New 72 Gallon Bowfront Tank

[TonyFish]

Dear Forum,

I need your help!

All I know is that I have the room for a big tank in my basement, but I don't know about ALL the accessories, filter, plants, etc. (I am not that experienced with Freshwater Tanks)

I value your input as to what to buy, etc. Please help!

Thanks!

 

[semper fi]

well tony welcome to the forum. i am moving this to the beginner section since it is really a beginner question and this is where you introduce yourself. will get more traffic there.

first of all, did you already purchase this tank? you will have to cycle it first. cycling is essentially creating a biological filter that is used to rid the tank of harmful toxins that when overloaded can make your fish sick and even die.

second what kind of fish are you planning on putting in there? would make a nice malawi setup.

would suggest that you get a filter that will turn the water over atleast 2.5 times an hour. of course more is better. you should take a sample of your tap water and see what the ph is of the water first. will help to decide on the type of fish. at the same time purchase a master test kit and learn to test the water at home yourself. testing the water is very important during cycling as you want to bring up the levels of ammonia, nitrite and then nitrite and let them zero out. cycling a tank without a jumpstart can take up to 6 weeks with a fishless cycle.

need more info.

semper fi

 

[TonyFish]

Semper Fi, You ROCK!!!

Thanks for that Great Info!

I don't know yet as to what type of fish I want, although I do know I want some nice, medium size, "Active" fish. (I don't want anything that gonna sit at the bottom of the tank or hide behind a rock!!) Any suggestions? Nothing too expensive!

As to the "Malawi" setup, what do you mean?

I'll buy that master test kit, too!

 

[Tanked]

to the forum

 

[cichlid_freak]

A "Malawi" set-up is a tank with cichlids from Lake Malawi in Africa. These can be Mbunas or Peacocks. These are very colorful active fishes. They an be easily kept. They, IMHO, a good beginner's second tank.

The easiest thing to do is OVER FILTER. By this I mean a lot of filtration. With Malawi's, I suggest over stocking the tank to hold down aggression. I would suggest a Penguin 330 and another Penguin, because you will have three bio-wheels, giving you a lot of space for the bacteria to grow. Also, this will give you better water flow and with the penguins, you save money compared to the Emperor series. In a 70 gallon tank you could keep somewhere around 30 or more medium sized Malawi's. This would allow you to keep a variety and give you a beautiful tank.

The thing I love most about is how easy they are to feed. They will take anything you put in the tank with gusto. But, they learn to beg very quickly. Also, you must be carful what you feed them, because too much protien is very bad for them and causes bloat. A good cichlid pellet, blanched green veggies (cucumber zucini etc.) and the occasional freeze-dried, frozen or live food (brine, worm, or ghost shrimp) will keep them happy and long lived.

Rock work is very appreciated by Malawi cichlids. Also, putting calcerous (sp?) rocks in actually help this species. Limestone and coral, as well as a crushed coral substrate, is very beneficial to this species. They like higher pH. These rocks raise the pH and make a good place for caves and the like for these guys to chase around. Plants are pretty much no go in this tank. The Malawi's are perpetual diggers. They will up-root every plant they can, and will form shallow divets all over your tank. Floating plants like hornwort and duckweed may help in removing some of the nitrAtes, and reduce the frequency of water changes, but not by much. These fish are fairly messy by tropical standards, and will be over-stocked, so you should not rely on plants to reduce your water changes. However, they make good decoration in an other-wise "baren" tank. Don't get me wrong, the fish themselves make this tank beautiful, but plastic plants and floating plants will be the way to go.

If you have any more questions, feel free to ask.

Oh yeah, and welcome to the forum, the freindliest forum around.

 

[platy&guppyluver]

welcome im platy&guppyluver

 

[semper fi]

here goes the mini lesson on cichlids. cichlids are great fish, very active and not just your sit on the bottom of the tank kind of species. they can be tricky for the beginner but nothing like getting your feet wet with cichlids. cichlids, imo, are the less fussiest and most forgiving. when if first started keeping fish i did not know that you had to clean the tank til 6 months later fortunately everyone survived and can now tell you that the pretty red one is a pseudotropheus estherae and the bully is a melanochromis chippokae. there is something new to learn everyday with cichlids.

africans come mainly from three lakes in africa. malawis from lake malawi, tangs from lake tanganaykia and vics from lake victoria. malawis are broken down into two groups, mbuna (um-BOO-na) meaning rockfish and utaka meaning open water dwellers. utaka are generally less aggressive and larger than mbuna.

one of the advantages of the mbuna is that you can overstock your tank, with proper filtration without causing harm to the fish. in fact the more the aquarium is overstocked the less the aggression. the males are more brightly colored than the females. to also lessen the aggression, the ratio of males to females should be 1 male to every 3 females. mbuna are also easier to sex than other fish as the males will have different coloring than the females.

mbuna tanks can be very beautiful. george reclos' tanks are breathtaking! here is a link to some of the pics of his mbuna tanks.

http/www.malawicichlidhomepage.com/photos/index.html

mbuna are notorious for digging. plants have to be well secured in the tank, but it can be done. that is for later.

cichlids are also good for high ph water as this is their natural environment. most city water has a ph of about 7.5 or so. cichlids are well suited to this ph.

once you know the ph of your water post it. did any equipment come with the tank? i use the magnum on my tanks and they do a great job. if you like there are some pics of my fish in the member's section.

feel free to ask any and all questions. beware though, you may get a book!

semper fi

 

[TonyFish]

That's great Feedback......Thanks guys!

 

[bodyshop20]

A good pump filter i have used in my 60 gallon tank is a fluval 403.
It is an external pump with sponge, carbon and ceramic media.
I have run this pump filter for 10 yrs with no breakdowns or problems.
Good luck

 

[semper fi]

i like the magnum hot (hang on tank). have a wet/dry on my 180 for now that is going to be changed out to a sand filter.

like the magnum for the dual filtering processes it is capable of.

semper fi

 

[mrV]

What about HMF? It's cheap, biological, don't need to wash.. Im planning to put HMF and some mechanical internal filter when I get new tank. HMF works as biological and internal filter works as mechanical to keep water clear. (http/www.deters-ing.de/Filtertechnik/Bogenmatte.jpg)

Exernal filters are really expensive and water flowing is too much for good bacteria. If you read researches about those bacteria you will see, that water flows too much in external and internal filters. So most bacteria will be in gravel/sand and other surface than filters. HMF is dimensioned in a way that water flows only 5-10 cm / min.

Because your tank is 72 gal (270 liters or 325 liters), you need,

for 270:
- 40*30cm (depends your tank high) piece of PPI
- pump 600 l/h or ( 1000 l/h = water flowing will be 13 cm/min)

for 325
- 50*30cm
- pump 1000 l/h (water flowing is 11 cm/min)

Some hobbiest likes to keep mechanical internal filter too to filter small particles from water.

 

[semper fi]

hey mr v, this is the second time i have seen you mention HMF filters. could you explain them a bit more? honestly never heard of them and am wondering if maybe the difference of where we are located is why. we may be talking about the same filter just called something else here in the states. would like to find out about them. always looking for a better filtration system.

tia

semper fi

 

[mrV]

I found it again http/www.tomgriffin.com/aquasource/matte...tenfilter.shtml Haven't read it yet, but probably is a good article... It's a good article, tranlated from german...

If there is something you like to ask, ask and I try to answer Hopefully the articles answer all of your questions.

 

[semper fi]

we have something similar in the states. cichlidmaster uses this concept in his tanks. set up is a little different. these are sponge filters.

http/www.petfish.net/sponge_filter.htm

the ones here in the states do not go the entire side of the tank. the sponge is affixed to a tube or the end of the powerhead.

thank you for the info!

semper fi

 

[BIANCA]

for a filter get the filstar xp3
do not buy fluval
do not buy fluval
do not buy fluval