Movin Into Malawi Cichlids!!! advice and help needed!!!!

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orange goldfish

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Dec 29, 2008
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Okay, so I recently moved and lost EVERYTHING! :cry: (sadly my reef too :cry: ) So now im moving to a different fish... Malawi cichlids! :nilly: :nilly:
I stopped the reef because it was too hard and too much time, especially as a junior in high school. And I moved away from flowerhorns... well because i just dont like them as much anymore and want something more naturally stunning. So I need some advice and questions with answers.
-So im goin to have a 55 gallon tank with regular standard lighting, fine crushed coral bedding, a fluval fx5 and a fluval 305. Im goin to add fake plants, but wat kind of rock should I choose? I want to use some big pond rocks, but where would i get some? Im open to other suggestions too. pictures would be great! (is too much filtration bad by the way?)
- I've never done malawi cichlids so i wanted to know how many would be the safe number to put in a tank (im gettin the ones close from 4-6 inches) Im trying to get some peacocks, i was lookin at their pictures and their colors look nice and aswell as those electric yellows (not sure of full name)... any other suggestions. How much do those peacocks sell for anyway?
-wat lighting you guys use for your cichlid tank that makes the colors show off more. I am planning to get some T5 too.
-I got like 30 lbs of dead live rock from my reef, wat would I have to do if i want to use it again? can I use it again? :confused:
-wats ur guys experience with these guys and wat mistakes you guys did (if you ever did any) that will help me when I move to these fish.

All advice is welcome :nilly:

Pictures will be greatly appriciated for acuascaping inspiration :nilly:

(im gunna hook up a UV sterilizer too later)




Extra questions:
To do this set up though, I need money, so im goin to sell stuf from my previous tanks. Im not specifically selling right now, but my main question is how much will each of these stuff sell for for example... like on craigslist:

55 gallon tank good condition, stand, canopy (drilled holes on side of canopy) and undergravel filter with power head and gravel (black)

ok condition 30 gallon glass tank (used for saltwater)

Bak Pak protein skimmer/filter

Aquatic life 4 t5 bulb fixture with timer and blue nighttime LEDs

x2 rena xp2

20 gallon tank (used to be sump)

5 large peices of drift wood

power heads

(if I dont use it) dead live rock

approximate prices?:confused:

Thank you so much
 
Okay, so I recently moved and lost EVERYTHING! (sadly my reef too ) So now im moving to a different fish... Malawi cichlids!
I stopped the reef because it was too hard and too much time, especially as a junior in high school. And I moved away from flowerhorns... well because i just dont like them as much anymore and want something more naturally stunning. So I need some advice and questions with answers.
-So im goin to have a 55 gallon tank with regular standard lighting, fine crushed coral bedding, a fluval fx5 and a fluval 305. Im goin to add fake plants, but wat kind of rock should I choose? I want to use some big pond rocks, but where would i get some? Im open to other suggestions too. pictures would be great! (is too much filtration bad by the way?)
- I've never done malawi cichlids so i wanted to know how many would be the safe number to put in a tank (im gettin the ones close from 4-6 inches) Im trying to get some peacocks, i was lookin at their pictures and their colors look nice and aswell as those electric yellows (not sure of full name)... any other suggestions. How much do those peacocks sell for anyway?
-wat lighting you guys use for your cichlid tank that makes the colors show off more. I am planning to get some T5 too.
-I got like 30 lbs of dead live rock from my reef, wat would I have to do if i want to use it again? can I use it again?
-wats ur guys experience with these guys and wat mistakes you guys did (if you ever did any) that will help me when I move to these fish.

All advice is welcome

Pictures will be greatly appriciated for acuascaping inspiration

(im gunna hook up a UV sterilizer too later)




Extra questions:
To do this set up though, I need money, so im goin to sell stuf from my previous tanks. Im not specifically selling right now, but my main question is how much will each of these stuff sell for for example... like on craigslist:

55 gallon tank good condition, stand, canopy (drilled holes on side of canopy) and undergravel filter with power head and gravel (black)

ok condition 30 gallon glass tank (used for saltwater)

Bak Pak protein skimmer/filter

Aquatic life 4 t5 bulb fixture with timer and blue nighttime LEDs

x2 rena xp2

20 gallon tank (used to be sump)

5 large peices of drift wood

power heads

(if I dont use it) dead live rock

approximate prices?

Thank you so much
 
live rock only supports life for saltwater tanks, in Freshwater they will likely just collect waste and grow algae

4-5ish fish for a 55g IMO, unless you believe that over stocking cichlids removes aggression then id say 15, you do have a decent filter so you could get away with it.

any high wattage t5 should make the fish look good

make sure your tanks covered, cichlids like to jump... :(
 
that is a lot of filtration for a 55. you could really stock that thing if you are okay with regular water changes.

here is a good guide for a 55, albeit, a bit conservative.
http://www.cichlid-forum.com/articles/cookie_cutter_55g.php

with that much filtration, you could go a bit heavier than that guide.

i'd give a hard look at mbuna, they are more active and more colorful than peacocks, even at a young age. haps and peacocks don't show a lot of color until they mature. i have a 55 mbuna setup and i love it.

you want rocks that buffer the ph, but if you are using crushed coral as a substrate, you should have enough buffer, so you could use any rock you like. holey rock and lace rock are attractive rocks that help buffer ph, but you'll probably have to get those at a lfs, and they aren't exactly cheap.

i've heard you can find cheap rocks at landscaping places, but i've not had much success doing that.
 
Tuffa rock can be colonized by bacteria similar to live rock. So can your gravel. The only issue with too much filtration is if the current is too strong. Too strong and it will exhaust the fish..
 
Nice to hear from another young aquarist that knows something. I'm a sophomore in high school.

First of all . . . NO WOOD FOR MALAWI'S!!! This lowers the PH, and malawi's need high PH. First of all, i recommend mbuna not, peacocks, electric yellow lab's are mbuna. YOU CANNOT MIX MBUNA AND PEACOCKS. Mbuna are strictly rock dwelling species, they are typically the brightest in color. I think rock only looks best for mbuna. And IMO, live rock looks best. I use (formerly Live) live rock, just lightly scrub it with a tooth brush to remove thick algae. then rinse it very well with just tap water. A bit of left over algae is good because when it decomposes, it will boost the cycling of the tank. If you do this, your tank will be very similar to mine, 55g, 35 lbs Live rock, about a dozen 2,5" mbuna. And i recommend Hikari Cichlid excel food for all malawi's. I believe that keeping schools of 10 or more mbuna in this size tank greatly reduces territorial disputes, as well as eliminating shyness. in these larger schools, they get sooooo excited every time you pass the tank. If i move my hand above the tank, they start spashing and spazzin' like crazy. Their not really jumpers though. one time i gave mine a large cichlid pellet from my south americans and as soon as it his the water, it shot back into my eye LOL. this excited behavior is only when you come around so a lid really isnt needed, mine only have a 4' light strip on their tank. You dont see this behavior in small groups though.

You dont really a ton of money, all you need is sand(unless you have some), and fish. Maybe a bulb that isnt too powerful. Ill post a pic of my setup in a minute.
 
Most of the fish are hiding because i just turned on the lights for the pics and they were still sleeping. Sorry for the crappy pics, i took them with my phone


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Rock work is good for all cichlids to hide in. You should use smooth rock if possible. The tufa rock is kinda coarse and can scrape the fish pretty good especially when they are trying to hide from being chased. As far as the best type of Malawi to put in the tank its a matter of choice. I like the Peacocks with the beautiful finnage you find on them. The Mbunas are beautifully colored but very aggressive compared to the Peacocks. The choice is ultimately yours.
The filtration you mentioned ( fx5) on a 55 is way to powerful and will blow your fish all over the tank. A couple of AC 110's or even the fluval canister's are good choices.
I have 2 Ac110's and a Rena filstar on my 55.
Over filtration is good but like Mike said it will make your fish tired and stress them.
 
TheRealAndyCook;4671923; said:
4-5ish fish for a 55g IMO
Click to expand...

Bad idea IMO 12 or more to reduce aggression

if you go Mbuna at least 3 females to every one male of a specific species. more than one male of one species will result in severe territorial issues when they mature.

For Haps/Peacocks 1:3 is okay too but Peacocks will crossbreed so i wouldnt advise it. females are more drab with most being silverish gray. IMO these set ups work better with an all male tank unless you plan to breed... one male of every species you can find that are similar size and temperament. (Also if you choose a D Compressiceps and plan to breed them do more females than three because they are brutal to their females.)
 
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