Tank Population Adivice, Newbie Here...

[Pancakes]

I've recently become quite enthralled with the world of aquaria, and as such I bought myself a tank.
It's about 40 gallons, but it's quite tall (I think the dimensions are about 32" long/12" wide/24" tall. I also have a top fin 60 filter/light ballast/couple of heaters/stick on thermometer. I did have the good sense to really check stuff out here (and a couple of other boards too), and as such have done nothing further. Before I start to set up the environment and cycle this tank, I'd like to have an idea of the direction I'm headed with it.
From everything I've been reading on this board (and God, there's a LOT to read on these boards), it looks like African Cichlids would be a sensible place for me to start (general heartiness of fish + the water where I live is naturally quite hard). Depending where I read though, it seems like my tank may be completely inappropriate for these, as it is tall rather than long. Aesthetically, I really like the look of the Africans, and I understand their behaviour can be quite interesting to observe. Can anybody give me a little advice as to what the most appropriate thing for me to do with this tank is? I'd obviously like to get a good mix of colour and action.....anyone?

 

[HappyGeorge]

Welcome mate, nice to see someone doing a bit of research before doing anything daft.

First question would be to ask where-abouts you live as maybe someone can give you some advice on LFS etc.

Secondly I know a lot of stuff says about Mbuna liking shallow long tanks, this being said, from the behaviour I observe in my tank it is much more closely linked to their proximity to the rocks. If you pile the rocks high then they will swim high. I think maybe because many people don't pile their rocks any higher than about 6" off the bottom of the tank, they don't see the fish going any higher than that. I have rocks piled to within 3 to 4" of the surface of my tank at one end and they swim right to the surface regularly, they also swim from one pile of rocks at one end to the pile at the other end through the middle/top of tank. Many of them also go up and swim against the flow of the Filter outlet on the surface.

As for the mix, the possibilities are endless and if your careful and do your research, all will be fine. I mixed Haps and Mbunas against all advice and although there are only 2 specimens in the tank One blue Moori and One Venustus, they are thriving and swim together much of the time patrolling the top half of the tank. I also have 6 Syno multis in there and they are regularly swimming around the top of the tank in the flow as a group.

Good luck and just keep reading and absorbing what you can. I bought my tank last Christmas and only filled it in September having read up for 8 months, but thanks to the good advice on here and my hard work I have managed to get a tank with happy specimens and breeding pairs forming, and haven't lost a single fish yet (touch wood).

 

[Pancakes]

I'm in Kingston, Ontario, Canada. I've been skulking around a few LFS around the city and have what I believe to be the best two options in my mind.
Fin Addicts on Gardiner's Road (they obviously specialize in aquaria, with the obligatory small reptile collection)
And Scotty's Pet's and Aquatics on Middle Road just East of the city. Both of these places have really articulate staff, as well as what appear to be very well maintained tanks and stock.
I've bought a good deal of rock from a couple of places, and am just playing around with some arrangements. My plan is to arrange the rock quite high, and allow for lots of crevices and caves of reasonable size throughout. It's been suggested to me that a couple of overlapping pieces of driftwood in the foreground may go a long way to help give some separation between areas of the tank as well, maybe making a bit more appealing to particular fish.
I'm hoping to start cycling the tank some time in the next week or so, with the plan to get fish in by the middle of the month. That is, of course, with the assumption that I can get my levels under control. I am imagining myself having some filtration challenges once the tank is stocked and the fish start to grow, and I'm wondering how much I can mitigate that with a decent circulation accessory (powerhead, fan)? Ultimately I suppose I'll end up with a canister filter before too long anyway...
Still haven't made any final decisions about the potential population, I'll keep surfing around the board and reading what I can.
Wish me luck! I'll keep you posted.

 

[HappyGeorge]

As you have no doubt read already, the aim is to get at least 10 times filtration. On my 100G I'm running a Fluval Fx5 cannister and an internal U4 that just has water polishing pads and carbon in it, with extra foam in place of the ceramics.

Sounds like you're going in the right direction but I won't invite you round to have a look at mine, as I live in the County of Kent in England, and I think any fish you come and buy here may be dead by the time you get them home in your hand luggage.

 

[Pancakes]

Can you even take hand luggage anymore?
Cheers!