Clip-On Lighting & Wave Maker - Please Help

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chazwood918

Jack Dempsey
MFK Member
Dec 4, 2012
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I actually posted earlier, regarding the sourcing of certain fish and you guys were a huge help! Thank you for that.

This is THE tank for me, so I have it pretty meticulously planned out but I have 2 things I'd love to get input on from the pro's who have done this successfully before me. Now this is a very ambitious project, believe me I know. But I'm finally at the point where I'm ready and capable of handling it. This is going to be a 125-gallon all-male Malawi Cichlid tank. It will be 4 dwarf petricola, a variety of 20 male peacocks, and 3 male haps. I have about 60lbs of Seiryu Stone, a 20" manzanita driftwood, and an 18" mopani root driftwood. The final step in preparation for the fish will be plants. Yes, a planted Malawi tank; here's the list for your reference (these are all plants that can thrive in these parameters and Malawi's should not bother other than potentially uprooting the few that will be planted (but I have a plan for that as well). Mind you, these are all single plants (minus the moss which I will start with 3 of).

* Anubias Barteri Nana
* Anubias Barteri Minima
* Anubias Nancon
* Java Fern
* Massimo Moss Balls (3x)
* Crinum Calamistratum
* Bolbitis
* Cryptocoryne Wendtii Green
* Cryptocoryne Wendtii Red
* Cyrptocoryne Lucens
* Vallisneria Jungle
* Vallisneria Narrow Leaf Nana
* Bucephalandra Blue Boyan

Know them or don't (I know most of you probably don't bother with plants and cichlids together) but these are hardy, mostly low-to-medium light plants, and only the Crypts, Val, and Crinum will be planted into the substrate. Soooooo here's where I need help!

#1) Does anyone feel strongly (based on this setup) about wavemaker quantity, setup, or suggested models? I haven't decided on which one I will go with but was thinking about using one and pairing it with the Fluval FX6's outflow. Place it middle height and angle it up to create surface agitation but also, current across the middle plain of the tank.

#2) AND MOST IMPORTANTLY - this tank is not hidden in a fish room or basement. It's a centerpiece in a primary room of the house, so aesthetic is a major priority. That said, I want to go with clip-on arm lamps for the lighting. I've done planted tanks before but again, not to this scale and I have exhausted my research on this and still don't feel like I'm confident enough to pull the trigger on anything specifically, I just know this is going to require 2-3 lamps.
* I don't want to cheap out, but I also know I can save a lot of money in this category and would really like to haha
* Again, aesthetic is a big deal. Sleak, slim, modern is the way.
* Obviously, it needs to bring out the colors in the tank but also foster growth in the plants
* It needs to have different settings and/or be dimmable
* And I don't want it to light up the whole room, just the tank itself

Sorry for all the info, I just know that these are complex topics so I figured I'd try to answer as much as I could before you all asked. Thank you in advance for any advice!
 
My haps and peacocks ALWAYS nibbled and disturbed my plants, and because of the light, algae was a problem. Even anubias and java fern. Chewed plants mottled with black is not something I would want in my showroom. You can add CO2 (gas, not liquid) but nothing else I tried worked. Crypts and some of the higher light plants do better with a higher nitrate...unlike the fish.

Make sure you cover the tank, Malawi are jumpers.

I have never needed a wavemaker for Malawi.
 
I'm prepped to do CO2 if need be, although very much hoping I don't have to. Out of curiosity; were your plants established before the fish went at them or did you try to put them in with the fish? Because I'm going to get everything (plant-wise) reasonably rooted and showing growth, before I add the fish. In my experience that makes a big difference with Cichlids, but I've never tried it to this scope. And I will do my best to make it work but if I need to shift on the plan, I'm far more open to removing plants than I am fish obviously.

And it's crazy you're saying you've never used a wavemaker. I assumed 1 would be highly beneficial if for no other reason, than to keep debris off the substrate but I've read a handful of forum posts and seen YT videos of people recommending 2 for this sort of setup! haha now I'm second-guessing but I think I'll go with 1 because it can only improve things so why not.

And thanks again for the input DJRansome DJRansome !
 
The pH & nutrient requirements for a successful planted tank are incompatible for a happy healthy Malawi tank. I have tried to achieve this a few times in my 44yrs in the hobby.
Vallisineria is the only plant you mentioned that thrives in a higher pH environment. For almost all the other plants you mentioned, they experience nutrient lockout in pH’s >7.5. They will develop black spots, black beard algae & “melt” away, creating an unsightly mess in your tank.
CO2 is an acid. It will lower your pH during injection phase supplying “food” to your plants and allowing them to uptake available nutrients in the root zone & water column. However, in doing so, create an environment that is less than satisfactory for your choice of cichlids.
Will the Malawis survive in pH 7 or less? Yes. Will they thrive, be healthy and reach their genetic potential for color and size? Likely not.
It sounds like you want the set up to look pristine in terms of aesthetics. To achieve this in a planted tank you will have to make the water parameters about your plants and not the fish. If you’re willing to make those trade offs on the fish side of the equation then have at it mate 🤙🏼
 
Well, that's incredibly disappointing to hear. The fish will always be the priority. I have dealt with black algae before (and it is a pain) but I've never had to inject CO2 to remedy it. Anubias, Java Fern, and Crypts have all done very well my smaller Malawi tank in the past. I fully admit that the Bolbitis, Crinum, and Bucephandra may be reaches but they flourish at 7.5 so it shouldn't be too much of a stretch, and obviously like I said; I've been researching and have reason to believe they will work. If not however, I'll remove the plants.

I can't tell you how much I appreciate your help, I'll keep you posted. Sounds like, not surprisingly, this may not end up being exactly as I planned despite all of mu experience and research lol.
 
chazwood918 said:
Well, that's incredibly disappointing to hear. The fish will always be the priority. I have dealt with black algae before (and it is a pain) but I've never had to inject CO2 to remedy it. Anubias, Java Fern, and Crypts have all done very well my smaller Malawi tank in the past. I fully admit that the Bolbitis, Crinum, and Bucephandra may be reaches but they flourish at 7.5 so it shouldn't be too much of a stretch, and obviously like I said; I've been researching and have reason to believe they will work. If not however, I'll remove the plants.

I can't tell you how much I appreciate your help, I'll keep you posted. Sounds like, not surprisingly, this may not end up being exactly as I planned despite all of mu experience and research lol.
Click to expand...
You’re welcome brutha!
I truly wish “experience & research” would nullify predictable outcomes in certain scenarios.
A lot of research centers around subjective experiences and not objective facts. “This worked for me” bit people don’t always tell the truth as they share their experiences. Scientific research papers require all the facts. We all gravitate towards data that suits our desired conclusions, but not all subjective experiences supply all the data.
When I was trraining to be a grower in an indoor hydroponics industry I learned a lot about lighting, nutrients, pH in the delivery system. Some things are just set in stone.
I wish you all the very best on your journey here!
Watching :popcorn:
 
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I use multiple filters to generate 10X GPH so no problems with circulation and debris on the substrate.
 
DJRansome DJRansome so is it your opinion that the only plant worth even trying to add is Val in the setup I described? Or are there other plants that I haven't considered that I should?
 
I have had probems with vals too. I gave up on plants entirely without CO2. With vals, they are such fast growers that they shot up and looked great...even flowered, but they took nitrates to zero and then languished giving me cyanobacteria. Faced with the option of dosing both nitrate and phosphate to specific levels relative to each other, testing, testing, testing to maintain or just going with the natural rocks and sand, rocks and sand won. The best success I had was with crypts although they did better in a nitrate that was higher than I like for the fish.

Some of the artificial plants are not hideous.
 
hmmmm, alright thank you again DJRansome DJRansome . Maybe I'll just scrap the plants then. Perhaps foolishly, I had a vision of getting the tank cycled and parameters up to par all while fostering plant growth. Both for aesthetic and improving water conditions / lowering the frequency of water changes. Then adding fish and just diligently monitoring everything to make sure I am on top of what changes need to be made. But you're probably right, the potential issues that struggling plants can cause, might not be worth the trouble while I'm monitoring 20+ fish.
 
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