Well, the other day a friend called and said he was getting rid of his 55 gallon fish tank and stand. I begged to buy it from him, as he said he was putting it in a dumpster. Then he said the sweetest words a fish fanatic can hear- "hey, I'll give it to you for free!" So he brings over this giant tank and stand, and I set it up in my room, figuring I'll have to re-cycle because the filter and all have dried up.
So today I'm driving along and I see a pet store that is going out of business. 50% of everything. I went in, and the fish guy was trying desperately to get rid of everything. I told him I had a 55 gallon tank, and would love to fill it with fish, but it was uncycled.
So he offered me a filter that had been running in HIS 55 gallon, all the gravel in his tank, a ton of ornaments, a brand new heater, and an entire tank of African Cichlids.
That's right. He insisted I take the whole tank of them. They are all about an inch long and there are about eighteen to twenty. (I figure when they get bigger I will have to rehome some of them, but I'm assuming I can get a lfs to take them) I hope I am correct in assuming that the substrate and filter is enough to cycle the tank (though I will watch readings very closely over the next few days) They are Lake Malawi cichlids (I think that's what he said) He mentioned that half of them were yellow labs (I thought that was dog breed) Of the others, one is whitish and pale, the rest are dark and striped. I have to look up on the internet what they are.
This is what I know about cichlids- they are very aggressive and they need a great deal of hiding places. My tank is packed with caves and rocks and crevices, so there are plenty of places for them to hide and stake out territory. There was a little chasing when I put them in but now they are more or less swimming around peacefully.
Oh- for this I paid 25 dollars. And he threw in two hermit crabs for my crab terrarium.
So I got - basically- a 55 gallon tank, fish, thermometer (came with it) heater, filter, gravel, stand, tons of decor (some I had, some friend gave me, some store gave me) for 25 dollars.
But here's the best part- he wants me to come tomorrow and has offered me a free 29 gallon and 20 gallon long. Both will be fully cycled, as they have been running and will come with substrate and the filter elements.
So...what star was I born under? This is awesome. I now have no idea what I will put in these new tanks.....plus the two tens that are cycling...wow.
So today I'm driving along and I see a pet store that is going out of business. 50% of everything. I went in, and the fish guy was trying desperately to get rid of everything. I told him I had a 55 gallon tank, and would love to fill it with fish, but it was uncycled.
So he offered me a filter that had been running in HIS 55 gallon, all the gravel in his tank, a ton of ornaments, a brand new heater, and an entire tank of African Cichlids.
That's right. He insisted I take the whole tank of them. They are all about an inch long and there are about eighteen to twenty. (I figure when they get bigger I will have to rehome some of them, but I'm assuming I can get a lfs to take them) I hope I am correct in assuming that the substrate and filter is enough to cycle the tank (though I will watch readings very closely over the next few days) They are Lake Malawi cichlids (I think that's what he said) He mentioned that half of them were yellow labs (I thought that was dog breed) Of the others, one is whitish and pale, the rest are dark and striped. I have to look up on the internet what they are.
This is what I know about cichlids- they are very aggressive and they need a great deal of hiding places. My tank is packed with caves and rocks and crevices, so there are plenty of places for them to hide and stake out territory. There was a little chasing when I put them in but now they are more or less swimming around peacefully.
Oh- for this I paid 25 dollars. And he threw in two hermit crabs for my crab terrarium.
So I got - basically- a 55 gallon tank, fish, thermometer (came with it) heater, filter, gravel, stand, tons of decor (some I had, some friend gave me, some store gave me) for 25 dollars.
But here's the best part- he wants me to come tomorrow and has offered me a free 29 gallon and 20 gallon long. Both will be fully cycled, as they have been running and will come with substrate and the filter elements.
So...what star was I born under? This is awesome. I now have no idea what I will put in these new tanks.....plus the two tens that are cycling...wow.
Join the club!
