Cichlid tank ????

[ADCISCO]

What would be the right number of cichlid for a 10 gallon tank, 29 gallon tank and a 55 gallon tank......I'm new at this. I have 5 in a 10 gallon right now and want to get some more...I do have another unused 10 gallon tank. I am in love with these little guys. They are so pretty and I just would love to have some that I can watch that are intersting and these little guys are very intersting! So fun to watch! They are all young but one is getting bigger than the rest and he has to be the center of attention at all times.LOL

 

[Hypostomus]

For most African cichlids I would suggest a minimum of a 55g until you figure out precisely what fish you have.

Check out some of these articles on setting up tanks for these beautiful cichlids, and more information about their space requirements:

http://www.cichlid-forum.com/articles/rift_lake_setup.php
http://malawicichlids.com/mw01019.htm
http://www.malawicichlidhomepage.com/aquainfo/malawi9.html#space
Mbuna aggression: http://www.african.uklinux.net/phpBB/viewtopic.php?topic=449&forum=25&6
An article on the tanks in LFSes labeled "Mixed African Cichlids": http://www.cichlid-forum.com/articles/mixed_africans.php

At present, you should cycle a 55g and place your 5 in there IMO.

Then (or now) you can research all of the species, see what needs to be moved, and then work on how and what you are going to add next.

 

[Guest]

10 or 11 of the malawi, which I believe you have pictured would be ok IMO in a 55 gal as long as you have good filtration and you are buying the varieties that don't exceed 4-6 inches. I've read more than once that a minimum of 55 gal is required though and if you stock to the max, it cuts back on aggression. If you were interested in central american agressives. 1-2 medium sized might do ok in the 29 gal. I'm speaking of the ones that don't grow more than 5 inches. I don't think you can put cichlids in anything smaller than that, unless you were interested in the dwarf varieties that I don't know much about. 20-30 gal might be the minimum for those even. I don't know of any cichlids that would be comfortable in a 10 gal past the juvenile stage though.

 

[ADCISCO]

Yeh I am still pretty new when it comes to cichlids and what you can put together and not. I finally have the community tank down to perfection but I think that I have a way to go on the cichlids. I cant tell them all apart. I know that there are so many different kinds. The ones I bought were all small cichlids and I got them at walmart for around 4.33 a piece which is a bargan being that most of them are 9 and 10 in the pet shops but of course they are larger but I didnt want larger ones. I like to watch them grow and change and I have had these just about 3 wks I think and I cant believe how much they have grown.But they most definelty have personality! They had a bunch of new ones in yesterday and I wanted to get some more. I thought about getting my other 10 gallon out and getting 5 more and filter some of the water out of the 10 gallon into the new one and take the sponge from that tank too and put it in there for now until I can get lined out. I want an active inviroment. I also have 2 pictus cats in my community tank that arent so community oriented.....husband bought without asking me first.....would the be ok to put in with the cichlids? I figured since the cichlids dont take any crap that they might stand a chance with them plus the pictus are so hard to feed. I have 2 rainbow and the eat their food before it even reachs the bottom of the tank.....that means that I have to add extra which makes the tank dirtier faster which I hate!!!!!!!! Is there any other bottom feeders that would be good to put in with cichlids?????

 

[Guest]

If you are talking about African cichlids, the synoditis euphrates is one of the better possible tankmates. Catfish eat around dusk mainly, so I drop an algae wafer in when the cichlids cant see with the lights out in my house and in my tank.
This is only necessary every other day or two. If you are worried about it not eating, feed it a vegetable with a veggie clip on the bottom of the tank. I don't know much about the pictus catfish though. From what I read I thought they were supposed to be kept with larger community fish in the 4-5" range. I also believe they prefer a lower ph than africans do. The one I mention can tolerate the lower range of the african's preference. I would stay away from 10 gal tanks when you are dealing with cichlids though. They don't stay small. If you keep 5 in a 10 gal, once they grow, you're going to end up with about 20-30" of fish. They need a minimum of a 48" tank imo (i.e. 55 gal, 75 gal or bigger). I can gaurentee you will have fish wars and ammonia spikes. I have heard of people keeping them in a 30 gal though. Hope this helps.

 

[Guest]

btw, here is another good site: http://liveaquaria.com/ I have never purchased anything, but it provides a good, brief, profile on certain fishes. I go there when I want fish ideas.

 

[ADCISCO]

I just bought 5 more and put them in with the other 5 and I can already tell that I will be getting the other 10 gallon out really soon!lol

 

[patryuji]

IMO the only cichlids which will do well in a 10gallon tank would be the more "passive" dwarf cichlids. Ramirezi (gold or blue) and Bolivian rams. Shell dwellers (I think it was stated just a few days ago that there are one or two species of shell dwellers which don't do well in a 10gallon. Some of the apistograma dwarfs.

 

[ADCISCO]

I just seperated thew cichlids from the original batch! If I handnt I dont know what was going to happen tonight when I sent to bed!YIKES!!!! All is well now, I have 2 10 gallon tanks going. I took water from the old tank and put in the new and added to both plus I put stuff from the old tank in the new one plus an old filter from the other tank as well so I hope that the tank establishes okay....I always learn things the hard way......just as Allivymar~ But I guess that we all have to learn someway huh?

 

[poppab02]

I've been raising Cichlids now for a little over a year and thought I would prepare you for what's about to happen. I had 2 empty 10 gallons and a 29 gallon tank. I bought 6 cichlids, about as small as you can find them in a pet store, and the pet store employee assured me that a 29 gallon would be plenty of room for the cichlids, I even read a few articles and books and convinced myself I had enough room. I started them in a 10 gallon tank, in about a month to 2 months they had grown from under 1/4 of an inch to 1 inch and were becoming impossible to manage in a 10 gallon so I moved them to a 29 gallon. They were pretty much fine for about 3 months until one of them became extremely dominant. He killed one of the others and so I moved him into a separate tank. Basically from then on for the rest of the year I kept moving them around trying to get a balance and it never working until three of the original 6 had been killed off. Then they were fine, they had enough room to escape on another. I have since moved one of the original 6--now over 4 inches long in one year and given the other 2 to friends and am about to transfer my new batch--all over 1 inch in less than 2 months--to a 100 Gallon tank. Basically, enjoy having all of them in a small tank now, because either they will all kill each other until 1 remains or you will have to move them to a new tank. Basically, a full grown african cichlid needs a minimum of 10 gallons to himself and even more if they grow over about 6 inches. Don't get me wrong I love the guys, the one I kept has more personality than any dog or cat I've ever had, but they need alot of room. By the way, the pictus may be able to be put in as long as they are substantially larger than the cichlids and be prepared for them to lose their whiskers, they may perhaps be killed, you never really know with cichlids. I've had a synodontis eurepetus (the one everyone says to get) killed by them who were bigger than the cichlids but I also have a plecostomus and a tiger barb who have survived.

 

[Menagerie]

poppab02 what cichlids did you have?
My fiance and I have finally achieved a nice balance with our cichlids after three years of trying. The key is research ahead of time, no IMPULSE buys (unless you are willing to get another tank or two like we did ) and be prepared for some heartache. Personally, I found that our tank of Mbuna cichlids is working out nicely--most are Pseudotropheus spieces. As far as adding catfish--it depends on the personalities of the cichlids already in the tank, the size of the catfish and hiding spaces.

 

[poppab02]

First ones were- 1 Melanochromis johannii--first to die, 1 Melanochromis auratus---gave to a friend, 1 Pseudotropheus socolofi--gave to a friend---extremely agressive could not deal with other fish, 1 brown spotted one you find at a typical pet store---not sure of name, got eaten, 1 pale yellow with horizontal black stripes--eaten, 1 black/purple with white on outside of fins---I've tried hard to identify him but I have no idea--I still own him, he's around 4 inches now

Now I have--2 Jewels, 3 Pseudotropheus acei--I think, 2 Labidochromis freibergi--I think---they all seem to be doing fine together and got moved to a brand new 55 gallon tank today.

I'm trying to decide whether I'm going to try and put the big guy in with them, probably not since he has such an interesting personality when he's alone and I'm somewhat worried about upsetting the balance in the 55 gallon.

I'm goint to move my puffer, barb, loach, and shark into the cichlids old tank so it worked out well but I've found that the cichlids need about 8 - 10 gallons per fish once they're adults even if they are relatively peaceful cichlids

 

[poppab02]

maybe this will help identify what I have

 

[poppab02]

By the way the last picture is of what I think is a one of my 2 Labidochromis freibergi, this is what I think is my 3 Pseudotropheus acei---let me know if I'm off base, the freibergi's head is in the rock as well

 

[Menagerie]

Hey poppab02!
I would guess the first fish is a Pseudotropheus zebra--it looks like one I have, right down to the yellow tipped fins.

 

[ADCISCO]

The new ones of the bunch

This is the most aggressive fish that I have that I just got out of the 5. Dont have a clue to what it is!

 

[ADCISCO]

This is a better picture of him or her or what ever it might be!

 

[ADCISCO]

And this is the most aggressive out of the other tank.

 

[poppab02]

Menagerie, My fish certainly could be a zebra, I thought about that possibility but I'm not convinced either way. They seem to go pale when they are agressive, almost white, Is that typical of Zebras?

Adcisco, I think I saw the first fish today at the lfs, they had it labelled as kendago borleyi, I think that's what it was. Anyways as soon as I get his tank cleaned I'm going to post a pic of my big guy and see if anyone can identify him because I have not been able to.

 

[Lindsikins00]

did you have just 2 ten gallons? or did you have a 29 and a 55? If you just have 2 tens, I would save the money and get a bigger tank....The bigger they get the more aggressive they will be, and not to mention the bioload is going to be too much.