Weird almost crusty looking scales on firemouth?

[SAChichlidLover]

I'd do a plain black background really makes cichlids pop. If you want plants from online ther are some really good stores out there. I've been really happy with Scaped Nature and Pro Shrimp in particular while I've been ordering online. Infact I'd choose to go online rather than instore as stores dont really take great care (unless dedicated aquascaping stores) and you get better choice online. Have you seen the ADA Amano tank they did recently with just swords looked really good.

Frogbit would be a good choice robust plant that the cichlids wont destry lol.

Wills

Plain background it is haha, I was going to go for a 3d background while I was setting the tank up but I decided not too as I thought that would be a bit out of my league haha. I'll have to order some from there! Sounds great and very true also in store plants have always been more than a bit infested with "a few snails" which has ended up being dozens of bladder snails everywhere! I was only expecting a few but I once ended up with a whole colony filled with breeding snails, good job they sort algae and I weirdly find them cute otherwise I'd be ordering assasin snails ? And I havent actually I'll check that out aswell, I love amazon swords they're brilliant.

Great! Thank you again @Wills if it wasn't for you then I'd be lost in the cichlid keeping world (Probabaly would of ended up with a disaster of a tank lol) I'll grab some frogbit and swords online and my sevs are awful with anubias especially for some reason and I thought anubias was meant to be nasty tasting to fish hahaha

 

[Wills]

When I get my next big tank I'm getting one of these https://aquadecorbackgrounds.com/ In a 4 foot tank works out at about £300 but some are a bit cheaper - really like their rubber mats for the base too. You can turn them into massive filters too with a pump and media. Quite like the internal filters these guys have started doing too that look like tree stumps. Some of them when you see the photos look so real I cant accept they are fake

If you have a bit of a tendancy to impluse add to your tank getting into aquascaping and the look/decor of it is a really good way of diverting that energy away from buying fish while still enjoying your hobby. Even down to the hardware with the look of the filter and lighting its all the little bits that make a set up and you soon find that balance. I like to think of the tank as the hobby and fish as the pets, a bit like having a dog or a cat you cant keep buying endless animals but you can buy them cool toys, nice food, beds etc.

I really need some cichlids back in my life, I keep day dreaming about a new Nicaraguan tank had my fill of 'interesting' cichlids that are basically brown (as my wife would say) so want to focus on big bangs of colour. Debating if I want to keep them in a community tank with Rainbow Fish (Bosemani or Turquoise) or have a female cichlid tank with other easy to distinguish colourful centrals like Salvini and Festae. Maybe some smaller Cryptoheros like Nanoluteus but they might be too timid. Also keep getting my head turned by Tanganykan Cichlids - I've actually sent off for a quote for 2 4x2x2 tanks this weekend to try and get it set up in my basement, currently getting it refurbed and half of it will be storage but as my wife also says "what are we going to do with all this space" to which I reply "I dont have any plans..."

 

[SAChichlidLover]

When I get my next big tank I'm getting one of these https://aquadecorbackgrounds.com/ In a 4 foot tank works out at about £300 but some are a bit cheaper - really like their rubber mats for the base too. You can turn them into massive filters too with a pump and media. Quite like the internal filters these guys have started doing too that look like tree stumps. Some of them when you see the photos look so real I cant accept they are fake

If you have a bit of a tendancy to impluse add to your tank getting into aquascaping and the look/decor of it is a really good way of diverting that energy away from buying fish while still enjoying your hobby. Even down to the hardware with the look of the filter and lighting its all the little bits that make a set up and you soon find that balance. I like to think of the tank as the hobby and fish as the pets, a bit like having a dog or a cat you cant keep buying endless animals but you can buy them cool toys, nice food, beds etc.

I really need some cichlids back in my life, I keep day dreaming about a new Nicaraguan tank had my fill of 'interesting' cichlids that are basically brown (as my wife would say) so want to focus on big bangs of colour. Debating if I want to keep them in a community tank with Rainbow Fish (Bosemani or Turquoise) or have a female cichlid tank with other easy to distinguish colourful centrals like Salvini and Festae. Maybe some smaller Cryptoheros like Nanoluteus but they might be too timid. Also keep getting my head turned by Tanganykan Cichlids - I've actually sent off for a quote for 2 4x2x2 tanks this weekend to try and get it set up in my basement, currently getting it refurbed and half of it will be storage but as my wife also says "what are we going to do with all this space" to which I reply "I dont have any plans..."

I was about to say thats where I wanted a 3D background from aswell! The price is what drove me off it and I have zero experience with 3d backgrounds so knowing me I'd somehow stick it on wrong or try and build my own custom filter and fail hahah. They look stunning I regret not completely going back to just before I put water in the tank and properly aquascaping it but I'm happy with it

Thats an extremely good point I'll note that one down for future references so I dont end up burning a hole in my pocket trying to buy half of lake malawi one day ?.

Wills I think you should go for a new cichlids tank because you're such a knowledgable person and you'd have them for a huge amount of time! (I sound like such a bad influence here lol) But seriously go for it, if I were you and I was doing lake Tanganykan I'd look at tropheus first (some of the unique morphs), shell dwellers are considered much more interesting and easier because of their size but one day it is my dream to try and establish a tropheus colony and thats awesome! You will definetely have to show me you're tanks one day!