Ivanacara sp. or other acara types...water parameters question

[freebyrd]

I am looking at ivanacara bimaculatum as a potential tank mate species to pair with my Geo. Pyrochephalus in my planted 180g. Full stock list includes:

G. Pyrochephalus x6 (only 2" younglings)
Apistogramma cacatuoides trio
Lemon tetras x12
Ember Tetras x9
L134 leopard frog pleco X1

I see they typically like soft slightly acidic water which my water is far from. I use well water that both the GH and KH are both at the upper end of the scale. My pH is closer to neutral, and my nitrates are at zero.

I've kept fish with similar requirements before and didn't really have an issue other than they wouldn't breed in the aquarium. What are your thoughts on this species specifically? They are pretty expensive to do poorly in my setup, but I'm looking to add another smaller acara type species to my tank that is generally peaceful and is the same size or smaller than my pyrochephalus. I am open to other types of acaras, but I don't want to go with EBA. Is there any types that would do better in my water? Here is a current picture of my tank, sorry about the algae, I haven't had time to get it up, will get to it this weekend!

 

[Fallen_Leaves16]

Ivanacara bimaculatum requires very low pH (and thus kH); far lower than what you currently have, or they will develop illnesses easily and likely will refuse to spawn (even if they do, issues with fertility and hatching will occur). I know of a few people that keep adult wild-caughts in straight RO because they nearly died in a RO/tap mix. I heard tank-bred do much better in more neutral pH, but still prefer soft water.
They would also not appreciate boisterous tankmates; being rather shy, they can be prone to getting bullied (compared to adoketa, they're rather passive); and do benefit from dense cover.
Best setup for them is a heavily acidic species-only tank with a large amount of botanicals for cover.

Laetacara might do alright, though they do prefer softer water and may be a tad belligerent depending on species, if I remember correctly.

 

[duanes]

Because of the tannins that give the Rio Negro its name, pH in the river averages around 4 , and because the surrounding vegetation sucks out nutrientss as fast as they are produced, mineral content is next to nothing.
Since these cichlids have only been in the hobby a comparatively short time, tolerance for water parameters even slightly out of their natural range has not yet been bred in.
Unless have the ability to alter your tap water with an RO unit, and supply the anti bacterial tannins they have evolved to live in, trying to keep them, is probably going to be an expensive exercise in futility.

I know Jeff at Aquaticclarity has them on his stock list, at around $65 each, and lives in an area where he has well water.
You may want to talk to him, pick his brain about what kind of hoops he needs o go thru, to keep them healthy.
He's a good guy, and if you catch him at the right time, I'm sure he could be very helpful.
He also has Laetacara on his list which may be more tolerant (as stated above) at 3 for $45.

 

[Fallen_Leaves16]

I think Jeff has adoketa, not bimaculata, though I know Casey at caseystropicalfish.com (frequents the Apistogramma B/S/T Band group; not sure if the website is still used) breeds them; so does Thomas at Shoreline Aquatics. There are also a few hobbyists here and there working with the species; think most have strains imported from Europe, though.
Chang at Moonlight Aquatics managed to get them in once; apparently F2s from Ryan at hoonaquatics.
Turns out I was wrong about their poor survivability in more neutral pH water; seems like tank-bred pairs have been bred a few times in regular (neutral/slightly acidic pH, fairly high KH and GH) tap water with decent survival rates.
Seems water just has to be kept clean with these guys; not too certain whether they'd do well in a community tank at all, but it might be worth a shot if you can provide separate housing in the case of complications.
I am of the opinion that the Ivanacara likely are a bit more fragile in tap water and probably won't appreciate several tankmates (some of which will eventually outgrow them), but seeing as I haven't kept bimaculata (and only kept adoketa for a short while), I can't really provide any solid info.
Some folks on Apistogramma.com could likely provide more in-depth info.

 

[freebyrd]

Yeah I don't want to make a mistake, are there any other acara type species that would better suit my wants? I'm hesitant to try the bimaculatum. I'm a bit intimidated.

 

[Kevin@TUIC]

I have both wild adoketa and captive bred bimaculata on hand at the moment. Both of these species i keep in low pH blackwater.
we cannot alter the thousands of years of genetics in the species to be tolerant of a new environment in a few short years or filial generations unfortunately. So , low ph, soft water is going to be required.

 

[freebyrd]

I have both wild adoketa and captive bred bimaculata on hand at the moment. Both of these species i keep in low pH blackwater.
we cannot alter the thousands of years of genetics in the species to be tolerant of a new environment in a few short years or filial generations unfortunately. So , low ph, soft water is going to be required.

Yes sir I was eyeballing your stock list

What else would you recommend to fill the gap im looking for? Those are the RHT I got from you, btw!