Introduction/starting A Cichlid Tank

[eggo]

Hello all my name is lee, i live in doncaster and have kept fish for 15 years or so, i have owned a few tanks over the years and have all been mainly community tanks, every so often i lose interest then a trip to a LFS or i am trolling ebay then bang another tank bought and i start up again, in the next few weeks i will be taking delivery of a new juwel vision 260 in a dark wood cabinet, this time i am wanting to keep malawi cichlids and have a few item's already accumilated for when my tank arrives, so far i have:

juwel vision 260
the juwel comes with filtration & heater
extra filtration tetratec ex700
coral sand (bought used sand saves all the rinsing)
ocean rock (may need a little more once i start aquascaping)
TMC V2 UV Seriliser 300 l/h
koralia evolution 4000 l/h power head

still deciding if to use a 3d background has i am wanting to build a large ocean rock wall

any info or idea's would be appreciated

thanks for reading Lee(eggo)

 

[njstockley]

Hi Lee,

I've just set up the same tank, and also stocking with Malawis. The first thing I did was remove the internal filter box as thought it was a bit unsightly, and takes up a lot of space. It's a pretty easy thing to do with a decorating knife, but is obviously down to personal preference. By taking that out, I was able to run two EX1200's and I also got a Hydor external heater (300) so there is nothing in the tank apart from the filter inlets and the spray bars across the top.

The tank doesn't have a background at the moment, but can't decide whether to get a 3D one - let me know if you find any that look good (and don't cost a fortune!).

Do you know what you will be stocking with? Peacocks or Mbuna?

Will be interested to follow and see how you get on!

Nick

 

[fluvial]

I've just set up a Malawi Juwel 180 tank using coral sand and ocean rock.
Now have 12 cichlids and 3 Synodontis Petricola catfish in it.

One tip that I picked up on this forum;
I placed a sheet of polystyrene on the floor of the tank, then added the
coral sand on top of that.
Reason - Malawi's love to dig, and they can easily topple the rocks onto the glass
bottom, resulting in a cracked tank.

Since I've had them the males have dug holes in all their caves, the amount they can
shift in a night is amazing. The alpha male Pseudotropheus Ndumbi reached the polystyrene
base on day 1

 

[njstockley]

Egg crate can work equally well for the same purpose. And if you are going to have a lot of rock in there then is definitely a good idea!

 

[eggo]

Egg crate can work equally well for the same purpose. And if you are going to have a lot of rock in there then is definitely a good idea!

i think egg crate is what i am leaning too, want to build a wall that covers the back of the tank and the sides also would i cover all of the tank floor with it even if i am not having any ocean rock at the front of the tank!

 

[eggo]

I've just set up a Malawi Juwel 180 tank using coral sand and ocean rock.
Now have 12 cichlids and 3 Synodontis Petricola catfish in it.

One tip that I picked up on this forum;
I placed a sheet of polystyrene on the floor of the tank, then added the
coral sand on top of that.
Reason - Malawi's love to dig, and they can easily topple the rocks onto the glass
bottom, resulting in a cracked tank.

Since I've had them the males have dug holes in all their caves, the amount they can
shift in a night is amazing. The alpha male Pseudotropheus Ndumbi reached the polystyrene
base on day 1

if i went with egg crate would you place the ocean rock onto the egg crate then add the coral sand or egg crate then coral sand then ocean rock?

and what is the ideal depth of coral sand think i may have bought to much i have 60kg

Hi Lee,

I've just set up the same tank, and also stocking with Malawis. The first thing I did was remove the internal filter box as thought it was a bit unsightly, and takes up a lot of space. It's a pretty easy thing to do with a decorating knife, but is obviously down to personal preference. By taking that out, I was able to run two EX1200's and I also got a Hydor external heater (300) so there is nothing in the tank apart from the filter inlets and the spray bars across the top.

The tank doesn't have a background at the moment, but can't decide whether to get a 3D one - let me know if you find any that look good (and don't cost a fortune!).

Do you know what you will be stocking with? Peacocks or Mbuna?

Will be interested to follow and see how you get on!

Nick

i would love to see pics of your tank maybe get a few idea's, i understand what you are saying about removing internal filter but i only have a ex700 not big enough to filter a 260litre cichlid tank on it's own so the internal filter will have to stay in the tank at least for the time being,

i am looking for a local cichlid breeder to buy stock for my tank if any one knows of a good LFS that stocks cichlids around doncaster that would be helpful.

hoping to build the ocean rock wall that far up the back of the tank that i will not need a background

 

[minnnt]

Give the 3d background a miss mate. They take up a lot of volume of the water. Just paint the outside with black emulsion. 3 coats in a day and its done. Far better than stick on stuff too. I'm completely converted to it now after trying it on a couple of my smaller tanks.

What malawis is it that you're after lee? Try aquarist classifieds, I picked up some cracking yellow labs and some electric blue juvi's from a bloke in donny.

 

[njstockley]

This is my set up so far.

I'm going for all male peacocks/haps, although there are some yellow labs in there at the moment. There is also a picture of the tank with the filter box removed. Agreed maybe best to leave it in there for now. I took mine out without even running it as had the two filters already, so not sure how good they are.

I still haven't added a background to mine, as I've painted tanks before and not been 100% happy with them (and then it's too late to go back on). For this one, I'm going to try a stick on background and seal it properly rather than just taping the sides. Hopefully pick that up on Friday so will post a couple more pics then. Going to order some resin rocks as well as I've just got some ugly temp ornaments in there for the moment. All being well the tank should be a bit more presentable after next weekend.

I'm guessing with an ocean rock wall that you are swaying towards mbuna for now. If it's going to be the height of the tank then I would definitely get enough egg crate for the entire base of the tank. It's not hugely expensive anyway. May also be worth securing the rock with some silicone to make sure it's solid.

Agree with minnnt about using AC - there are always good deals to be had, and plenty of local breeders always rotating their stock.

Nick

 

[minnnt]

If you use emulsion it can be removed a lot easier than gloss.

 

[eggo]

get my new tank on the 23rd march can not wait

may start a journal

 

[rifty]

no need for egg crate put you rock in first and then add the sand so no way the rock can topple! good luck with the project

 

[eggo]

no need for egg crate put you rock in first and then add the sand so no way the rock can topple! good luck with the project

thanks for the advice will post pics during setup

 

[eggo]

Egg crate can work equally well for the same purpose. And if you are going to have a lot of rock in there then is definitely a good idea!

bought 2 pieces of egg crate the cheapest on ebay should be enough to cover the whole of my 4ft tank,

going to lfs to pic up tank tomorrow

will post pics when i get it home

then will be starting my fishless cycle

 

[njstockley]

Hope you got it picked up and moved in today! Looking forward to seeing pics as you set it up... Might be worth seeing if any members around your area might be able to spare some filter media, so you won't have to go through the process from the start!
Nick

 

[eggo]

picked up the tank today, gave the stand a good polish and put the tank onto the decking in the back garden for a good jet wash, glad i did has the amount of crap i removed was unbelievable especially behind and in the internal filter.​

just waiting for egg crate to arrive before i can start aquascaping, also gave the ocean rock a good jet wash while i had it set up, bought some more ocean rock of ebay 26kg for £9.99 will pick up when seller gets in touch,

gave up on the TMC V2 UV Seriliser 300 l/h has i could not fit into the stand so will put it up for sale,

thanks for the advice njstockley i will visit my local lfs for some used filter media to give my tank a boost,

will post more pics when my egg crate arrives and i can get to aquascaping ​