# Introducing new cichlids to an established tank



## jacobm1 (Jan 23, 2010)

I've had success introducing new cichlids to an already-occupied tank, but only if they're considerably smaller than the current residents. Has anyone discovered a formula for introducing a cichlid of comparable size to the tank's residing cichlids?


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## DJRansome (Oct 29, 2005)

Introduce them in groups of six. If you are adding only one, take out 5 and hold them out of the tank for the 3 week period while you quarantine the one new one. Then add six.


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## jacobm1 (Jan 23, 2010)

How on earth did you come up with the number 6? Or 3 weeks?


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## DJRansome (Oct 29, 2005)

Three weeks is the incubation period for ich, so if the new fish has ich you are likely to see it within three weeks. Plus if you hang out on a lot of forums and read a lot of books, you will see three weeks recommended fairly often.

Six is a big enough number so that individuals don't get singled out, but it's not half the tank.


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## 13razorbackfan (Sep 28, 2011)

DJRansome said:


> Three weeks is the incubation period for ich, so if the new fish has ich you are likely to see it within three weeks. Plus if you hang out on a lot of forums and read a lot of books, you will see three weeks recommended fairly often.
> 
> Six is a big enough number so that individuals don't get singled out, but it's not half the tank.


This is VERY good advice. Adding one at a time to an established tank even when you have more passive fish can be a bad idea. Recently going through a bout of ICH so that advise is good advice as well. When you take the fish out of the established tank...re-arrange the rocks and when you re-introduce them it will seem as though a totally new tank to the fish removed. I tried the adding a single/couple fish at a time to a somewhat established peacock tank and it was very hard. If I had to do it again I would have added more at once...at least 5.


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