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My Approach to Fishkeeping and
Methods
General Tank Setup
I have 20 tanks running in my basement, including a 75 gallon, six 55’s, two 20’s, four 40 breeders, three 30’s, and four 10’s. I vary use of substrate, so that some tanks have gravel and some are bare bottomed. Each tank contains at least some (or many) rocks. I also use fake/plastic plants in some tanks to provide additional cover for fish and to break up the line of sight through the long end of the tank. These plastic plants often get dug up. (I tried live plants once and got snail infestations in 3 tanks, which is still a problem). Most tanks are on stands, however the four 40 breeders and the 30’s are on a rack that I bought from Sam Miller and which allows more tanks per square foot by placing them broad side to broad side, and requires you to look in the narrow end of the tank.
Water Conditions
Tanks are kept at a pH of about 8.0. Temperature is kept between 78 and 81.
Foods
Primarily, I use three types of OSI brand flake food:
- Cichlid Flake
- Spirulina
- Vivid Color
I also feed other flake foods on occasion for variety, and cycle through the three types of OSI flake so that the fish get one type each day, and changing the next day. I feed my fish twice a day typically (more when conditioning for breeding), once in the morning and once at night. About once a month, I feed live brine shrimp. And I use algae wafers to feed algae eating scavengers (plecos, gibbicebs, Pekoltia species, etc.).
Filters
I use Hydro sponge filters in most of my tanks, and many tanks have only the sponge filter (which results in getting dirty quickly due to no mechanical filtration, this works out okay as long as weekly water changes are kept up to date). On some tanks, I use Eheim canister filters, liking the professional series better than the round ones, because the professional models have the removable media trays making cleaning much easier. The round Eheim canister models require that you spill out the contents and use various media (like efigrob, sp?) to separate other media. I also have come to like the HOT Magnum filters as well. (HOT stands for Hang on Tank).
Water Additives: Products I Use
Water comes out of my tap at about pH = 7.4. To raise pH, I add baking soda (usually about one teaspoon for every 8 gallons). Some have warned that baking soda will only temporarily raise the pH and that a pH crash is likely with baking soda, but I have never experienced this over the last several years that I have been using baking soda. I also will mix in a small amount of Seachem Victoria/Malawi Buffer. Sometimes, if the health of fish is questionable or parasites are a concern, more salt is added by using noniodized table salt (NaCl). One friend recommends using a mix of about 2/3 epsom salts with 1/3 table salt to make the water hard, and apparently this mix achieves the same result as commercial mixtures for much less money. I also use:
- Amquel (to rid chlorine and chloramines)
- Vita-Chem (vitamins)
- Tetra Cichlid Vital (trace elements and vitamins)
- Jungle Bag Buddies … or… slimecoat additive (when bagging fish to sell or for transport)
To
strip or not to strip (mouthbrooders)?
I allow my mouthbrooders (almost all Malawi species, Victorian species, and some Tanganyikans) to release their babies naturally. Most of my friends strip mouthbrooders for efficiency, but I have found it too traumatic for the fish and am concerned about stories of females not holding to full term after having been stripped.
Usually, I will net out an ovigerous (pregnant, holding) female and place her in a breeder net or in a 10 gallon tank and wait for her to release the babies. When it is clear that she has released them all, she is returned to the breeding tank. Of course, some spit the eggs, embryos, or fry into the net, so you have to take a close look at the net while placing the female in the alternative nursery tank. Ten gallon tanks serve this purpose well because they provide enough room for the fry to grow initially and are small enough that the fry can find the food offered.
Combining species in tanks
I generally have a few species in each tank, and keep very few single species tanks. Usually, I will keep only one species from a genus in a tank, such that each tank will contain several genera but only one species from each. Species are chosen to go together based upon difference in appearance so that they will not interbreed. The SMRS (specific mate recognition system) of cichlids involves shape, color, and behavior.
Water Changing Methods
Most often, I use a Python and empty and refill one tank at a time. I used to empty several and then refill several, but after popping a number of heaters, I’ve found it safer to do one tank at a time. Of the heaters that popped, they were mostly the Visitherm brand, and I have been steadily replacing with Ebo-Jager submersible heaters because they have a thicker glass and do not break as easily.
When in a hurry, another method of draining is suggested by my friend Sam Miller (Email Sam, Sam is excellent with tank configuration). What Sam does very efficiently is to use a 5/8” hose to siphon water out of the tank and into a 20 gallon drainage tank on the floor. Inside the 20 gallon tank is a sump pump with a garden hose going to the sink or other drain. This works much faster than the Python, and allows you to use the Python for refilling while draining. But, you have to keep track of water levels and will probably need some clamps to hold the drainage hose in place. I also find that the gravel gets sucked out too much, unless you have a wide mouthed end on the siphon tube. This method works great in bare bottomed tanks.
Cycling New Tanks
New tanks need time to establish the needed bacteria for the nitrogen cycle, which takes ammonia secreted by fish (mostly from their gills but also from waste and rotting material in the tank), converts the ammonia to nitrite, and then the nitrite to nitrate. Nitrates build up in your tank until you do water changes (or have nitrate reducing devices, which most of us don’t). Ammonia and nitrite are toxic to fish, with ammonia being more dangerous. Nitrites interfere with the fishes’ body’s ability to handle and distribute oxygen. Nitrosomona bacteria establish quickly in a few days; these are the ammonia eating bacteria that then give off nitrite. Unfortunately, nitrobacter bacteria, which eat nitrite and give off nitrate take much longer to establish (nitrate is not toxic to fish but is stressful in large amounts and over extended periods of time). A new tank will typically take about a month, give or take a week to cycle, in my experience. Also, although there are varied opinions on this, I will do 50% water changes when the nitrite levels get high in the tank. I’ve never found this to delay the cycling of the tank, although others argue that it will.
When available, I will add an already cycled sponge filter (always have extras in established tanks). Even when doing this, I still get a nitrite spike; it just doesn’t last as long.
Fish Club
I belong to GCCA, the Greater Chicago Cichlid Association. It’s a great place to learn a lot and they have a number of auctions, swap meets, and the Cichlid Classic (entire Memorial Day weekend filled with workshops, activities, show, and all cichlid auction). Joining a cichlid club is a great way to learn about cichlids, fishkeeping methods, and get a chance to talk to other fish/cichlid fans. I also belong to ACA, the American Cichlid Association.
Another good source of cichlid information is the cichlids newsgroup at rec.aquaria.freshwater.cichlids. Membership is fairly transient and changing all the time, and varies greatly with respect to experience, interests, and opinions.