleaned first otherwise I would have all of it thrown up, messing the tank
Because water with waste is flowing thru the substrate where the bacteria is living. Just as water from your tank flows thru media. Ammonia and nitrites are everywhere there is water and the bacteria is on all surfaces, not just your filter media.