Light stocking of african cichlids

Hello,
I'm fairly new to aquariums and have never kept african cichlids. I
bought a 75g tank from the lfs about 2 years back and kept some community
fish in it for awhile. Due to a really busy schedule I didn't have much
time to take care of them and some of them died. Most others I gave away to
my grandmother who gladly took them and is still taking care of them. Well
anyway, the tank is a 75g with 2 penguin bio-wheel filters, and I made a
custom styrofoam/concrete background for it. So the cichlids can have a
more natural environment, although this took about half of the space of the
tank.

The question: Can I stock it lightly, 3-5 fish instead of overstocking it?
I'm running low on funds and I don't want to spend a ton of money all at
once. I can buy everything I need to take care of the fish, but the fish
themselves are very expensive. 8+ dollars a fish. That can lead to alot of
money. My plan is to buy some yellow labs, and maybe a trio of
Pseudotropheus demasoni, if these fish will go good together, and then bread
them. The fry I was later going to raise a bit and then trade off to the
lfs for some more fish. (Maybe) Will this work? Can I get a trio of yellow
labs and a trio of Pseudotropheus demasoni? Will that lead to lots of
aggression? The fake rock has lots of caves.

Thanks,
Chris

At the risk of being flamed, I am gong to describe my recommended technique.
I am not a fish/cichlid expert. But I have learned through the years what
works good for me. I base the following on successfully keeping 6 cichlids
for almost two years with only one death (Malawi bloat I believe). My
original 5 fish (plus one replacement) are very healthy, growing very good
and still very active. 6 chichlids in a 55-gal is lightly stocked. Below
are the methods I followed.

1) Never buy two of the same type of cichlid. (no good for breeding but
prevents/reduces aggression).
2) Buy all fish as juveniles (small!). (I believe if they grow up together
from small, they are more likely to "get along" - Just my view, but seems to
work for me)
3) Change 50 percent of the water once a week, religiously. (slows down
initial cycling time but it doesn't matter - the water is always non-toxic,
forever - so who cares).
4) When changing water, make SURE the temperature change is within a degree
or so. (I use a python, I make sure I measure the temperature to make sure
it matches the tank water before filling - ad declor appropriately, of
course - I use NovAqua Conditioner )
5) When changing water, vacuum gavel each time.
6) I over filter (two Emperors on a 55-gal tank. (I change media about once
a month)
7) Feed twice a day, morning and evening. (I use Wardley Cichlid Crumbles -
I have fed these fish the same thing, day after day, for two years - they
remain fit/fat and healthy)

My fish will see me sitting at the computer (in front of the tank) and start
BEGGING FOR FOOD. It's amazing. Cichlids are very interesting and
intelligent fish.

Have Phun!

-Frank


"Chris Gentry" wrote in message
gy.com...
Hello,
I'm fairly new to aquariums and have never kept african cichlids. I
bought a 75g tank from the lfs about 2 years back and kept some community
fish in it for awhile. Due to a really busy schedule I didn't have much
time to take care of them and some of them died. Most others I gave away
to
my grandmother who gladly took them and is still taking care of them.
Well
anyway, the tank is a 75g with 2 penguin bio-wheel filters, and I made a
custom styrofoam/concrete background for it. So the cichlids can have a
more natural environment, although this took about half of the space of
the
tank.

The question: Can I stock it lightly, 3-5 fish instead of overstocking it?
I'm running low on funds and I don't want to spend a ton of money all at
once. I can buy everything I need to take care of the fish, but the fish
themselves are very expensive. 8+ dollars a fish. That can lead to alot
of
money. My plan is to buy some yellow labs, and maybe a trio of
Pseudotropheus demasoni, if these fish will go good together, and then
bread
them. The fry I was later going to raise a bit and then trade off to the
lfs for some more fish. (Maybe) Will this work? Can I get a trio of
yellow
labs and a trio of Pseudotropheus demasoni? Will that lead to lots of
aggression? The fake rock has lots of caves.

Thanks,
Chris

Well thanks for the information. I'm just glad someone replied. I was
beginning to lose hope. I would much rather have someone reply and tell me
I'm being crazy than to not reply at all. Thanks, -Chris

"Frank S" wrote in message
...
At the risk of being flamed, I am gong to describe my recommended
technique.
I am not a fish/cichlid expert. But I have learned through the years what
works good for me. I base the following on successfully keeping 6
cichlids
for almost two years with only one death (Malawi bloat I believe). My
original 5 fish (plus one replacement) are very healthy, growing very good
and still very active. 6 chichlids in a 55-gal is lightly stocked. Below
are the methods I followed.

1) Never buy two of the same type of cichlid. (no good for breeding but
prevents/reduces aggression).
2) Buy all fish as juveniles (small!). (I believe if they grow up together
from small, they are more likely to "get along" - Just my view, but seems
to
work for me)
3) Change 50 percent of the water once a week, religiously. (slows down
initial cycling time but it doesn't matter - the water is always
non-toxic,
forever - so who cares).
4) When changing water, make SURE the temperature change is within a
degree
or so. (I use a python, I make sure I measure the temperature to make sure
it matches the tank water before filling - ad declor appropriately, of
course - I use NovAqua Conditioner )
5) When changing water, vacuum gavel each time.
6) I over filter (two Emperors on a 55-gal tank. (I change media about
once
a month)
7) Feed twice a day, morning and evening. (I use Wardley Cichlid
Crumbles -
I have fed these fish the same thing, day after day, for two years - they
remain fit/fat and healthy)

My fish will see me sitting at the computer (in front of the tank) and
start
BEGGING FOR FOOD. It's amazing. Cichlids are very interesting and
intelligent fish.

Have Phun!

-Frank


"Chris Gentry" wrote in message
gy.com...
Hello,
I'm fairly new to aquariums and have never kept african cichlids. I
bought a 75g tank from the lfs about 2 years back and kept some
community
fish in it for awhile. Due to a really busy schedule I didn't have much
time to take care of them and some of them died. Most others I gave
away
to
my grandmother who gladly took them and is still taking care of them.
Well
anyway, the tank is a 75g with 2 penguin bio-wheel filters, and I made a
custom styrofoam/concrete background for it. So the cichlids can have a
more natural environment, although this took about half of the space of
the
tank.

The question: Can I stock it lightly, 3-5 fish instead of overstocking
it?
I'm running low on funds and I don't want to spend a ton of money all at
once. I can buy everything I need to take care of the fish, but the
fish
themselves are very expensive. 8+ dollars a fish. That can lead to
alot
of
money. My plan is to buy some yellow labs, and maybe a trio of
Pseudotropheus demasoni, if these fish will go good together, and then
bread
them. The fry I was later going to raise a bit and then trade off to
the
lfs for some more fish. (Maybe) Will this work? Can I get a trio of
yellow
labs and a trio of Pseudotropheus demasoni? Will that lead to lots of
aggression? The fake rock has lots of caves.

Thanks,
Chris

I few points about your comments:

3. Changing 50% of the water every week in a tank so lightly stocked is
overkill. 25% of the actual volume per month is just fine. In my (much
more heavily stocked) 75 gallon I change 20 gals a month and have nitrates
below 20ppm.

5. A good idea if there is no UG filter. Make sure you don't have too much
gravel in there, otherwise things can get anerobic.

6. I wouldn't change the filter media once a month. This is where the bulk
of your bacteria live. If it's clogged, rinse it lightly in water you
drained from the tank. If you have two filters, make sure you don't clean
them both at the same time. Only change the actual media if it's beyond
hope.

"Frank S" wrote in message
...
At the risk of being flamed, I am gong to describe my recommended
technique.
I am not a fish/cichlid expert. But I have learned through the years what
works good for me. I base the following on successfully keeping 6
cichlids
for almost two years with only one death (Malawi bloat I believe). My
original 5 fish (plus one replacement) are very healthy, growing very good
and still very active. 6 chichlids in a 55-gal is lightly stocked. Below
are the methods I followed.

1) Never buy two of the same type of cichlid. (no good for breeding but
prevents/reduces aggression).
2) Buy all fish as juveniles (small!). (I believe if they grow up together
from small, they are more likely to "get along" - Just my view, but seems
to
work for me)
3) Change 50 percent of the water once a week, religiously. (slows down
initial cycling time but it doesn't matter - the water is always
non-toxic,
forever - so who cares).
4) When changing water, make SURE the temperature change is within a
degree
or so. (I use a python, I make sure I measure the temperature to make sure
it matches the tank water before filling - ad declor appropriately, of
course - I use NovAqua Conditioner )
5) When changing water, vacuum gavel each time.
6) I over filter (two Emperors on a 55-gal tank. (I change media about
once
a month)
7) Feed twice a day, morning and evening. (I use Wardley Cichlid
Crumbles -
I have fed these fish the same thing, day after day, for two years - they
remain fit/fat and healthy)

My fish will see me sitting at the computer (in front of the tank) and
start
BEGGING FOR FOOD. It's amazing. Cichlids are very interesting and
intelligent fish.

Have Phun!

-Frank


"Chris Gentry" wrote in message
gy.com...
Hello,
I'm fairly new to aquariums and have never kept african cichlids. I
bought a 75g tank from the lfs about 2 years back and kept some
community
fish in it for awhile. Due to a really busy schedule I didn't have much
time to take care of them and some of them died. Most others I gave
away
to
my grandmother who gladly took them and is still taking care of them.
Well
anyway, the tank is a 75g with 2 penguin bio-wheel filters, and I made a
custom styrofoam/concrete background for it. So the cichlids can have a
more natural environment, although this took about half of the space of
the
tank.

The question: Can I stock it lightly, 3-5 fish instead of overstocking
it?
I'm running low on funds and I don't want to spend a ton of money all at
once. I can buy everything I need to take care of the fish, but the
fish
themselves are very expensive. 8+ dollars a fish. That can lead to
alot
of
money. My plan is to buy some yellow labs, and maybe a trio of
Pseudotropheus demasoni, if these fish will go good together, and then
bread
them. The fry I was later going to raise a bit and then trade off to
the
lfs for some more fish. (Maybe) Will this work? Can I get a trio of
yellow
labs and a trio of Pseudotropheus demasoni? Will that lead to lots of
aggression? The fake rock has lots of caves.

Thanks,
Chris

do some research on local cichlid groups in your area
chances are you can buy direct from the breeder at a fraction of the cost.