55 gal Chichlid Tank

[dbltrubl98]

I am wondering what cichlids I could put in a 55 gallon tank, I want some diversity color wise. I am not partial to either African or S.American.

[Used]

Are there any certain species of Cichlid that you have seen that you like? Here are cookie-cutter setups for a 55 gallon tank.

http://www.cichlid-forum.com/articles/cookie_cutter_55g.php

This might help you decide what fish you want. :D

[dbltrubl98]

Thanks for the link, it kinda helps but I am still unsure, I went to the pet store and looked at some fish, I like the green terror, convicts, firemouth and midas chiclids but I am not sure if they could work together or how many of each I could use.

[big-pig-666]

you could probablly get away with a pair of green terror's or midas' (many people may disagree but from past experience, it should be fine) or you could also get about 5-6 convicts or firemouths, but keep in mind with convicts, they can and most likley will breed alot, and convicts are so common most LFS wont take the baby convicts from you even for free...

[t_chelle16]

I'm going to whole heartedly disagree about the pair of GT's or Midas's. These fish get around 1' long and need at least 50 gallons each (probably more because of their territorial and aggressive nature). Unless of, course you enjoy doing 2 - 3 large water changes every week with absolutely no leeway for forgetting one, the constant risk of disease, and the very high risk that the two fish will get territorial and kill eachother.

For new world cichlids (like GT's, oscars, midas's, RD's, cons, firemouths etc), a good rull of thumb is (talking adult size of the fish and more may need to be alloted based on territorial nature of fish and tankmates):

5" - 6" fish (ex: con & firmeouth) = 15 - 20 gallons each
8" - 10" fish (ex: JD's) = 40 - 50 gallons each
11" - 12" fish (ex: midas, GT, RD,oscar) = 50 gallons each
13" - 14" fish (ex large oscar, jag) = 70 gallons each

I've come up with that based on both my own personal experience and years of helping hundreds (maybe thousands) of other people and their problems associated with overstocking or their success with proper stocking.

-Chelle

[dbltrubl98]

is there a rule I could use for younger fish until I get a bigger tank so I could have 5-6 cons or firemouths...say about 2-3" a piece...

[t_chelle16]

Really, it's best to start off with the appropriate sized tank (or the appropriate stocking level). Some fish grow incredibly quickly and you'll be needing a bigger tank sooner than you think. Fortunately, I don't think cons grow exceptionally quickly, HOWEVER, your plans for a bigger tank may fall through. You really don't want to end up with a severely overstocked tank and nothing to do with the fish.

-Chelle

[dbltrubl98]

I started browsing the chiclids again online and I am not sure of store availibility so maybe this would be hard to do but I was wondering about a mbuna tank, I really like the electic yellows and red zebras along with the powder blues, and they all max out at 5" also I have heard that they are not as agressive and more herbavores than omnivores so would they make for a better communty?

[t_chelle16]

Yup those would be great in a 55 (could probably fit about 12 - 14 in there). It's best to try for 1 male & 3 - 4 females of each species, but unfortunately, those species are very difficult to sex (especially at the size most LFS's have) so you really just have to pick some and hope for the best. Just make sure to provide lots of caves (at least 1 per fish).

If I ever set up another african cichlid tank, those would probably the the species I'd look for (as well as maybe some acei or labeotropheus). They have the pretty colors but, in general, they're not as aggressive as some of the other mbuna.

-Chelle

[dbltrubl98]

ok so I may not be able to get a 55 gal but what about a 29 how many could I put in there? maybe only 2 species...

[t_chelle16]

29 is a bit on the small side for most africans. You can look into shell dwellers though. They stay really small (1 1/2" - 2") so you can fit several in a 29.

-Chelle

[dbltrubl98]

thanks I am going to go ahead and see if I can get a 55 then, I was looking at stuff on the online classifieds and someone is keeping two 6" oscars in a 29 gal and I was just shocked at how someone could do that. I was wondering also what size tank would I need for a pair of convicts...

[dbltrubl98]

well what about a 40 gal instead of a 55 (for the Africans)...I am having problems finding good deals of 55 gal tanks.

[kc5gvn]

Check Walmart on a 55 gallon.

[dbltrubl98]

could i get stands there too?

[t_chelle16]

Yup.

My 55 was a kit from Walmart. If I'm not mistaken, it came with the tank, hoods, lights, heater (junk), and filter (junk). I think (it's been about 3 or 4 years) just the tank kit was around $300 and the stand was another $200 - $300.

EDIT: Forget those prices. I just checked at Walmart today and the tank kit is around $150. They didn't have any stands, but I believe when I bought mine, the stand was about the same as the tank so it should be around $300 total (plus a little extra for a better heater & filter).

-Chelle

[dbltrubl98]

are wisper filters good? I went to the lfs by my house and the tank with hood and lights are 110 on sale so if I have to throw the filter and heater away then should I get it?

[t_chelle16]

Sounds good.

And personally, I absolutely hate Whisper filters. You'd probably be better off with an Aquaclear 110 (used to be called 500).

-Chelle

[dbltrubl98]

any ideas on what to use for the caves and hiding spaces by chance?

[lil shant]

it stands at wal mart r like 75 buxs