40BR Dwarf+Community / 10G Shellie Builds

[librarygirl]

Well I started thinking about adding some Cichlids to my community tank of small fish and now that I'm getting ready to build I figured I'd start a build thread to get some advice, etc along the way.



I currently have a 29 gal that's fully (if not a bit over) stocked with:

• 3 Sterbai Corys
• 6 Pandas
• 8 Celestial Pearl Danio
• 6 Spotted Blue Eye Rainbows
• 8 Ember Tetra
• 3 Nerite Snails
• some small pond snails that came in on plants

So I want to give them more room. And I do like my small community fish but they are all pretty small and I'd love to add some larger fish to mix in and be the focal point of the tank, so I thought of Dwarf Cichlids. Originally I was going to try a GBR (or Bolivian) and a pair of Apisto but I've read various things about apistos becoming aggressive to the point that they could seriously hurt my other fish (particularly the Corys) when they breed. So I'm thinking of one GBR (or Bolivian) and one of something else.

I'd also love to see some breeding behavior as the Cichlids behavior is fascinating but I don't want to risk my other fish so I'm thinking of also setting up a 10 gal tank for a pair of Shellies (leaning toward N. Lamprologus Occelatus Gold as they seem to be the most colorful shellies I've seen so far).

First I'm going to build the 40G and then start with the 10, but I figure I'd merge both into this thread.

I also currently have a 5 gal Fluval Chi tank for my Betta but the Fluval, while a nice tank, is very narrow and rather difficult to get in there and maintain easily and I'd like to give my Betta a bit more horizontal swim space so I'm going to change his tank to a 5.5 gal that I have lying around.



Here's what I have so far for the larger tank:

• Manhatten metal 40BR stand (currently in a box in my car lol)
• Larger heater (Aqueon Pro 150)
• 40lbs black sand
• shale rock (Petco; the pieces are large so I'm hoping I can break them up and use the smaller pieces to form some structures)
• River rocks to attach the Anubias and Java Fern to
• one coconut shell for a cave
• I'm going to use the Fluval 206 canister I have and also add a HOB filter for extra filtration (probably an AquaClear 300 or 500)

Today I'm going to buy:

• 40BR tank with hood
• Upgrading the standard light to a T5 fixture for my plants
• Online I'm going to order some dry ferts for my plants and some driftwood
• Second HOB filter
• Smaller filter for the betta's new tank and some decor/sand for him as well as an upgraded heater (hate the one I have now as it isn't adjustable)
• I'm going to Velcro a "curtain" around the metal stand to hide the canister and other supplies
• new light for Betta tank

I was going to try to get the larger tank up for tomorrow but I may as well wait until I get everything in from what I order online too (the wood, etc) so this will probably be a project for sometime mid-week but I'll probably assemble the stand and leak-test the tank and rinse the sand over the next few days. If I can get everything I need for the Betta tank I'll probably do that this weekend.

Pics will be added as soon as I start assembling/building everything.

 

[Gillie]

If you want just a nice community tank with dwarf cichlids, find a species you like and get only males.

 

[librarygirl]

If you want just a nice community tank with dwarf cichlids, find a species you like and get only males.

So they wouldn't go after each other if they are all male? Would I have to do two GBR males or could I mix one GBR and one Apisto? Thanks for the advice.

 

[librarygirl]

So started my shopping yesterday. I bought the stand, tank, sand, shale rock, another coconut cave, a larger heater, black background and T5 lights for the 40 BR. For my Betta's "new" tank I bought a Marineland LED light, gravel (going to try a blue/green mix for something different but not sure I'll like it), black background and new heater.

I also ordered dry ferts and plants yesterday for the 40: giant baby tears, anubias frazeri, crypt spiralis, red melon sword, and dwarf hairgrass. Today I'm going to order some driftwood.

I also bought some fabric and Velcro at Walmart to put around the bottom of the metal stand to hide the canister and various supplies.

I'm going to try to assemble the stand tonight and then leak test the tank within the next couple of days. I'll rinse out/soak the sand too. When my driftwood and plants arrive this week then I'll change everything over. I can't wait to give my fish a bigger home!

 

[Gillie]

You could mix rams and apistos if want, if there are no females present there is really no reason for them to aggressively defend territories. Have you thought about Dicrossus they are a very gentle dwarf.

 

[jpchin]

i have an all male community tank with 2 male gbr's. they NEVER fight with each other or any of the other males in my tank. it's been my experience that if you leave females out of the tank you don't have any aggression. i also have 7 dwarf gouramis,assorted tetras, sailfin mollys, dwarf flag cichlid, and south american cat fish. all males. i have never had any problems and i've had these fish for almost 2 years. another plus is that in almost all species of fresh water fish, the males have the bightest color. good luck with your gbr's.

 

[jpchin]

one word of advice i forgot to say. gbr's are very sensitive to water conditions so they are not for a newly cycled tank. i would wait a few months before i introduced them to the tank. i waited 5 months myself. here's a care sheet for you to read. it has a lot of helpful advice.
German Blue Ram

they also take a bit of extra work as they need pristine water conditions. i do a 25% water change every 3rd day. they also like live food and it really brings out their color. i feed live BLACK worms every other day. all my fish love these worms.
Aquarium Advice - Aquarium Forum Community - jpchin's Album: Freshwater - Picture
Aquarium Advice - Aquarium Forum Community - jpchin's Album: Freshwater - Picture
a few pics of my gbrs . love these fish. they are very personable and get very excited when they see you. i like to think it's me they are greeting but i think it might be the thought of the worms that gets them excited.

 

[librarygirl]

Thanks everyone, ooh the Dicrossus are super cute!! I'll definitely consider those.

@jpchin Since I'm upgrading tanks I'll be using the same canister filter so the tank will be cycled, I'm just adding a HOB filter for extra filtration. Thanks for the feeding tips!

I put the stand together tonight finally (pic below). I'm going to try adding a curtain of sorts to the front. Most of the stuff I ordered online is on its way so I need to get this thing going lol. Tomorrow I'll start rinsing the sand.

I'm considering moving my nano fish (Ember Tetra and Celestial Pearl Danio) to their own smaller tank, 10-15 gals. I'd love to put my Betta in as a centerpiece too which would help me consolidate tanks so I wouldn't have three, but I'm not sure how he'd react to tank mates. I think if I moved the nano fish to their own tank it would be less stress on them in the long-run and easier for them to get food plus it would free up some room in the 40 for a shoal of "larger" (meaning not nano size lol) fish. Plus they would be very difficult if not impossible to see or find in a 40 gal. I'm not 100% sure though. Any thoughts, advice would be welcome.

 

[absolutangel04]

I am just going to reiterate what the others have said. With the species being discussed, males will be fine together. Its the females you need to watch out for.
Also, check out Laetacara. I have L. curviceps and they are not the brightest colors, but they are full of personality. Also, L. buckelkopf.
I do think that moving your nanos to their own tank is a good idea (if the betta plays nicely). IME, nano fish will get much more shy around larger tankmates. I have a huge difference in behavior between my embers in the 10g tank, and their time in my larger community. Also, you could put a nice school of something else in your 40g.

 

[librarygirl]

Thanks! I doubt my Betta is going to get along with other fish and he seems happy where he is so I'm going to leave him there at least for now. Tonight I'm leak testing the 40BR and soaking the sand and shale rock. I'm hoping I can switch everything over tomorrow night.

I may put all the fish in the 40 initially but I'm leaning toward getting a 20 long and putting the panda corys, embers and CPDs in there. I think they're too small for the 40 and might be intimidated by any larger fish. I'll have to deal with the Spotted Blue Eyes and the Sterbais in the 40. I'm not 100% sure yet, though--- I'm not sure I want three tanks right now. From what I'm reading though the nano fish may be happier in their own environment and would be less risk of them being stressed or picked on by the Cichlids, even if they are all males; they prefer cooler waters too so it might be better to separate them out since the Cichlids prefer a bit more tropical temps. Plus the CPDs, Embers and Pandas inhabit the lower -mid regions and I've read Dwarfs do the same so I don't want to overcrowd the bottom of the tank. If it weren't for the Sterbai I'd try a breeding pair of Cichlids but I don't want to risk the Corys getting hurt.

I'm going to put a black background on tonight and build a curtain type thing for the front of the stand. Hopefully I can get this tank done tomorrow and I'll have some final pics. The Shellie tank is a no-go at least for the foreseeable future, especially if I do decide to separate the smaller fish into their own tank.

 

[absolutangel04]

Yep, the dwarfs will indeed stay toward the bottom of the tank. But hey, whats one more tank? lol.

 

[librarygirl]

Tank is done!

40g breeder with Fluval 206 canister and Aquaclear 70 HOB

Live plants include:
java fern
Anubias bartieri
Anubias nana
"giant" Baby Tears
Anubias Frazeri
Crypt Spiralis
Red Melon Sword
Dwarf Hairgrass

Would like to add some taller plants to the sides.

Two coconut caves
Driftwood

Black sand (PetCo)
Black background
Aqueon T5 NO dual light fixture, total of 42 watts

I may add some slate structures but not sure yet.

Current stock:
5 Spotted Blue Eye Rainbows
8 Ember Tetra
8 Celestial Pearl Danio
3 Sterbai Cory
6 Panda Cory
3 Horned nerite snails

After all the work yesterday and looking at my space I don't want or have room for another tank, so I won't be separating out the nano fish.

I'm thinking of adding 1 male Bolivian or GB ram and one male cockatoo apisto. Thoughts? I'm worried about my nano fish more than anything --- will the Cichlids see them as food?

Also most of the fish with the exception of the Rainbows stay at the mid-bottom level and I've read Rams and APistos are the same, so would that be too much crowding at the bottom? Anything else I could add that would fill out the mid-top more and be peaceful with the rainbows?

Also the Cichlids will prefer higher temps than most of my fish now which like cooler water (I keep the tank at about 75). What would be a good compromise temp for the two different types of fish? Or would it not work?

Pics below. Feedback, suggestions appreciated (not sure I planted the hairgrass or the baby tears correctly....).

 

[George9]

Tank is done!

40g breeder with Fluval 206 canister and Aquaclear 70 HOB

Live plants include:
java fern
Anubias bartieri
Anubias nana
"giant" Baby Tears
Anubias Frazeri
Crypt Spiralis
Red Melon Sword
Dwarf Hairgrass

Would like to add some taller plants to the sides.

Two coconut caves
Driftwood

Black sand (PetCo)
Black background
Aqueon T5 NO dual light fixture, total of 42 watts

I may add some slate structures but not sure yet.

Current stock:
5 Spotted Blue Eye Rainbows
8 Ember Tetra
8 Celestial Pearl Danio
3 Sterbai Cory
6 Panda Cory
3 Horned nerite snails

After all the work yesterday and looking at my space I don't want or have room for another tank, so I won't be separating out the nano fish.

I'm thinking of adding 1 male Bolivian or GB ram and one male cockatoo apisto. Thoughts? I'm worried about my nano fish more than anything --- will the Cichlids see them as food?

Also most of the fish with the exception of the Rainbows stay at the mid-bottom level and I've read Rams and APistos are the same, so would that be too much crowding at the bottom? Anything else I could add that would fill out the mid-top more and be peaceful with the rainbows?

Also the Cichlids will prefer higher temps than most of my fish now which like cooler water (I keep the tank at about 75). What would be a good compromise temp for the two different types of fish? Or would it not work?

Pics below. Feedback, suggestions appreciated (not sure I planted the hairgrass or the baby tears correctly....).

Wow! Tank is looking great

 

[librarygirl]

Thanks George! Just two more pics. I made a curtain of sorts for the front and sides of the tank (thanks to Malaw Freak for the idea) and I love it! I chose green because it's the theme color in my living room so it goes well with the color scheme. It hides the supplies well and looks classy I think.

I also purchased a blue LED air stone for the center of the tank. I turned it on tonight and wow, I keep looking over at the tank instead of at the TV. The Corys have found the coconut huts and are having fun going in and out.

I'm going to make a DIY spray bar for the Fluval canister output using some PVC pipe. I'm also starting a PPS PRO dosing regimine for the plants tomorrow so hopefully I"ll get some good growth. I'd like to get some taller plants for the back.

Any suggestions, etc on stocking and compatability (see my questions above) are still welcome.

Thanks again everyone!

 

[George9]

Thanks George! Just two more pics. I made a curtain of sorts for the front and sides of the tank (thanks to Malaw Freak for the idea) and I love it! I chose green because it's the theme color in my living room so it goes well with the color scheme. It hides the supplies well and looks classy I think.

I also purchased a blue LED air stone for the center of the tank. I turned it on tonight and wow, I keep looking over at the tank instead of at the TV. The Corys have found the coconut huts and are having fun going in and out.

I'm going to make a DIY spray bar for the Fluval canister output using some PVC pipe.

Any suggestions, etc on stocking and compatability (see my questions above) are still welcome.

Thanks again everyone!

That looks great! I love the driftwood pieces you have in your tank I saw the same coconut hut in petsmart a few weeks ago. It's really cool lol this is a fast build

Why PPS pro? EI is so much easier, for me. I switched over a few weeks ago. Join the dark side haha I could be wrong, but aren't baby tears the plant that needs really high light with lots of co2?

So, you are planning a pair of rams and an apisto with the other fish? Oops I should read the previous post

I had no idea male dwarf cichlids wouldn't pick on eachother, that was news to me so sorry about that

 

[librarygirl]

That looks great! I love the driftwood pieces you have in your tank I saw the same coconut hut in petsmart a few weeks ago. It's really cool lol this is a fast build

Why PPS pro? EI is so much easier, for me. I switched over a few weeks ago. Join the dark side haha I could be wrong, but aren't baby tears the plant that needs really high light with lots of co2?

So, you are planning a pair of rams and an apisto with the other fish? Oops I should read the previous post

I had no idea male dwarf cichlids wouldn't pick on eachother, that was news to me so sorry about that

lol Yeah I do things quickly, I don't have enough patience to draw things out slowly

The baby tears and hairgrass might be a problem given my lighting and no CO2 but I figure I'd give it a shot. If they don't work I'll just pull them out. I just wanted to try to get a grassy area in there but not sure it's going to work.

No, not a pair of Rams! lol I would if it was a Cichlid only tank but I don't want to kill my other fish. I'm thinking a single Ram and a single Apisto, both males I guess since apparently they won't be aggressive without females in there. I wonder if I'd still need caves for two male Cichlids?

I considered EI, in fact I was going to do it but then I came upon the info on PPS PRO and it seems easier for me. EI is a lot of dosing this one day and dosing that another day and it seems like it would be a bit hard to keep track of for me (one day bleeds into the next sometimes and I can't remember what I did ten minutes ago let alone yesterday ). Plus my lights aren't that high and no CO2 so PPS PRO seemed to make more sense. I mixed the two solutions and have them in my fridge and in the mornings (started this morning! ) just put in the dose of each into the tank and it's done. I'm going to skip Saturdays and Sundays, that way if there are any ferts left the plants can use them and then on Sundays I'll do my regular water change. I have my new lights on a timer so Mon-Fri when I'm not home they'll be on for 8 hours then I'll switch the lights to regular florescent when I'm home in evenings and on weekends and then switch to moonlight for a while before bed. It's an experiment, we'll see if it works out.

 

[George9]

I don't think they necessarily need caves, just hiding spots, cave or not.

But im sure they'd appreciate a cave

 

[jpchin]

my rams have never had any caves in their tank. they really are quite outgoing and swim the whole tank along with everyone else. that's the way they were raised (without caves) and they are none the worse for it. also your enjoyment is enhanced by seeing them out and about and not hiding in some cave. rams are very special fish and very personable. you'll love them i'm sure. good luck. your tank looks great! lucky fish.

 

[absolutangel04]

IMO, 75 is a bit cool for a ram. I am not sure about an apisto. I think your tiny fish would be ok, but theres no guarantee. My embers were fine with a Bolivian for awhile, but I wouldn't promise you it would always work like that. Still, I am inclined to think it would be ok.
78 degrees would be ok for a Bolivian and an apisto. Gbr can be pickier about temp (and everything else lol). You should be fine with a single of each fish. I have kept a good handful of male dwarf cichlids together and never had an issue. Like you said, without a woman to fight over, bickering is minimal. I still suggest breaking up the line of sight. Cichlids always like caves.