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From:Courtenay, B.C, Canada!
Registered: Feb 2004

posted 02-03-2004 03:51 PM         

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Hello, im new to cichlids so i got some from my lps for my 80 gal aquarium from reading on the net i know im suposed to keep malawi(sp???) to geather but i think the ppl at the pet shop know nothing!! in my tank i have 1 jewel 1 blue Acie 1 male kennyi 2 black convics and a fire mouth.. so i found out fire mouths and convics are not malawie(sorry no idea how to spell it) cichlids but they get along great now with my tank and all the hidding holes i was wondering how many buggers i can have with out over stocking? like 10-12? or more? i was also wondering What i could get to help clean the gravel becuse corry cats turn out to be food! so would Weather loach or clown loaches be food to or would they be ok? also wondering where flower horns are from and if they can go with mbunas?? thanks sorry for the long post

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posted 02-03-2004 04:03 PM         

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It's not a great idea to mix africans and South American or Central American Cichlids together. They have wholly different water requirements. The Firemouth and Convicts are South American and don't appreciate the high pH and KH required by the Africans.

Depending on how you've configured your tank (pH, KH, etc) you might look into a Synodontis cat to go with your africans. They are excellent as a cleanup crew and are right at home in the hard african water.

Flowerhorns are a Trimac + RedDevil/Midas hybrid, are VERY aggressive and are not compatible with the African water requirements.

Again, you should reconsider keeping your tank a species tank and find somewhere else for the Convict and Firemouth. On a side note - although Firemouths act tough - they'll get the tar beat out of them by the Africans. The same can be said for the Convict. It may not happen immediately, but wait until the Africans start getting a bit larger. Ounce for Ounce there's relatively few Central/South American Cichlids that could compete from an aggression standpoint.

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From:Courtenay, B.C, Canada!
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posted 02-03-2004 05:09 PM         

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Hmmm thanks for the info can the fire mouths and the convicts live with oscars suposably thier both "new age" cichlids whats that mean?? becuse i can just give the mbunas to my friend but i like my convics to much ive had em for a year now

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posted 02-03-2004 05:46 PM         

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Barring any fin nipping or outright fighting, there's no reason from a water parameter or environment standpoint that you cannot keep FM's, Convicts and O's together. Just make sure your tank is large enough (and an 80g sounds good) and you have adequate filtration.

What type of filtration are you running?

[This message has been edited by dvross (edited 02-03-2004).]

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From:Courtenay, B.C, Canada!
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posted 02-03-2004 05:50 PM         

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aqua clear 200 and 300 i was looking for a emperor with a bio weal bot no 1 sells them where i am

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posted 02-03-2004 06:00 PM         

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You may want to consider upgrading your filtration. The standard rule is to go 10x when using HOB (Hang on Back) filters. This implies you're shooting for 800 gph, right now you're at 500. I would suggest you look in to a nice cannister filter. On the low end you could get a nice Filstar XP3 or Eheim 2217 for around 125 bucks with media and accessories. If you feel like splurging you could shoot for an Eheim 2026 or 2028. They're a bit more but worth it in the long run. They are excellent filters that last forever. When using cannisters you can lower the turnover requirements to 3x-5x because they're much more efficient.

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posted 02-03-2004 06:34 PM         

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yeah i was gonna get this crazy thing where it gos in your stand but i dint wanna have to fight with pcp tubing and stuff way to confising.. what about a power head and a aqua clear 500? + the 300?
will that be good.

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posted 02-04-2004 11:32 AM         

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CSJ wrote:
"Suposably thier both "new age" cichlids whats that mean??"

I think it should read new world cichlids. These would be cichlids whose native habitat is in Central and South America.

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posted 02-04-2004 12:04 PM         

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An AC500 plus your existing AC300 would work well. The powerhead won't really help with filtration but you could use it for surface agitation to aid in oxygenation.

one tip, if you get the AC500, buy an extra sponge for it. Don't use any of the ammo bags or anythings else, just 2 sponges...

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posted 02-04-2004 12:19 PM         

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Well today i neted my little mnunas and gave them to a friend their re ajusting to a smaller tank but what you gonna do their still relitivly small 3 1/2 inches around so thier gonna be happy now i have to change the ph on stuff should i get tablets or is thier a better way to do it?

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posted 02-04-2004 02:09 PM         

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That depends on what you used to raise the pH in the first place. If you used some sort of buffering agent then a couple of water changes should do to remove it. Key is to wait until it stabilizes. If you used calciferous substrate such as crushed coral, aragonite or even Texas Holey rock, then you're going to have to remove it...

I would not recommend adding pH down or any other buffer. like I said, if it were do to any rocks or substrate - taking it out and doing water changes will suffice. If you used a buffer to bring it up, doing water changes will bring it back down.

[This message has been edited by dvross (edited 02-04-2004).]

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