I want to start a successful 29 gallon cichlid tank

[dewiro]

I am interested in starting a 29 gallon cichlid tank and I have a few questions.

How many cichlids can I put in a 29 gallon tank and what are my options for tank mates if any.

The water in the tank stays around 77 degrees year round without a heater, do I need to use one?

I'm using a 30-55 gallon water filter in there with the 2 fountains or whatever they are called, do I need to be using my bubbler strip?

What is a decent yet inexpensive water test kit I can order online? If you have links please make them USA friendly sites

Do I need to use the sand in the tank or will the rocks work?

I live next to the river so I'd plan on making my own caves etc, do I need to boil the rocks and if I were to put silicone between some to hold them together what kind would be fish tank safe?

I've seen videos before of tank lights that slowly adjust as if the sun were coming up is that a whole special lid that does that or just the light? The light I have right now is kinda crummy but I'm not interested in replacing the whole lid :/

I don't know which cichlids would work best in my tank but I'd prefer quantity of medium sized ones rather than just like 2 of the bigger ones. This was posted from my phone so there may be a lot of typos or incorrect grammar so please ignore that :/

Any other information is also appreciated and thanks for the help in advance! I'm sure ill come up with a few more questions along the way

 

[Mogurako]

www.google.com is a good place to start, no one here is going to do all your research for you. Also reading through old threads is a good start, I know I have personally read 5-10+ threads about each one of your questions.

 

[dewiro]

Okay well when I post asking why my 30 cichlids don't get along with my green spotted puffer fish and somebody's head explodes I'll just inform them that Google told me it was okay. I'm not asking anybody to go out of their way to do research for me I just know that cichlids are very popular fish and this is the only site I trust for questions regarding my aquarium.

 

[mfdrookie516]

There are literally thousands of cichlids. Without knowing which ones, in particular, that you're looking at... it's impossible to say. Most won't work in a 29g, but there are definitely a lot that can.

 

[dewiro]

I was kind of interested in the African cichlids

 

[mfdrookie516]

There are only a few Africans that will work in a 29g. Shell dwellers are one option, you could do a bunch of shellies. Kribensis are another option. There are some smaller tangs that will work, but a 29 is just a bit small for them.

The other options are dwarfs from south america. Rams, apistos, keyholes, etc.

 

[dewiro]

Awesome, ill do research on all of those. What about a cackatoo cichlid? I've read that those stay small enough they can tank with other fish and not have any issues except if they are protecting eggs

 

[mfdrookie516]

Cockatoo is a type of apisto... well, I hate that term... they're cacatuiodes. Beautiful fish.

 

[Mogurako]

Okay well when I post asking why my 30 cichlids don't get along with my green spotted puffer fish and somebody's head explodes I'll just inform them that Google told me it was okay. I'm not asking anybody to go out of their way to do research for me I just know that cichlids are very popular fish and this is the only site I trust for questions regarding my aquarium.

I am not saying to go blindly following advice based off what you find via google or other search engines but use it as a reference point and ask questions bases off what you find to confirm wether or not the information you found is valid.

Take a look through some of the older threads in the cichlid section there's some good info in there.

I agree though that you are limited to smaller cichlids like Shellies, Apistos, keyholes, kribs and so on. All of which are great choices my personal vote would go to shellies.

 

[chrisinmontreal]

You could also look at maybe bolivian or german blue rams