Oolitic Sand...

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I would probably let my water conditions dictate the varieties of Cichlids I everntually select, so my research will probably be focused on varieties that like high PH and hard water. I would rather not have to treat my existing water conditions to create appropriate conditions for varieties that do well in soft water and low PH.

Can anyone advise any other varieties I should also be considering in addition to Central American and Rift Lake Varieties, since it sounds like they might be more appropriate than my considering Africans from Lake Malawi or Lake Victoria?

Quizcat said:
I live in an area with hard water, and the PH is pretty high, around 8.2 to 8.4. I'm just in the planning stages right now, but I think my interest leans toward Malawi/Lake Victoria African Cichlids. But, it sounds like I might be better off considering Central Americans due to the high PH, and the hard water conditions we have here.

I've still got a lot of research to do in order to specifically decide on which exact varieties I'll be selecting. I'm a little bit limited because some varieties can get pretty large, and I am only going to have a 20 gallon tank. So, my selections are limited by the smaller tank size.

I want to get the tank up an running first, establish the bio cycle, etc...before putting any fish in the tank. Tentatively, I'm considering Caribsea Oolitic Sand or an Argonite generic as a substrate. But, as I mentioned, I'm a novice when it comes to Cichlids, and I'm not sure the Ooilitic or Argonite substrates would be appropriate to both Africans or Central Americans.

I've got the Fluidized Sand Filter already, so I plan to use it along with a Filter Max II or III pre filter on a Rio 1000 power head that will supply the Filter.
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Oolitic sand, from my understanding when I bought my fluidised sand bed filter, in relation to this filter, is mostly about the grain shape. It is spherical/oval and rounded as opposed to normal silica sand which is all types of shapes and not really rounded.The rounded grains are supposed to fluidise better, thus providing better and bigger surface area for bacteria because they do not compact as easily as normal shaped sand...

I personally was not impressed with my fluidised sand filter , which had oolitic sand...It did not spill the sand out except in the very beginning after setup... but I had to adjust the pump down and up all the time I had it running because due to natural build up the sand used to barely move at times....Once i turned up the flow...to fix it...it would all of sudden, after a few days/a week, fluidise too high without me doing nothing about it....I'd then turn it down...the next thing I see in a few days...sand barely moves...and like that for a year..

In the end it developed a pin hole size leak at the very bottom and drained half my tank while I was in the sitting room for the day, and never even heard it....I binned the thing and I was very relieved to do so.....drove me mad...
 
I was always curious if that could happen. Blow out on a sand filter. I have seen it happen, with steel, but plastic is more resilient.
I tried fluidized pumice once, it turned the water could in a couple of days.
So I use wind blown sugar sand.
 
I agree with Joe, there aren't many Central American cichlids that fit in a 20, nanoluteus is the only one I can think of.

Or the shell dwelling rift lake species, the rift lake have very high pH hard water (high 8s, sometimes up to 9)
 
Just curious, which is the brand of fluidized sand filter you purchased?

I am worried about leakage myself, so I'll be setting up the tank in my basement utility room, just to get a little experience with the filter's function, hoping to build my confidence over time that there won't be any mishaps before possibly moving it to an area where leakage would be a problem.

I did purchase the little ceramic media rings, which are supposed to aid the turn-over of the sand. It sounds like because of the roundness shape of the sand, I would be better off with the Oolitic Sand. My goal is to create an optimum environment for cultivating bacteria, so the greater the surface area, the better.

Coryloach said:
Oolitic sand, from my understanding when I bought my fluidised sand bed filter, in relation to this filter, is mostly about the grain shape. It is spherical/oval and rounded as opposed to normal silica sand which is all types of shapes and not really rounded.The rounded grains are supposed to fluidise better, thus providing better and bigger surface area for bacteria because they do not compact as easily as normal shaped sand...

I personally was not impressed with my fluidised sand filter , which had oolitic sand...It did not spill the sand out except in the very beginning after setup... but I had to adjust the pump down and up all the time I had it running because due to natural build up the sand used to barely move at times....Once i turned up the flow...to fix it...it would all of sudden, after a few days/a week, fluidise too high without me doing nothing about it....I'd then turn it down...the next thing I see in a few days...sand barely moves...and like that for a year..

In the end it developed a pin hole size leak at the very bottom and drained half my tank while I was in the sitting room for the day, and never even heard it....I binned the thing and I was very relieved to do so.....drove me mad...
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Quizcat said:
am worried about leakage myself, so I'll be setting up the tank in my basement utility room
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Mine was a TMC v2 bio fluidised sand bed filter. The leakage was caused by a peace of fine gravel gettting stuck at the bottom under the tube in the middle, and eating at the plastic over time. The seals did not leak in any and I doubt it they would. The filter comes with with a bit of gravel like substrate you need to put at the very bottom around the tube in the middle and then you're supposed to fill it up with sand. I must have accidentally let a piece of gravel go under the tube and there should have been no gravel there. So the actual leak was due to a hole in the bottom plastic, right in the middle...
 
The only experience I've had with "Cichlids," is the German Blue Ram variety, which is kind of a variety that's unique in itself, and probably not characteristic of most Cichlid varieties. I could never seem to keep them alive though. I think the only one I was able to maintain beyond a few months of life was the long finned variety. The long finned variety seemed pretty hardy.

I like the German Blue Rams, and wouldn't mind trying them again, but I think my water quality wasn't conducive to maintaining them properly, high PH, and hard water. So, If I tried raising them again, I'd have to address the PH and hard water issues at every water change and top-off. So, that's why a different variety might be more conducive to my water conditions.

The 20 gallon tank is sort of a temporary tank that I just happen to already have, one that I can start out with to experiment with the fluidized sand filter. If things go well, I plan to upgrade the size of the tank prior to moving the filter over to a larger tank, if that's what will be necessary when I make my Cichlid selection. So, I'm not locked in because of the tank size, just starting out with the 20 gallon tank size.

What is the minimum tank size I should consider to give myself a wider selection of Cichlids to choose from? A 75 gallon tank is a little big for the footprint I have available, but perhaps there is a size larger than 20 gallon, but less than 75 Gallon, which might give me a little wider variety of Cichlid varieties to select from.

markstrimaran said:
At 20 gallons, their are not many choices. At 75 gallons most of the others are practical.
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Well, that's not good, the TMC V2, #600, is the one I have...:mad: Do you think it might have been an error in loading the sand then? If so, I'll have to be especially careful when I set it up to make sure no sand goes where it shouldn't be. But if the sand migrates no matter what you do, then I probably need to scrap the whole idea. At least the tank will be in an area of the basement where a little leakage won't be an issue. How long did it take before the filter started to leak after you set it up?

Coryloach said:
Mine was a TMC v2 bio fluidised sand bed filter. The leakage was caused by a peace of fine gravel gettting stuck at the bottom under the tube in the middle, and eating at the plastic over time. The seals did not leak in any and I doubt it they would. The filter comes with with a bit of gravel like substrate you need to put at the very bottom around the tube in the middle and then you're supposed to fill it up with sand. I must have accidentally let a piece of gravel go under the tube and there should have been no gravel there. So the actual leak was due to a hole in the bottom plastic, right in the middle...
Click to expand...
 
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