55 gallon

[otterlord]

Hi, i want to start a 55 gallon with south/central american cichlids, i was thinking of getting firemouths and or convicts however they come unsexed what are some good options for me fish and amount wise.
thank you

 

[JuiceBox52]

Hi what is your GH? You can find this info on your local water providers website or by calling them directly

 

[PheonixKingZ]

Hi, i want to start a 55 gallon with south/central american cichlids, i was thinking of getting firemouths and or convicts however they come unsexed what are some good options for me fish and amount wise.
thank you

I agree. I you can also get a test kit or call your local water provider.

I do remember somewhere that they need around 12-20 GH.

 

[Colin_T]

What are the tank dimensions (length x width x height)?

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Convict and firemouth cichlids need a GH below 250ppm and captive bred specimens with be fine with a pH between 5 & 8.

Convicts are quite aggressive and other cichlids like Cichlasoma sajica or C. spilurum are similar in appearance but not as agro.

If you want to breed cichlids, buy a group of 8-10 young fish and grow them up together. Let them pair off naturally and when they do, you move the pairs into a tank on their own.

If you want a community tank of cichlids, try to get all males or all females so no breeding pairs develop and there will be less aggression.

 

[utahfish]

Plenty of dwarf cichlids that would do well in a 55 as well. Apistograms, curviceps, Rams some of the geophagus.
Having said that convicts arent just called convicts for their black stripes theyre really aggresive especially when breeding. Fire mouths not so much theyre one of the more mellow SA cichlids.

 

[Metalhead88]

Whatever you do, do not get a pair of convicts. Are you able to pick which one you want? Convcits are very easy to sex. And females are significantly smaller than males.

Convcits one of the most aggressive fish pound for pound. They do very well with larger (but less aggressive) fish like oscars. They do not do well with similar sized fish like firemouths. Due to the aggression and potential larger tank mates, it makes convicts hard to squeeze into a 55 gallon tank.

Firemouths will do very well and there are plenty of fish that you can add into the mix.