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hi all, im kinda new to fish keeping, i have a 100liter or 27USg tank dimensions are760mm l,380mm w,380mm h.
was looking to get some Cichlids and not sure what to get any suggestions on which ones and stocking limits?
thanks willy.

Well 27 gallons isnt much for cichlids....... most need 55 gal and up u could go with 1 pair of convict cichlids but they will have many many many many many many many many many many many babys...... they are worse then rodents..... so in like a week ull probly have around 100 baby cons and then in about 3 weeks after that they will probly breed again. so they are out if u dont have fish to feed the babys to....u might have to go for rams or some type of african cichlid i dont really kno much about africans so someone else will have to hwlp u wit that.

Shell dwellers (neolamprologus sp.) from lake tanganyika would work well, as would many other dwarf cichlids like apistogramma species and pelvichromis sp.

oops forgot apistos havent kept them much...

I was looking at getting pelvichromis sp. actually, i will have to test my tap water for ph and hardness to narrow down which ones to get.
il get back to you's when i do, thanks for the suggestions

its actually a 109litre tankwhich is i think 29gal?

Dosnt really matter all that much, its only 2 gallon or so.
Testing your tap water is a good start, although you can easily and naturally lower or raise pH and hardness.

i knew you could raise your ph by the substrate and decorations like limestone rocks shells etc, how do you adjust your harness? is this your general or carbonated?
thanks willy

hey i got my tap water tested today and its harness is only 70ppm and carbonated hardness is pretty much nothing.. whats the best way to raise both of these and keep them even? also how many convicts could i have in my tank? just a breeding pair?
thanks

You can make your own pH buffer by adding baking soda to raise pH and kH and Epsom salts to raise gH. An example would be 1 TB epsom salt and 1 tsp baking soda to 5 gallons water. Experiment for a while with a bucket of water until you get the values you want(get your own test kits for pH,kH,gH..they aren't expensive), then use that amount for every water change (add it in the bucket, not the tank). Many fish are very adaptable so don't worry too much about tinkering with the water. Stability is more important, fish don't like changes so if you can't be consistent with the buffers, don't bother.

Convicts are not picky at all about water parameters. A 29 should be fine for JUST a breeding pair, but then you will be up to your ears in baby cons in no time. Cons aren't difficult to sex, you could make sure you got all females if you wanted.

Hi,
Once you decide on the fish, and the water parameters that
they prefer, then you can adjust the pH, GH, KH to suit
naturally. Lioness is correct in that the baking soda
and Epsom Salts will adjust those values. And as little
as it costs for a box of each, for a small tank, that would
work just fine.

I prefer to do it by using crushed limestone,or crushed
dolomite, crushed oyster shells, or crushed coral.
Simply by using it as a substrate, you can accomplish
everything, for fish right up to the African Rift fish.
Or, you can put a bag of the crushed substrate inside the
filter and it will modify the water small amounts.

Just one purchase changes the water, rather than keep
adding compounds with every water change.

Frank


-->>> The Confidence of Amateurs, is the Envy of Professionals <<<--

Frank,

How much of a difference would adding substrate to the filter make? I'm very much interested in making a more permanent change but I don't want to change my gravel out just yet.

Hi,
Adding the crushed carbonate to the filter will slowly
raise the pH, GH, and KH, over a period of time. Then with
a weekly water change of say, 10-20% the values will drop
to some amount above what you have now, and then rise again
as the new, fresh, water is treated.

If you change the substrate out completely, then the water
pH will rise into the low 8's and the hardnesses will
also increase. The amount of shift down after a small
water change will not be as large. The thing is that if
you completely change out the substrate then you have no
control over how high the pH, GH, and KH, will go.
Which, is good, if you are housing fish like the Rift
Lake Cichlids and other "hard water" fish.

If the substrate is in a porous bag then you can lift it
out of the filter when the water reaches the desired
values for the fish in the tank. And then replace the
bag after the water change.

Frank


-->>> The Confidence of Amateurs, is the Envy of Professionals <<<--

hi thanks for your replies very good advice..
i think instead of trying to change the water to meet which fish i would like i think i might just stick with 'soft' water cichlids like the apisto's or shellies as 'mez' said?
i will keep yur advice in mind as i would like to set up a large african tank just trying to find a tank for the right price?
in saying that is there a way you can keep your water soft or will it just stay there, and kepp ph down?
thanks willy..

Shellies are also African lake fish and like their water plenty hard. For an African lake setup with mbuna or peacocks or whatnot your minimum is probably 55 gallon. Try craigslist or some other classified listings, I've had really good luck finding deals on used setups that way. As a used tank, there is very little difference in price between a 55-75-90 it seems, and the quality of stand it comes with makes the biggest price jump IME.

Your water is plenty soft already. The fact that you have no kH might cause some stability issues. Make sure you do regular water changes, keep the filter running well, keep the good bacteria happy, and all that, and your pH should stay where it belongs.

Do you want some Rainbow cichlids? I highly recommend them, especially as beginners fish. I could send you some , they'd look nice in the 29, you could add some cories and some big tetras and have a lovely tank... Apistos are pretty too. I haven't kept them but I think some are more challenging to keep happy than others? There's also Bolivian rams. Maybe Firemouths? How about Kribs? Or the dwarf Acaras (curviceps, dorsigera)? I really like the sound of these. If you are new to fishes, have a look through the profiles for any of these fish if you are interested, then you can plan a tank to meet their needs while avoiding warfare. Cichlids do tend to have tempers. If you decide on a species you want, maybe we can give you some more ideas for stocking or other species it could live with. Good luck, have fun!

lioness Wrote:
Shellies are also African lake fish and like their water plenty hard. For an African lake setup with mbuna or peacocks or whatnot your minimum is probably 55 gallon

Shellies are tanganyikan, and would be perfecft in that sized tank.
Have i missed it somewhere, what is your pH? For naturally lowering the pH and hardness, ketapang aka indian almond leaves are great, blackwater extract, or even peat in your filters, all give off that nice blackwater setup look.

I didn't say that shellies wouldn't fit perfectly in that tank, only that they are NOT soft water fish. Tanganyika is a rift lake.

and the quality of stand it comes with makes the biggest price jump IME.

im not too worried whether i get a stand with the tank i buy as i am a carpenter and will make my own to suit where i decide to put it at home..

where is "craigslist"? i think i might go with some rams or maybe even apisto's i do like them, also the kribs arent too bad, i think firemouths might be a little too big for my tank as i wouldnt be able to add any other fish would i?

i will try and add some more bog wood and plants for hidding and see what i can find at LFS in the way of apistos and rams..

thanks willy