Powerhead and cichlids

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M

Mo0

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
Apr 7, 2010
56
2
0
Huntington beach
So i recently got a 90g and I want to get a african cichlid community going.
I was just wondering since my tank came with a power head if this would stress out the cichlids too much. I am wanting to keep the powerhead because its going to have a few clown loaches in there, and i heard that the loaches love the current.
 
I have cichlids and loaches, and the cichlids play in the current more than the loaches do!

They nose into the power head or the xp3 return and 'treadmill' for minutes at a time. the loaches on the other hand rarely go through the powerhead current or the filter return, instead they play in the air bubbles.
 
alright kool
Yeah my friend brought up the problem and i was like they should be fine but wanted to check up with you guys and see what you thought. thanks for the help
 
If your cichlids are juviniles or really small depending on the strength of the powerhead it could possibly stress them. I had the same problem when my cichlids were small I had them in a 55 and the powerhead would literally blow them to the other side of the tank and all the fish would be huddled up only on one side of the tank. So I took it out and replace it with a "Hydor Koralia" flow and it was much more gentle of a current and they loved it. After they got bigger and I upgraded them into a 125 gal, I dropped in the powerhead, and even tho the fish are between 3-6.5 inches now it still seems a bit strong but I placed it in the back of the tank near the waterline, but I also have a Hydor Koralia in the 125 , combined makes a nice current. Cichlids love current, where they come from they have current so it is best to try and replicate there natural environment as much as possible. good luck
 
just make sure the powerhead is not to powerfull and the cichlids arent to small
 
Yeah i just transferred my fish into my new tank and the first thing my cls did was swim in the current, it was pretty awesome to see. The cichlids seem to like it too but its probably a bit too strong ill see what i can do, they are around 2in. The Powerhead is actually near the bottom of the tank but mostly because the suction cups are too old and its off to the side so they dont seem to be affected by it a lot. thanks for all the advice.
 
i kept africans in a 180 gallon-with a powerhead on each end.. they loved it.
 
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