Some picz of my cichlid

[Etunes]

I was unaware of all these facts, until I came here, Thank y'all for the feedback. I will make these changes gradually.

I am glad you decided to do something about it and not get mad about it. That is very cool of you and very appreciated. Just make the changes over time and you will get it.

 

[jimmy c]

just throwin it out there, i think the 2nd pic looks like a Taiwain reef. lil blurry tho but thats what i see. ive had lots and kinda looks like it.

http://images.google.ca/imgres?imgurl=http://www.cichlid-forum.com/photos/art_pro_steveni_02.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.cichlid-forum.com/articles/p_steveni.php&usg=__9rmy0udK9AQqvob-52ot0FkEvoY=&h=160&w=217&sz=11&hl=en&start=12&itbs=1&tbnid=Zj-NAASP8zcdhM:&tbnh=79&tbnw=107&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dtaiwan%2Breef%2Bcichlid%26hl%3Den%26gbv%3D2%26tbs%3Disch:1

 

[mfdrookie516]

good call jimmy, i believe you're right

 

[srisha]

Here's a pix of the full tank view, though not the best, this is what I had ready, I shall take some more later and post.

Is it ok to change the pebbles I have to sand for Cichlids? I read some where that Cichlids dont like sand, is that true?

 

[mfdrookie516]

quite the opposite... most cichlids LOVE sand, especially africans, but most sa/ca love it too

 

[srisha]

just throwin it out there, i think the 2nd pic looks like a Taiwain reef. lil blurry tho but thats what i see. ive had lots and kinda looks like it.



I dont think this is it, mine has more blueish around the gills and has horizontal single stripe on the body, whereas the one in the google image has vertical stripes with a different body color combination,

may be this pix can tell you more....

 

[DragonFish71]

Here's the deal. Will all of those fish "live" in a 65 gallon fish tank, probably. But think about it this way. Place 8 babies in a 10x12 room in a house. As babies, they fit fine. They have plenty of room to crawl or do whatever else they please. Now, as they get older and become teenagers, they will start to feel cramped and as fully grown adults, if they grow fully, they will have little to no room to stretch out and move around. Is this an extreme example, maybe, but it is a very real example. Sure these fish could survive, if they don't get aggressive and kill each other, but it really makes no sense. Just because they are an animal and not human doesn't mean you should treat them any differently. Now this is my opinion and take it for what it's worth but I would reconsider your stocking. That being said, the few pictures you have of the tank look nice. Do you have any full shots of the tank?






Also, you should really keep up on your partial water changes. Weekly probably is best. Get a test kit for water parameters and see where your's are at right now. Also, never completely clean the tank. Just the filter media and then change some of the water. That is all that is needed to keep the parameters in check and not have chemical imbalances.

Any further question can be answered by all of the experienced people on this site. Don't be afraid to ask. We can only give our opinions and you can take them as you wish.

+2


Though I prefer to compare it to a full grown 6 foot man living in a small dog kennel. Yeah I'm weird. *lol*

 

[jimv8673]

nice

great lookin fish, and i love the planted tank, good work

 

[discus_lover]

nice and healthy cichlids..you keep your cichlids in plated tank,that's also crazy...

 

[jimmy c]

yeah, just from the 1st pic, it looked like a female taiwain reef. mine has a black "line" but its not a solid one, a break here and there.

they love to dig in whatever is in the bottom. ive had sand gravel now i have crushed coral.

 

[srisha]

nice and healthy cichlids..you keep your cichlids in plated tank,that's also crazy...

Well, they are not real plants !

 

[jimmy c]

yeah but still a pain in the butt when they dig them up everyother day.

 

[tmcgee]

I think the whole setup looks pretty good if you ask me. I think it would look even better with the sand you are thinking about. Just remember to keep an eye on the tank if you do this though because you might have a mini cycle because you are temporarily losing a lot of beneficial bacteria. Not the end of the world but you need to keep a close eye on it.

 

[jimmy c]

also, i think air pockets tend to get traped under the sand, so stir the sand around once and a while.

anyone know what im talkin about? and the tank does look nice.

 

[dkpate]

Yes Jimmy, anaerobic gas pockets. They will be under the sand, so you will need to stir it occassionally. I mave MTS so I don't need to stir mine, since they burrow in the sand.

 

[Big Ben]

Ok, I change once in 3 months, actually i clean up the entire tank. Though I clean the filters once in 2-3 weeks.

Looks like, from what you are saying, I need to change quite often,

Firstly I will say your doing a great job being open to information . A few tips I'd like to suggest is make sure you never fully clean out the entire tank, the reason being it can kill off your biological filtration which is microscopic bacteria that handles the toxic fish waste. This is part of a natural cycle, the nitrogen cycle, http://www.aquariumadvice.com/forums/f15/fishless-cycling-for-dummies-103339.html this is a post on the forums about how one can cycle a tank without fish but is useful for learning about this process.

I'll just toss in that how often you need to perform water changes depends on how rapid Nitrate accumulates in the tank in concentration. Using a nitrate test kit overtime can give you the knowledge of how often you need to change water. Liquid tests are best and for best brand well the better ones are more difficult to find and may be more pricey, the Kordon test kit or Aquarium Pharmaceuticals brand test kits are solid value for the price and I would recommend these brands.

Answering your questions about ph, the cichlids you have should be fine with a range of ph levels, the most important thing is that the ph is stable and not undergoing fluctuation. One looks like an african cichlid, so that one in particular might be better off in a high ph hard water environment.