help for someone thinking about cichlids

[BadKarma99-4spd]

i am in the process of fishless cycling and after 2 weeks my ph has rocketed up to around 8, and i have a water gh of 7-8. it seems to me that these paramters are high for the tropical freshwater i had planned on getting, but nice for cichlids. Specifically malawi mbuna.

i have a 55 us gal, with eheim 2213, 2 150 watt heaters, sand and some rock

are this set up and conditions ideal for malawi mbuna cichlids?

will i need any water buffering, such as salt?

would any of these species work: electric yellow lab, cobalt zebras pseudotopheus socolafi, or any others with nice coloration of some sort?

i had a decent working knowlege of tropicals, but now ive been renubified

thanks for any help

 

[thecichlidaddict]

Welcome to the world of cichlids

Your setup sounds good. I don't know how much 'some rock' is, but keep in mind that mbuna live around and in rocks. They graze the algae that grows on them, hide in them, and create territories with them. Make sure that you have eough rocks to create more then enough caves for all your fish.

A PH of 8 is perfect, but for buffering the KH is more important because a high KH is a buffer in itself. Whether you need extra additives or not depends on your water. These fish are quite versatile, and very hardy, they thrive in any water above neutral.

The eheim 2213 will provide all of the biological filtration that you need, but it works with low flow system, and is limited in mechanical filtration abilities because of this. It might be worth considering another filter to aid in mechanical since cichlids are pretty messy. Somthing like an Aquaclear 300 would complement your Eheim perfectly.

There are many mbuna that will work for you including the ones that you have already mentioned including most Pseudotropheus, cynotilapia, maylandia, and labidochromis varieties. The best thing to do is see what you like, and what you can get your hands on, and then post here to see if your choices are compatible.

 

[BadKarma99-4spd]

excellent thank you very much.

"some rock" means very little right now, but i have access to plenty more.

after doing some reading up on kh, it seems that i can use limestone to raise my kh, gh and ph? as i live in TN there is tons of limestone here, they grow like potatos.

when you said another filter i almost had a stroke after spending $80 on my eheim, but ive looked and the aquaclear 300 is more than affordable.

thanks again

 

[EricG]

Talking about filters. I put a Rena FilStar XP2 on a 46g bow-front. I highly recommend it. It's quiet although maybe a little pricey. But I wish I would have gone with the XP3. It has more filtration options.