Fastest setup ever

[hockeydude15]

Well the people with the fish didnt know how to say cichlid so i have to look up the names of the fish. They are gorgeous and pretty big, well taken care of. So i brought them home and they were all looking sick and short of air so instead of putting them in my 55 gal and put them in my 38 and are doing alright. Once the 55 looks good i will move the fish into it.

Also, no the tank is not cycled i set it up last night and i am in the process of getting bio spira.

- Many of the fish are extremley stressed. How should i handle this?

 

[Fishyfanatic]

The stress can be caused from poor water quality or simply from the move. When you acclimate them into the tank leave the lights off for a few hours. The 38 is not near enough room for them so they will probably be stressed until putting them in the 55. Can you describe the fish? I may be able to help you out with information such as body structure and coloration or any distinguishing markings. BTW- Are these Africans?

 

[hockeydude15]

tank now

 

[Fishyfanatic]

It is fine to add the fish. But I'd wait until you have the Bio-Spira. An uncycled tank will stress them out even more.

 

[hockeydude15]

heres a few of the fish

 

[tetrin]

2 ps. crabos in the foreground, one lab (possibly looking straight). don't know much about the blue guy on the right.
looks like a malawi mbuna setup. 55g should be perfect for them (depending on number of fish).

and you have a pretty good rockwork going. great for mbuna (rock-dwellers).
great steal...

 

[hockeydude15]

I went to petsmart, petco, and a local petstore. There is no biospira and everyone looks at me like im an idiot. Is there any substitute?

I gave a full dosage of Amquel plus which removes nitrate, nirite, ammonia, chlorine and chloramines.

I also have stress zyme and aqua plus

 

[severum mama]

If you change over some of the filter media from your old filter now, it will help immensely.

 

[hockeydude15]

o the blue guy has been in the 38 hes an elecrtic blue johanni and has torn 2 of the new fishs tails to shreds. He is quite a little bastard.

 

[Fishyfanatic]

Yup, the blue guy is a Johanni. As he gets larger, he will be very aggressive. Watch him closely. He should calm down once in the larger tank but be careful with him.

 

[hockeydude15]

I bought "cycle" so ill use that for some of the beneficial bacteria as well as the other filter media

 

[hockeydude15]

Lets play name that fish

 

[hockeydude15]

1. Has red eyes and yellow dots on tail
2. Has no blue color anywhere, the camera did that
3. I m almost sure that he is a zebra
4. brown, under the light its purple and has light stripes with orange fins and tail

 

[tetrin]

i'm pretty sure the blue guy before is a melanochromis interruptus (broken blue lines, as opposed to unbroken in johanni).

1. ps. zebra (cobalt), but the red eye threw me off.
2. convict
3. some sort of cross between a zebra and a peacock?
4. pseudotropheus sp. (something ).

 

[Fishyfanatic]

Cycle doesn't work like it claims. It does have bacteria, but its been talked about quite abit on this forum as being a useless product. I haven't heard one person say that it actually helped them.

The first one is a Pseudotropheus socolofi "Albino". The red eyes are a dead giveaway. This is a peaceful fish so watch this one with the Convict.

Whatever the second one is, I have the same one. But I don't know the scientific name. I haven't been able to name it.

The third one looks like the Convict. This fish is Central American.

The fourth one looks like a juvi that hasn't developed coloration. I had the same one a while back but traded it in because I thought it was a mixed breed since it never developed much coloration.

 

[Fishyfanatic]

The first pic that you posted, could it be a Green Texas Cichlid?

 

[hockeydude15]

BTW i put in stuff today that was suppossed to take out ammonia and nitrites etc. and i went to test it out and the ammonia levels are 5.0

 

[hockeydude15]

hey thanks for all the feedback on the naming of the fish. fanatic is def. right about the albino. I think youre right about the convict, although mine doesnt have that same exact structure so i dont know. Though I dont think that the first one is a green texas hence its color is blue

 

[Fishyfanatic]

Sorry hockey, pics don't come through too good on my side since I use speedband dial-up. All pics tend to be distorted. I just did a quick ID based on the spots.

If your ammonia is that high, do an IMMEDIATE large water change. Levels that high will kill your fish. Africans are big waste producers so be prepared for lots of water changes until it cycles.

 

[tetrin]

hmm...i was definitely wrong about the albino socolofi...i wouldn't trust my id-ing skills anymore .
and on top of that, i was reading the numbering the wrong way .
as always, fishy comes to the rescue...thanks fishy...