New Setup 200L

[justin85]

Hi all,

So I’ve been planning and setting up my first Malawi Cichlid tank. It’s been a long process but I think im ready to fill it up and start my fishless cycle. I need some help and advice on the live stock, I'm thinking of stocking about 20 tops, I will be over stocking to keep the aggression as low as I can and I will have 2 filter. Here's a list of the cichlids I was thinking of getting so far:


3x Electric Yellow Cichlid
3x Red Peacock
3x Friebeg Cichlid
3x Marble Peacock


Like I said, I am new to keeping cichlids and I wanted to make sure the fish are right together and the amount is ok. Any advice is appreciated.

I will list the equipment and post a picture of the tank below:


Tank: 200L - 100 x 40 x 55 cm
Lighting: One Power-Glo Fluorescent Tube 30W T8,One Aqua-Glo Fluorescent Tube 30W T8 + LED moonlights.
Filteration: Eheim Professional 2 2028 External Filter + Eheim Professional 3 2075 External Filter.
Circulation Pump: Hydor Koralia Circulation and Wave Pump 900 l/h
Heater: Hydor ETH External Heater 200W + 250W internal heater (backup)
Substrate: Premium Silica Sand.
Background: 3D Rock background.

 

[ryan136]

Hey mate i kept malawi my best fish ever. Just think bout ur tank size is a bit small for peacocks u no mate never mind 6 of them they grow bout 6in or bigger they will kill each other in a tank that small. Peacock shud b in a tank bout 400l at lest 5ft. Just keep mbuna in a tank that size

 

[justin85]

Thanks for your input Ryan! Could you sugest a few Mbuna that would be suitable for my tank ?

 

[ryan136]

Yea mate there is 100s n 100s of mbunas to pick from u cud also hav 1 peacock in there. Wen u say Marble peacock do u mean ob peacock hav one of them if u want.

Wen they get big they can b very territorial thats y shudnt put many peacocks in a small tank.

All mbunas hav long scientific names. I name u sum of the ones i hav had i use the common names too

blue cobalt
yellow tail acei (boss fish)
yellow lab
demasoni
there is also ob zebra mbuna looks like the ob peacock( the one u call marbel peacock)
try a synodontis cat fish they r fine with cichlids n r a nice catfish
bristlenose pleco

U no i cud go on all day. U shud go down to ur lfs n c wot ones they keep. But rember to do sum

Reseach on any of the fish b4 u buy.

And wen u get sum fish post the names on here n sum pics for me to c them.

 

[justin85]

Yea mate there is 100s n 100s of mbunas to pick from u cud also hav 1 peacock in there. Wen u say Marble peacock do u mean ob peacock hav one of them if u want.

Wen they get big they can b very territorial thats y shudnt put many peacocks in a small tank.

All mbunas hav long scientific names. I name u sum of the ones i hav had i use the common names too

blue cobalt
yellow tail acei (boss fish)
yellow lab
demasoni
there is also ob zebra mbuna looks like the ob peacock( the one u call marbel peacock)
try a synodontis cat fish they r fine with cichlids n r a nice catfish
bristlenose pleco

U no i cud go on all day. U shud go down to ur lfs n c wot ones they keep. But rember to do sum

Reseach on any of the fish b4 u buy.

And wen u get sum fish post the names on here n sum pics for me to c them.

I was planning on ordering online, thats where i got the list from, it was a starter pack:HERE

I did tons a research last night and like you said, there is loads of mbuna!
I am not going to order online now, I will get them from my lfs. Will go through the list you gave me and see what they look like.

Would it be ok to keep 1 marble peacock with the other fish ? would he be super aggressive ?

I like the sound of the yellow tail acei (boss fish)

 

[justin85]

Ryan Thanks for your help mate I checked them cichlids you mentioned, and I love the look of them, there actually the ones I wanted in the first place. So I will be getting:

Blue cobalt
Yellow tail acei (boss fish)
Yellow lab
Demasoni

Could you help me with suitable numbers? I know it’s like 1 male for every 5-6 female’s right?

 

[justin85]

I filled the tank up yesterday, and the water is verry cloudy as i was expecting, But my question is: Has any of you tried API Accu Clear to remove cloudyness ?

 

[minnnt]

Your tank is exceptional!!

 

[justin85]

Thanks mate, cloudiness has cleared up so I can start the cycle.

 

[rifty]

Lools amazing but like everyone has already said maybe a bit small? where is your background from btw!!! id go for saulosi over labs and demonsoni less agressive than both imo!

 

[justin85]

Lools amazing but like everyone has already said maybe a bit small? where is your background from btw!!! id go for saulosi over labs and demonsoni less agressive than both imo!

Well now I feel like I’m back to square one with the live stock, I did do tons or research on tank size requirements before I started this project and everywhere I read said 200L/55G tank is the smallest tank size for keeping cichlids.

Anyway, I have had a look at the cichlids you suggested and they look really nice, Could you suggest any others?

 

[minnnt]

Pseudotropheus Saulosi 'Coral Red' stocked somewhere in the region of 20-25 would look simply stunning. You could get away with probably 4 males too. (maybe 5?) A fully grown Yellow Lab is huge.

I would look at stocking Synodontis Petricola or Multipunctatus too to add some variety.

Probably not the best qualified to advise on stocking, but a Saulosi species only tank of Mbuna is probably the best spectacle i have ever seen.

 

[justin85]

Pseudotropheus Saulosi 'Coral Red' stocked somewhere in the region of 20-25 would look simply stunning. You could get away with probably 4 males too. (maybe 5?) A fully grown Yellow Lab is huge.

I would look at stocking Synodontis Petricola or Multipunctatus too to add some variety.

Probably not the best qualified to advise on stocking, but a Saulosi species only tank of Mbuna is probably the best spectacle i have ever seen.

Yea I think I'm going to go with the Saulosi then, I don't want to have fish that will out grow the tank also I think the aggression would be to high, does anyone on this forum breed Pseudotropheus Saulosi or know of a good source ??

 

[justin85]

Can anyone advise me on suitable tank mates for Pseudotropheus Saulosi in a 55g tank?

 

[justin85]

Anyone?