New 36 gallon bowfront build

[uncgirl1]

You're very welcome!! just glad to help out another AAer

I looked up those fish and they are very pretty! I don't think that's what I'm looking for this tank though. The Rams are as close as I'm getting for now. I'm already saving for my next tank which will be a cichlid tank. ?


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[Penguin]

I looked up those fish and they are very pretty! I don't think that's what I'm looking for this tank though. The Rams are as close as I'm getting for now. I'm already saving for my next tank which will be a cichlid tank. ?


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Which rams are you looking at? I personally think the German blue ram is the nicest but require a tank that has been cycled for at least six months and have pristine water conditions and any fluctuations in water condition will stress them out.

 

[mikem691]

Maybe if you still have some space maybe you can fit some shell dwelling cichlids in there. They are generally peaceful and stay small males from 1-3 inches and females are smaller and they are only aggressive during mating. Also from what i have read they really only need 5-10 gallons and soft substrate and plenty of shells to spawn in. They won't attack fish unless they are in their territory.

I completely disagree with the text in red.

 

[Penguin]

I completely disagree with the text in red.

From what i have read on many cichlid forums and heard from a close friend of mine who works at the most reliable fish store in Northern New Jersey called Absolutely Fish and he said and showed me that he has Shell Dwellers in his tank with shrimp and other peaceful fish including corydoras and has never had a problem with aggression other than during mating season. I'm just going by what i have read and heard from other reliable sources.

 

[Brookster123]

From what i have read on many cichlid forums and heard from a close friend of mine who works at the most reliable fish store in Northern New Jersey called Absolutely Fish and he said and showed me that he has Shell Dwellers in his tank with shrimp and other peaceful fish including corydoras and has never had a problem with aggression other than during mating season. I'm just going by what i have read and heard from other reliable sources.

Everything I have read, heard and seen has them in a species only tank as they're little psychos..

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[mikem691]

From what i have read on many cichlid forums and heard from a close friend of mine who works at the most reliable fish store in Northern New Jersey called Absolutely Fish and he said and showed me that he has Shell Dwellers in his tank with shrimp and other peaceful fish including corydoras and has never had a problem with aggression other than during mating season. I'm just going by what i have read and heard from other reliable sources.

I have kept Neolamprologus multifasciatus and many others on here will tell you they have no business in a community tank. My multis were temp housed in a 55 for a day with other fish 5x their size that sustained fin damage from the multis from getting to close to their colony. Most if not all shell dwellers need a species only tank.

 

[Penguin]

I have kept Neolamprologus multifasciatus and many others on here will tell you they have no business in a community tank. My multis were temp housed in a 55 for a day with other fish 5x their size that sustained fin damage from the multis from getting to close to their colony. Most if not all shell dwellers need a species only tank.

They're hit or miss some can be very peaceful and shy and others can vicious and very active

 

[ImACoolguy]

They're hit or miss some can be very peaceful and shy and others can vicious and very active

So can be said with almost any fish in a certain situation.


Caleb

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[uncgirl1]

Which rams are you looking at? I personally think the German blue ram is the nicest but require a tank that has been cycled for at least six months and have pristine water conditions and any fluctuations in water condition will stress them out.

I've had blue rams before and they are wonderful fish! I found them very easy to take care of actually. I've read that's not the norm so I must have gotten lucky with the one's I had. It was my intention to do blue rams again but am now thinking bolivians. They aren't as colorful but very pretty in their own right. I tend to agree with everyone else, cichlids belong in a species only tank. One day I'll have that but definitely don't want them in my community tank.

 

[mikem691]

I've had blue rams before and they are wonderful fish! I found them very easy to take care of actually. I've read that's not the norm so I must have gotten lucky with the one's I had. It was my intention to do blue rams again but am now thinking bolivians. They aren't as colorful but very pretty in their own right. I tend to agree with everyone else, cichlids belong in a species only tank. One day I'll have that but definitely don't want them in my community tank.

Your tank looks awesome! Sorry to plug up your thread here but dint want you to take bad advice. The GBR's are great cichlids and would love the setup you have.

 

[Penguin]

I've had blue rams before and they are wonderful fish! I found them very easy to take care of actually. I've read that's not the norm so I must have gotten lucky with the one's I had. It was my intention to do blue rams again but am now thinking bolivians. They aren't as colorful but very pretty in their own right. I tend to agree with everyone else, cichlids belong in a species only tank. One day I'll have that but definitely don't want them in my community tank.

I have one firemouth and one golden malawi they're both very peaceful in my community tank and don't harass other fish

 

[uncgirl1]

Your tank looks awesome! Sorry to plug up your thread here but dint want you to take bad advice. The GBR's are great cichlids and would love the setup you have.

No worries! I'm glad so many people are offering advice. It's great to learn about other experiences. I know that there are always exceptions to rules about fish and some people have great luck with uncommon situations. I can assure you that I would not be in that category! lol I'm starting over after parasite that killed everything ( ) and am determined to not make the mistakes I made the first go around. I've learned a lot and researched a lot. I plan to take it slooooowwww. Not add fish just because they are there and what I really want isn't. I'm giving planted a go so we will see how that goes. So far, things seem to moving along nicely! I did fishless cycling this time (on both my main tank as well as my QT). QT was lesson learned from evil parasite! Thank you so much for the advice and following along. The one thing I've got down is the water chemistry. I knew my chem degree would eventually come in handy. I am sure that I will continue to ask questions as I continue on this journey! Thanks again!

 

[mikem691]

I have one firemouth and one golden malawi they're both very peaceful in my community tank and don't harass other fish

So you have an Auratus with a Meeki? Please do some research on these 2 fish.
I rest my case.
I'm out

 

[Penguin]

So you have an Auratus with a Meeki? Please do some research on these 2 fish.
I rest my case.
I'm out

They are both friendly and I've had them for a while and have never seen any signs of aggression so chill out. My friend who works at a fish store which is highly reputable and checks your water parameters before selling you the fish and make their employees take tests on new species they get so they will be knowledgeable and said it'd be okay and he's had these 2 before in the same tank with no aggression at all so I'm going to take his word on it he has been keeping fish for many years and knows quite a lot about fish and wouldn't steer me wrong.

 

[treemanone2003]

They are both friendly and I've had them for a while and have never seen any signs of aggression so chill out. My friend who works at a fish store which is highly reputable and checks your water parameters before selling you the fish and make their employees take tests on new species they get so they will be knowledgeable and said it'd be okay and he's had these 2 before in the same tank with no aggression at all so I'm going to take his word on it he has been keeping fish for many years and knows quite a lot about fish and wouldn't steer me wrong.

For starters I'd say your opening line is a bit rude and a little flawed. In your thread you claim to have gotten the firemouth last Friday, the 20th. So that's far from having them for a while. In fact hardly any amount of time to determine if any aggressiveness exists. As for doing "tests" on species compatibility, just wrong with the amount of resources available today. As well as experience. Whether they test water or not before a sale, is really nothing to go on. Your tank has been thru many ups and downs (more downs) and if he was that much of a friend and the store was that great, they wouldn't be selling you fish that are 1.) non compatible and
2.) not suitable for your tank size.


Sent from my iPhone that doesn't like me. Or you !!


Sent from my iPhone that doesn't like me. Or you !!

 

[Penguin]

For starters I'd say your opening line is a bit rude and a little flawed. In your thread you claim to have gotten the firemouth last Friday, the 20th. So that's far from having them for a while. In fact hardly any amount of time to determine if any aggressiveness exists. As for doing "tests" on species compatibility, just wrong with the amount of resources available today. As well as experience. Whether they test water or not before a sale, is really nothing to go on. Your tank has been thru many ups and downs (more downs) and if he was that much of a friend and the store was that great, they wouldn't be selling you fish that are 1.) non compatible and
2.) not suitable for your tank size.


Sent from my iPhone that doesn't like me. Or you !!

Sent from my iPhone that doesn't like me. Or you !!

He said they aren't gonna grow much larger than 3 inches plus the firemouth and the Golden Malawi are just being temporarily being housed there until we can find a tank for a reasonable being we don't have a lot of money to spend on a bigger tank yet. They are being moved to cichlid only tank in a week or so when i get my paycheck so they aren't staying in our 15 for very long.

 

[uncgirl1]

He said they aren't gonna grow much larger than 3 inches plus the firemouth and the Golden Malawi are just being temporarily being housed there until we can find a tank for a reasonable being we don't have a lot of money to spend on a bigger tank yet. They are being moved to cichlid only tank in a week or so when i get my paycheck so they aren't staying in our 15 for very long.

You have a mbuna cichlid with a South American cichlid. They require different water parameters and aren't from the same region. In addition, the firemouth can easily be 6" and not 3" as your friend suggested. The other can be 4.5" to 5". No offense, but I don't think your friend is giving you very good advice. Please listen to the people on this forum. They are a wealth of information and have a ton of experience. From what I can tell, your friend may not be the best source of information. You need a much larger tank and you definitely have incompatible species. I really think you need to choose one or the other and build a much larger tank of fish that are similar in requirements. Now, can we get back to my tank?

 

[mikem691]

Honestly I just reread your thread and I think you have it all figured out. I don't see any problems. How ever good luck with keeping it low tech planted. I just started a low tech 20 gallon 2 weeks ago and as of today (thanks to Brookster and some others on here ) I'm already running DIY Co2 and ordering a high par light on Friday.

 

[Brookster123]

I think the tank looks great too! Reread the thread as well.. that was an epic derail there haha.. I miss my big ozelot sword..

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[uncgirl1]

Honestly I just reread your thread and I think you have it all figured out. I don't see any problems. How ever good luck with keeping it low tech planted. I just started a low tech 20 gallon 2 weeks ago and as of today (thanks to Brookster and some others on here ) I'm already running DIY Co2 and ordering a high par light on Friday.

Thank you! And you're right. I like the way my tank looks but I keep seeing others and am jealous of all the pretty that they have. lol Who knows, maybe one day. At the moment, I am content but we will see what I'm doing with it in the future!