South american cichlid amount in one tank

  • We are currently upgrading MFK. thanks! -neo
Wochoa3 said:
how come i have to do a water change so often?
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I personally doubt that you would NEED to change water that often. You could probably go a couple of weeks between changes with that bioload imo. However, it really depends on your water chemistry. I wouldn't feed adult fish every day, so it might not be an issue at all. Just watch your nitrate levels.
 
joel said:
Fish create waste and filters only do so much to keep water clean. It is necessary to do frequent water changes to keep ammonia, nitrates, nitrites to a minimum and to keep the ph balance within an acceptable range.


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Cycling your tank and maintaining healthy colonies of Beneficial Bacteria keep ammonia and nitrite at zero. Water changes are necessary to keep nitrates within an acceptable level. As far as pH, I just keep some crushed coral in the substrate. That buffers the tank, and helps to keep the pH at a constant level. Most fish (most) can tolerate a reasonably wide margin in the pH area. Its quick, drastic changes (like what can happen when you go two months with no water change, then do an 80% change) that can adversely affect your fish's chances of survival.
 
Pomatomus said:
I personally doubt that you would NEED to change water that often. You could probably go a couple of weeks between changes with that bioload imo. However, it really depends on your water chemistry. I wouldn't feed adult fish every day, so it might not be an issue at all. Just watch your nitrate levels.
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I would agree that taking 30-40% out every other day is probably unnecessary, but once every two weeks is definitely too long with 4-5 firemouths plus schooling fish (I would recommend large tetras like lemons, congos, serpae, black skirt, etc). I offer the "middle ground" water change suggestion. Do 25-50% water change twice a week. That is the regiment I use for all of my tanks (and they are all over filtered). If you do over filter your tank, I would say the bare minimum water change would be 50% once per week.

As far as feeding goes, I feed two small meals every day to juveniles and once a day for semi-adults/adults.


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Pomatomus said:
I personally doubt that you would NEED to change water that often. You could probably go a couple of weeks between changes with that bioload imo. However, it really depends on your water chemistry. I wouldn't feed adult fish every day, so it might not be an issue at all. Just watch your nitrate levels.
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is there anything sold that helps check nitrate and ammonia levels?
 
jagsandpits said:
overstocked tanks need constant maintenance ive slack for about 2 weeks and my tank is DISGUSTING right now
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I recently bought this 55 gallon tank and it was WAY overstocked including 1 pacu and a pike both around a foot long give or take a few inches and I don't know how to get rid of all these fish however the pike took care of 3 just swallowed them whole but I guess he hasn't eaten anymore because the other fish don't fit in his mouth. Any ways of getting rid of 3-4 inch fish without killing them?


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duanes said:
What he said above.
And think of it this way....
if you put 5 big guys in a bathroom and only allow them to flush a toilet once per week, that's about the same as 5 adult fish in a 55, and changing the water is flushing the toilet.....
Filters only take waste out when you clean them, (some of it breaks down)but letting stuff build up in a filter is a bit like sweeping stuff under a rug, its out of sight, but not gone, its still in the water.
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Agreed, but you can bend the rules a bit if you get creative. A canister filter sucks waste in and breaks it down. Slowly, and the end results is still waste in the water albeit a different form (NO3). A small sump with a filter sock is a lot easier to do periodic maintenance on. Pull the sock and whatever is on the sock won't break down in the system. Hob's can have that advantage as well....pull the pad and give it a rinse, replace.

And.....plants. For diggers like thorichthys aquatic plants may be constantly dug up, but terrestrial plants like pothos or philodendron can help absorb nitrates by just having roots in the water column. Not a replacement for water changes, but a way to lengthen the time between without the tank becoming quite so toxic.
 
duanes said:
What he said above.
And think of it this way....
if you put 5 big guys in a bathroom and only allow them to flush a toilet once per week, that's about the same as 5 adult fish in a 55, and changing the water is flushing the toilet.....
Filters only take waste out when you clean them, (some of it breaks down)but letting stuff build up in a filter is a bit like sweeping stuff under a rug, its out of sight, but not gone, its still in the water.
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Ha I love this. What a great way to explain wc's to someone new to aquariums


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