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Hey ya'll! Just got 2 55gal tanks lastnight for a great deal! And I'm thinking to do a cichlid tank. Would love any advice Im new to these kind of fish!!!

Well, I set up my 55g this summer as a peaceful multi=species community tank. my "centerpiece" fish are Bolivian Rams (South American Cichlids). They are beautiful, peaceful and get along with many other peace loving fish. They also don't require specially prepared water like the African Lake Cichlids would.

Check out their profile on this site. Also, German Blue rams (another South American Cichlid) are pretty and easy to keep as well. They look alot like the Bolivians, but I think the Bolivians are prettier.

Good luck, let us know what you decide to do!

I'm looking more toward africans! I've already had all 3 types of rams. I loved them but got the bigger tank for africans

If u want africans, u could have 2 groups of 8 average size mbuna.
CAs are more interesting though go with a breeding pair of jack dempseys, or a group of firemouths, or a texas cichlid

Well Im new to these fish and so I do have a lot of questions. I used to post in the freshwater forums all the time and got great responses. Whats a good basic set up I have 2 55gal tanks and one is kinda tall and skinny and one short and wider, both are about 4.5'. Than whats best substrate,decor,filters(hob).
Also here in Grand Junction,CO all our stores have tanks that say assorted african cichlids. Will any of those work? Thans they have different tanks for the largers ones of course!!!

For substrate, use pool filter sand, it looks good and is cheap. For a filter, i use an aquaclear 110, it is so good i now own 3 of them, pack the filter with sponges and filter floss.
The assorted cichlids could work, though u have a far better chance of success using specific species.

Assorted African cichlids are cheaper in price but could be a bad idea potentially. The reason is you might not know what you are getting. There is a possibility there could be hybrids, or there might not be hybrids but if you don't know what kind of fish it is, it could surprise you when it gets much bigger and/or aggressive as it gets older. If they have other Africans in there, I'd recommend getting those, even if they may be more expensive. I'd recommend both talking to store employees and doing your own research. Some LFS employees know well what they are talking about, but some are dummies. I presently got two African cichlid tanks running. Lake Malwai? are the most common type of africans to find. There is also Lake Tagnika? and Victoria cichlids as well. There are medium/larger Tagnika cichlids, but there are MANY different kinds of small species from that lake. There are some species such as the Multies that will actually go into snail shells if you provide them. They usually don't go out and aren't shy. They usually only go in when the tank light is off and its pitch black or if you are invading their territory by gravel cleaning or moving tank decorations, otherwise during the day they are out. If you are thinking more bigger size, you could still get Lake Tagnika cichlids, though the selection choice is less than Malwai. If you are not sure which ones to get from Malwai, I got pseudotropheus acei and Labidochromis caeruleus (yellow electric) in the same 90 gallon tank and they get along great.

Ok. So If i run 2 HOB filters rated to 50gal. will that work ok. Plus one heater and air stone. And Since rock is kind of expesive could I just build a few little caves and just add to them as I add fish???? I think im going to build caves at each end and leave middle fairly open! Most the fish here are little guys About 2-3", So I'd add what 3-4 every couple weeks. Also As far as substrate. I'm told sand is best. I thinkn im going with like play sand or pool filter sand ( black is way expensive when your talking 50gal tank). Which is better?

I must agree, don't get fish from the "assorted cichlids" or "assorted africans" tanks at your lfs. Though many times these fish are actually true species just all mixed in the same tank, many times they are in fact hybrids and you don't get what you are really wanting.

As for the substrate, I would wait to get that till you know which cichlids you are looking for. As the substrate can buffer your hardness and ph. If the fish you are looking at are from one of the rift lakes (lake Malawi, Lake Tanganyika, or Lake Victoria), then you will want to make sure you use a substrate that is a calcium or coral based substance. Sand is fine, but be sure it is calcium based. Aragonite is one type, and there are others out there as well. The same goes for many of the South American fishes that come from the more southern regions of the South American continnent, such as Uragray and its surrounding areas.

But, if you are planning on West African fishes, or fishes from the other areas of South America, then you will want to go with a substrate or sand, that is innert. Such as the sylicate sands, which are what is used in many of the play sands. The reason is, that fishes from these regions come from waters that are more softer than hard, and a neutral or lower ph. The innert sand or substrate will not affect the quality of the hardness or the ph.

The calcium based sands usually have a bright white appearance, and the innert sands usually have a more brown or tan appearance. Though this is not a definitive way to know which the sand is, it is just a common grounds for further investigation. Any sand that is made from crushed coral will be a calcium based sand though.

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There is always a bigger fish...

for a tall 55g i would go with brichardi species tank. they live as a colony so you only need 1 pair to start. They fill your tank with more and everyone gets along with siblings protecting siblings.

rocks being expensive and are also heavy there is another option. Alot of keepers go with the less natural looking clay pots cut in half. stackign half pots on top of each other in all different directions and assortments creates LOADS of caves. Not to mention they are pretty cheap. Just go to a walmart or craft store and find some pots not to large and buy ONE. take it home and cut it half. If its the same color all the way through its clay but if it changes then its cement.( color being grey, cement pots have clay on the skin so you get 2 tones of grey ) cement core pots might need some time to soak otherwise could alter your PH levels. If you find some with clay just go back there and buy a bunch. I recommend using a masonry hacksaw blade. makes quick work of them and is only a couple bucks.

Anyway research some cichlids and keep in mind they are mostly all agressive you gotta learn why and work with it. DONT think to yourself " it might work " even though every site says it prolly wont. Evolution doesnt take a day off.

ok awsome. The tank is 4ftx1ftx2ft.And 90% of stores just have assorted tanks. aside from jewels,jack dempsey,fire mouth,parrot

Also, forgot to ask, what is the ph and hardness of your tap water? Knowing this can make choosing your fish easier. As when you do water changes, you won't have to worry about the water parameters, and/or any thought/need to change them around.



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There is always a bigger fish...

Ok I'll get back to you on that. If I run a aqua clear hob filter rated 30-70gal. than another one rated to 30gal will that be good filteration. Also what size heater. A big on in the middle or two smaller ones on each end

That should be fine for filterization. As for the heater, some people like to have two, personally I prefer one. The reason being, is that it is hard to get them set to the exact same settings. All heaters are just a little off of being exactly correct. With two, you will probably find that one of them is doing all the work most of the time. And it just adds something else to get in the way of everything.

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There is always a bigger fish...

agreed, 2 heaters is impossable to deal with. i set 2 heaters the same wattage and same brand in my 75g tank. put one on each end of the tank and still couldnt get them to run together. unless your willing to spend the cash on a thermostat tieing the 2 heaters together as one then dont bother.

placement of the single heater has less to do with the tank itself and more about current. You want alot of water movement around the heater to move the heat around the tank as best as possable. I usually have mine by a spraybar or overflow from a filter.

If you place one filter on each end of the tank the curent will be 2 circles cutting the tank in half. placeing the heater in the middle of the tank would be best because this is where the currents mix. If you have 2 filters on one end of the tank i would place the heater close to them as the other end of the tank the current will be weak. get the idea?

hope this helps.

SO would you go with two HOB filter like im talking? And would it be better to get two rated 30-70gal. Or just to the one and then the other rated to 30gal. Also what brand and size heater.

Or two filters rated to 50gal?

The filter tank ranting are really kinda useless unfortentlly. this number is used to sell the filter and more often then not well below optimal. yes a 30g filter will work on a 30g tank if you have a couple of fish but usually not a full tank load not in my experience anyway.

anyway what you wanna look at is the gallon per hour (GPH) rateing on the filter. The best number to shoot for is 10x tank gallons so for a 55g tank you wanna have 550 total gph filtration, give or take. 500 obviously is close enough as they say and 600 wouldnt hurt.

the amount of filters used to get this is up to you. advantage of 2 is if one breaks you got time to replace it without a tank meltdown.On my larger tank I use 3 filters but on my smaller tanks I use only 1. This is mostly for results. The larger tank has alot of poopers in it so needed more filtration.

short answer your prolly gona end up with two of those filters rated 30-70g depending on the GPH rating.

Ok. What about one HOB and one internal? or small canister.

Also what size heater?