bolivianbaby

I just got my 55 off of Craigslist, YAY!

I need to get the filters, substrate, rocks, ornaments, etc.

I run two filters on all of my other tanks except my two 5 gallon aquariums, which house bettas.

Can I run two filters on a 55? If so, I was thinking the biowheels since they've done right by me in all my other aquariums.

Would this be okay for an african cichlid aquarium?

Also, can I start my fishless cycle now and add my filters this weekend or do I need to have the filters on the aquarium to start the cycle? I have extra substrate that I was going to put in the tank tonight.

Thanks you all! I'll post pics when it starts to look like an aquarium!

harpua2002

I don't see any reason why you couldn't add ammonia now and get the filters over the weekend. The worst that would happen is that it wouldn't work. You can definitely run 2 filters on the tank, and for African cichlids I would even recommend it. Since you like Biowheel filters, I'd suggest 2 Emperor 400s. IMO they are better quality than the Penguins. You could also go with 2 Aquaclear 70's.

bolivianbaby

Cool. I have it set up and the last of my leftover substrate in there. I have to research EXACTLY what I want in there. So far, it's down to Lake Malawi cichlids. I really like the mbuna types.

Both lights work, but I have to replace one of the (I'm not calling it by it's proper name, I'm sure) things that the light sits on that has the hood part attached.

Right now, it's looking like I need more substrate (have crushed coral, but I don't want to add it until I get the pH requirements of my chosen species), two filters, one heater, the hood part without the light, the rocks (everything I like seems to be rock dwellers), and the ornaments.

Don't the Lake Malawi chilids like sand? If so, what's the best type to get for them? Can I find it at Petsmart and Petco or Walmart?

gmen4life

if your going to get the mbuna id add the coral and they are awesome

CHoffman

Mbuna's are one of my all time fav!!!. I just love them. They do like sand. They will dig in it all the time. I would recommend getting pool filter sand. It's cheap and works great. What is your PH now??.

bolivianbaby

7.6 out of the tap.Drops to 6.4 overnight. 1 day later it drops to 6.0. I use a little crushed coral in all of my tanks to keep the PH 7 and above.

Pool filter sand is fine for them? Do I get that at Petsmart, Petco, Walmart, or a Pool store?

gmen4life

yeah add the coral and get the mbuna you will be happy and if you have a river by you they love rocks and that way its free but be sure to boil them for a good long while first..

gmen4life

and plus you get to over stock your tank with mbuna

bolivianbaby

Kinda like the sound of that

gmen4life

like 12 to 14 of them i have 8 in mine so far

Angela_96

For a 55g tank 12-15 is fine. Along with the crushed coral you might want to ad some agronite sand instead of playsand and limestone or holy rock to help buffer the water.

bolivianbaby

Thank you. I'll be getting that stuff this weekend!

I keep hearing about the importance of a ratio of males to females. How important is this and how many species do I need to narrow it down to?

I really like the little guy in your signature. What is he called? I'll definitely have some of them and I'm thinking some yellow labs. I'll want to research to verify compatibility before I make my final decision.

Angela_96

The ratio is pretty important, it helps lower aggression. 1 male to 2+ females. 4 species max in a 55g.
The sig is a psuedo polit male. They are a harder species to find, but I kn ow there are some on aquabid. I bought mine from carolina cichlid. Right now I have about 2 fry left and I am going to grow them out and keep them for myself....

With the polit you would have the pseudo species covered then the lab is the labrochromis species, so it would leave you with 2 more of the following,
cynatilapia afra, metriclima, melachromis.

I would stay away from any yellowish fish since the labs are yellow. I would also like to warn you they say the polits can be mean, mine is really calm and peaceful, but they have a bad rep.

navyscuba

Yay enablers hahaha

bolivianbaby

Okay, I chose not to do the polit because I really want red zebras.

I have three picked out and need advice for the last one:
Yellow labs-lab species
Red Zebras-pseudo species
Cobalt blue zebra-metriclima species

Are socolofi or peacocks a possibility for this tank? I really like the peach colored and white colored fish in Shawnie's video. If not, what could you advise for the last species? I'm after color, action, and compatibility.

Also, do I add them three at a time or do I add them one at a time and is there a specific order I need to do this in for aggression concerns?

It's a 55g tank if that helps.

Angela_96

The red zebras and cobalts are both metriclima species.
If you pick one of either the red or cobalts since they are metriclima then the pseudo socolfi will be okay.

Peacocks don't really mix well with mbuna they are not as aggressive and usually end up harrassed all the time.

Have you looked at the cynatilapia species? They aren't nearly as mean as most mbuna.

bolivianbaby

I have. I'm looking closely at the Afra Edwardi and the White Top Hara.

I'm also looking closely at the Metriaclima species-the ice white cobalt zebra and the aurora blacktail.

Stupid question, but when I look at the red zebras on the newbie cichlid sticky here on Fishlore, they aren't red. They're blue. I thought Shawnie had red zebras in her tank. What am I missing when I'm researching this?

I appreciate your patience with me and your willingness to answer my questions.

btate617

Can I ask why you are cycleing this tank when you have others running?

Take media from a running filter and seed your new filter from that. I use only sponge filters nothing else. When setting up a new tank I take a sponge from a tank put into bucket of tank water and squeeze it 5-6 times then replace that sponge where it came from. Take a new sponge and squeeze it in that bucket of dirty water, now that sponge is seeded. Put it in the new tank. Don't add lots of fish right away give the sponge time to catch up with what you stock and keep up on water changes. But the new tank is ready to go. Saves lots of time. Just thought I would mention that in case you didn't know.
With HOB filters you could stuff some filter floss into a running filter for a few weeks then add that floss to the new tank filter.

Brian

Angela_96

NO prob, there are some red zebras that are blue:
http://www.cichlid-forum.com/profile...ies.php?id=791

Its fun to stock mbuna tanks, there are so many species to choose from!

bolivianbaby

I was kinda slow realizing about using the other media Sometimes it takes me a while to catch up to the rest of the world I have another thread that I started when I realized that I had the other tanks to use.

Thanks for letting me know!

By golly, I think I got it! I need you experts to verify:
yellow labs-lab species
demanson-pseudo species
red zebra-metriclima species
Either Afra Edwardi or White Top Hara from the Cynatilapia species.

What do you think? I'm also going to have a few picks from the melachromis species in case I have trouble finding the cynatilapia species.

But wait, there's more

I'm seeding the tank with filters from other tanks and substrate from other cycled tanks, so I'll be adding my fish pretty much immediately. On my community tanks, I usually add 2 or 3 a week. Do I add these African Cichlids by species each week or two and if so, which species should be stocked first and is there any particular stocking order to keep peace during the stocking process? I may have missed it, but I couldn't find anything specific on this in the newbie cichlid sticky.

btate617

Don't worry about substrate from another tank, or water if you were planning on using it, neither does anything to help you.

Brian

Angela_96

The only species that might be a pr oblem is the demonsoni, they are highly aggressive fish. They need to be in a group of 6+. One that is closely colored would be the psuedo saulsoi.

Other than that it looks good!

For the stocking I would put in 5 at a time, wait a week, move stuff around a bit then add another 5. If you move the territories it will keep them happy.

bolivianbaby

That's fine. I'll go after the psuedo saulsoi. If I can't find it, I'll go after a blue colored psuedo and I've seen several on that link. Worse case, I have a place that can order them for me. Thank you for letting me know. You're wonderful!

So I can get three of one species and two of another in one week and not send any of the fish into a tizzy?

I'm in the process of setting up the tank now! Setting up the tanks and planning my stocking are my two favorite parts other than enjoying the fish.

gmen4life

did you gather and boil rocks yet?

bolivianbaby

One more final check:

I just really want to do this right, so I appreciate your patience with me VERY MUCH!

yellow lab-lab species-yellow
red zebra-metriaclima-red
albino socolofi-pseudotropheus species-white
cynotilapia afra-cynotilapia species-blue

I'm looking at several cynotilapia species. Are there any no-no's or can I just use the mildly aggressive temperament from cichlid forum for decision-making?

Angela_96

Any cynotilapia is fine. That list sounds perfect!! Have you looked on aquabid? There are several breeders in the southeast us on there. One guy that I love his fish carolinacichlid, hes a little expensive, but his fish are great. That polit on my sig came from his fish, and my afras.

bolivianbaby

I may check him out. I've got a really good aquatics store about 25 minutes from me. They are birds and fish only, and their aquatics department is really knowledgeable. I haven't lost one fish that came from them. I got both of my bolivian rams from them and both of them survived my inexperienced "oops I have fish and I don't know about the nitrogen cycle". Thanks for letting me know about aquabid. That way, whatever they don't have and can't order, I have another option.