Ugh... so much conflicting information....
I just want something that will breed in there that's a cichlid.
I just want something that will breed in there that's a cichlid.
German Blue Ram in a planted tank with....?
- Thread starter Liz Sagara
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aclockworkorange;4862482; said:Rams tend to be a lot more sensitive and short lived IME. Most don't live past a year. They are just very touchy fish and are notorious for dying.
I got my pair of apistos for $30. They will pay for themselves the first time they breed and I sell off the fry.
Every thing I'm reading about Apistogramma's is that they need a minimum of 30 gallons. SO that sort of decides things for me even further.
First find a source for your german blue rams.
Secondly find out the water conditions they came from.
Most likely they are going to be juvenile fish so let them settle in and grow a bit before worrying about them breeding. Males and females don't always get along so it might take a while to find a compatible pair. As they get bigger start feeding them for meaty live food to condition them to breed. Make sure you have some flat stones or the like for them to spawn on. As long as they are thriving in your tank they will breed. The only real issue your going to find is the hatch rate from their breeding. The eggs will hatch at less than ideal pH but your hatch rate will be better if your pH is closer to the 5.0 which would be for wild rams. Remember your german rams aren't wild fish so they can and will breed at higher pH. When it comes to lowering your pH, I would start with mixing in RO water with your source water but always proceed slowly when trying to alter the pH, more fish are lost from people causing a pH spike.
Remember your not in a race to breed rams, just take things slowly and enjoy them.
Secondly find out the water conditions they came from.
Most likely they are going to be juvenile fish so let them settle in and grow a bit before worrying about them breeding. Males and females don't always get along so it might take a while to find a compatible pair. As they get bigger start feeding them for meaty live food to condition them to breed. Make sure you have some flat stones or the like for them to spawn on. As long as they are thriving in your tank they will breed. The only real issue your going to find is the hatch rate from their breeding. The eggs will hatch at less than ideal pH but your hatch rate will be better if your pH is closer to the 5.0 which would be for wild rams. Remember your german rams aren't wild fish so they can and will breed at higher pH. When it comes to lowering your pH, I would start with mixing in RO water with your source water but always proceed slowly when trying to alter the pH, more fish are lost from people causing a pH spike.
Remember your not in a race to breed rams, just take things slowly and enjoy them.
I know I"m not in any hurry. It would be nice though. I ofund out that the Apisto's need 30 gallons anyhow so I can't do them anyhow. I'm having the hardest time finding someone that will sell me a pair of them. the only person I found that will wants 63 for four of them. I'm going to get four and get a pair from that. (I hope)... he said it's 20 for a pair but that the shipping is the same with them both so the four is a better deal. It's about 3-4 dollars difference between the pair and 2 pairs. Would one male and three females do okay in a 20 gallon long until they pair off?
RedDwarf;4863891; said:I would check with your source of rams on what pH they are running before I would go altering the pH. I raise Bolivian rams both cb and wc, and have had no problems with them living past a year, some are closer to 3 years old.
I would use RO to mix with your water source to get the desired effect. Rams will breed and hatch easier at lower pH but it can be done at pH in the higher up to 7.7pH. I would only use pure RO water as a starting point to get the desired conditions to spawn some of the more sensitive fish like Tanganykan killies.
Yes, you say have no problems with rams, but you are obviously an experienced keeper with experience in altering ph. For the average hobbyist, I would not recommend them. I have experience with caring for thousands of individual rams of all variants when working for a wholesale operation, and also seeing the retail side, rams are just touchy fish IME.
Captive bred apistos would be my recommendation if you want a small Cichlid that is pretty and will likely breed for you. They definitely do not need 30 gallons, most species will be fine in 20 gallons.
I know a seller that has many different species available in pairs for $30 a pair.
OKay.... so why does everything I've read about them say thirty? That's usually not just a suggestion there's usually a reason for that.
Did you read the sticky in the SA/CA Cichlid section?
http://www.monsterfishkeepers.com/forums/showthread.php?t=54692
http://www.monsterfishkeepers.com/forums/showthread.php?t=54692
I"m not trying to be contrary... I just don't want to get any heat for "abusing" my fish and housing them improperly. I would like to keep them healthy too....
