CA and africans
- Thread starter Doviiisthebest
- Start date
because they have completely different water chemistry needs
sa/ca cichlids do best in 6.0-7.0 ph, while africans require a ph of 8.0-9.0.
it is not wise, nore is it responsible fish keeping..keeping sa/ca cichlids at a 9.0 ph will cause problems in the long run, same with keeping africans in a ph of 6.0.
they are from different parts of the world for a reason, if you want to keep sa/ca's and africans, buy an extra tank and use it for africans..dont mix
sa/ca cichlids do best in 6.0-7.0 ph, while africans require a ph of 8.0-9.0.
it is not wise, nore is it responsible fish keeping..keeping sa/ca cichlids at a 9.0 ph will cause problems in the long run, same with keeping africans in a ph of 6.0.
they are from different parts of the world for a reason, if you want to keep sa/ca's and africans, buy an extra tank and use it for africans..dont mix
The water chemistry argument doesn't always hold true.
Many CA's come from bodies of water that are naturally neutral to very hard. N. salvini have been found in water with pH values over 9.
Besides, long tankbred fish are quite adaptable to different water chemistries. How many people actually bother lowering their pH for oscars or GT's?
More important factors would be stable water chemistry, clean water, proper diets and consideration of species behavior. Herbivorous fish wouldn't fare well in a tank full of carnivorous fish that get fed meaty foods. Same the other way around.
A heavily stocked tank will need lots of filtration as well as frequent water changes.
A fish that's increasingly aggressive as it ages and requires a lot of territory to itself may not be happy housed with fish that don't need to hold large permanent territories and behaviorally do better in larger groups to disperse aggression.
That's not to say it can't be done although I'm not one to promote careless mixing either way.
Many CA's come from bodies of water that are naturally neutral to very hard. N. salvini have been found in water with pH values over 9.
Besides, long tankbred fish are quite adaptable to different water chemistries. How many people actually bother lowering their pH for oscars or GT's?
More important factors would be stable water chemistry, clean water, proper diets and consideration of species behavior. Herbivorous fish wouldn't fare well in a tank full of carnivorous fish that get fed meaty foods. Same the other way around.
A heavily stocked tank will need lots of filtration as well as frequent water changes.
A fish that's increasingly aggressive as it ages and requires a lot of territory to itself may not be happy housed with fish that don't need to hold large permanent territories and behaviorally do better in larger groups to disperse aggression.
That's not to say it can't be done although I'm not one to promote careless mixing either way.
I have always mixed as I please and most of the time things are fine but I have extra tanks incase they don't get along.
As far as the water chem goes unless you are trying to breed stability is more important then the exact PH and hardness, remember a lot of the fish we get have been raised in 8ph and they are very adaptive.
As far as the water chem goes unless you are trying to breed stability is more important then the exact PH and hardness, remember a lot of the fish we get have been raised in 8ph and they are very adaptive.
It's as straitjacketstar stated. Unless you are breeding a difficult killie or importing some rare fish, your H2O chem is not as important as clean water and ample space is. Where I live the fish (CA/SA/African) are bred locally or in ponds in Florida. I've mixed for years, some combos work others don't. Besides, what would a tankful of anglefish be like without the occasional gourami?