55g Mixed African Tank

[WhiteWidow11]

Hey AA!

Just redid my 55 since joining AA I have been inspired to give my fish a better home. I just added a bunch more cichlid stones and rock. This is my first attempt going past a few fake plants and a rock or so, I think it came out good.

I packed the rockwork in a bit more since all the cichlid stones are hollow, and there are tons of ways to swim thru it. Its so cool when they go in one side of the formation and come out the other and I have no idea how. I wanted to try a live plant also so there is a java fern in the front. I think this tank is gonna look even better once all the rocks get some algae growth and get some more coloring on them. That way the natural and manmade rocks will blend better. Right now the new cichlid stones are really light.

Here are some berfore and after shots. As you can see in the last picture, all 15 fish are completely hidden in the rockwork, they only come out to feed really lol so I think they love it!

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[WhiteWidow11]

Any comments? First attempt at this, would like to hear feedback good or bad.

Thanks

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[carey]

looks good! i like the cichlid stones, they blend in pretty well.

 

[WhiteWidow11]

Thanks Carey

Do you think its worth painting it black now that a lot of its covered? I love the way yours looks, but I'm undecided how it would go with the rock wall. Also, the mirror helps me find them in the rockwork when I look for them since they are always in there now. Then again, I can only imagine how the colors would pop within the tank/rockwork with the black background.

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[carey]

I don't think I would worry about the background, it looks good as is. You have alot of rock, it might make it too dark in there. But thats just my opinion. lol

can't wait for your fish to come out of hiding so we can get a proper tank shot with them in it!

 

[WhiteWidow11]

During the day you can see about 5 fish at any given time without trying. I know where each one hides, and my one tiny fish never comes out of rockwork, but he has so much space to swim and gets all the fallen pellets. They all have their own space already.

I will try to get one, they swim around a lot untill I feed, but after feeding they all go into the rocks and chill all full, then in an hour or so they start going in and out. I should be able to get one in the morning when they all are waiting for food.

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[WhiteWidow11]

Here's the best I could get with the most fish out.

 

[WhiteWidow11]

Adding some videos today of the tank, a feeding video and a bedtime video lol.

Feeding 1mm New Life Spectrum cichlid formula

Having so much fun with this tank and Android Phone!

 

[fddlss]

Very nice! I'm sure your fish feel very comfortable there. lol

 

[WhiteWidow11]

Very nice! I'm sure your fish feel very comfortable there. lol

Its amazing the drastic change the rockwork has caused. If I knew it could've been this peacefull from the start I would've went rock hunting sooner. They love the cichlid stones too!

And TY

 

[Kat1103]

Where did u get the stump? I'm assuming it's not real wood. But it looks cool. I like the look of the tank. It gives me ideas for my 55 I'm working on. And I just purchased 3 cichlid stones. They're so cool!

 

[WendiDell]

My Mbunas are the same way. The more stuff I put in the tank for them to swim around the happier and more peaceful they are.
I also have a big stump with 6 holes to go in and out of. It's their favorite piece to play. The caves and rocks they sleep in. But that tree stump and the fake plants they race around playing.
The plants also provide a way for them to get away from each other.