# New to Africans, tank cleanup crew prob



## Roos421 (Feb 17, 2018)

Hi gang, new to this forum, hope i can learn and get good advice 

OK, i have a 5 foot x2 x2 120 gallon fish tank, fully cycled all is well, perfect ph and harness etc etc etc....

Tank decor is only all nice Mongolian gold vine, looks great.
substrate very fine sand mixed with crushed coral.

fish,
orange peacock
SP 35
Venusis
Red empress
Red ruiben
Tetra stigma intermedius
Marble peacock
Sulfur crested peacock
Electric blue
White night
Benga peacock
Jocobfreibergi peacock
Red-fin Kadanga- Borleyi
Electric yellow

got these all 3 to 3 /12 inch size from a breeder, all males. Had them for 5 days now.
There all getting along fantastically and nice colours on most.

I used to keep south american earth eaters, then stopped, now picked up the hobby again and have gone African cichlids.

Today i went to my local aquarium store and got 3 clown loaches and 4 Siamese algae eaters, what i witnessed after they went into the tank i have never seen before.....
All my peacocks/haps chased them all to eat...... i was in shock! clown loachesx3 were 2 and a 1/2 inch same with Siamese algae eaters.

New fish all went wild trying to escape and did eventually, they found a hiding spot.
Then 30 minutes later they started coming out, 1 Siamese algae eater has been eaten, i am sure the other 3 will be also. The loaches seem ok, they follow them then stop just staring, its funny. Clown loaches are now wondering all over , looks ok now...
Wish to add 1 red fin black shark, but dot want it small or it will get eaten i think.

Is it normal for these fish to be so predator like? it was just insane to witness this.
Also do you guys think i should add more Africans in my tank? I wish to add a Taiwan reef and a Haplochromis Similis Type- Lethrinops Lethrinus and that's all, let them all grow up together.

Really much prefer the non crowded fish tank look..... will i be fine like this in months to come? and years.....

Any other bottom cleanup crew fish you guys can recommend? 
More to scavenge and eat uneaten food i feed that lays down. And for something different i guess.. I run a internal uv filter on a timer, 6 hours a day. No algae at all .......

Also should i build up a rocky area? or am i fine?

Thanks all in advance for any knowledge that will help me. And all and any advice greatly appreciated ! :thumb: 

Ps...General harness is at 250ppm , should be fine yeah? and ph is 8.2, also only have 1 male per type fish.


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## DJRansome (Oct 29, 2005)

No what happened is unusual.

Better to feed less and clean more than to rely on bottom feeders, but I would go with a group of 5-7 Synodontis multipunctatus rather than either the SAE's or clown loaches.

Both the SAE and clown loaches like to be in larger groups. Neither are an ideal fit for African Rift Lake cichlid water parameters. If you choose to go with either of those, I would pick one or the other and stock six of them.

You could add a couple fish...I would skip the lethrinops (too timid to color up in that mix). You also have some look-alikes that could cause trouble eventually. Example is the empress and the borleyi.


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## BlueSunshine (Jul 13, 2014)

What happened is exactly what you should expect in this situation.

The loaches are a good choice and will be just fine. We have over 30 of these, in various tanks, ranging from 3" to 5". They are in groups of 2 to 6, all were purchased at the 1" size. 
I would think the siamese will be eaten.


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## Roos421 (Feb 17, 2018)

thanks for reply's


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## Roos421 (Feb 17, 2018)

2 or 3 or 4 more good looking African species you recommend i could add with the fish i have please?

Very grateful !!


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## DJRansome (Oct 29, 2005)

The Taiwan Reef and Similis could work. I would not go higher...especially with a flock of clown loaches.


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## Roos421 (Feb 17, 2018)

Thanks for the info!! i only got 3 little clown loaches, think i got 2 now 1 seems to be missing= eaten
Bi colour 500 would work also you think?

Thanks V=very much.


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## DJRansome (Oct 29, 2005)

Clown loaches do like to be in large groups and grow large eventually.

I like 16 adults in a tank of your length. You have some big guys too (venustus, empress, borleyi, etc.). Maybe you could swap out some of the look-alikes or timid fish that never color up for a bi-color if you want one.


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## Roos421 (Feb 17, 2018)

really grateful for your advice, thanks !


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## Roos421 (Feb 17, 2018)

Added 5 more fish, that's it i am happy now.

Red flametail
Hap similis
Taiwan reef
Red shoulder
Neon blue

will put a photo one day soon of my tank and fish.
Praying they will all get along as they grow............


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## Roos421 (Feb 17, 2018)

DJRansome, I never have been a fan of sticking to many fish, but i had to grab these as they are perfect young size all of them.

whats the fish i have that you see could be potential trouble makers down the road ? as i will keep my eyes on them.

Also as thy grow larger and larger i will weed out the non colourful ones if i end up having any........

Also i noticed the white knight is just a touch on the picky side to all my other fish, noting drastic at all if it stays as is .

Thanks!!


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## DJRansome (Oct 29, 2005)

When finding balance for all-male it may not be a question of removing the non-colorful ones. There will always been a tank boss and a fish at the low end of the pecking order. It may be more of a question of removing the tank boss. Like if the white knight is bossing the other fish and they are toning down their colors because of his bullying...maybe you take him out.

Look alike fish are a concern...multiple red peacocks...multiple yellow peacocks....reds and pinks and oranges may all view each other as look-alike fish. Borleyi and empress are look alikes. Flametail and maylandi (Sulphur-crested peacock?) can be timid peacocks that don't color up well in all-male tanks. Can your LFS provide you with the scientific names? What is an electric blue?


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## Roos421 (Feb 17, 2018)

electric blue = Sciaenochromis fryeri
sulphur crest = Otopharynx lithobates

thanks so much for your input DJ !!!


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## Roos421 (Feb 17, 2018)

DJ also been watching utube videos , many have same species i have and there all getting along fine, your right about tank boss .
Absorbing as much info as i can, love this new hobby African peacocks and hap keeping.

Thanks for letting me pick your brain.

Like to learn as much as i can about this fine hobby.


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## DJRansome (Oct 29, 2005)

You never know how long you tube tanks have been stable...maybe they were just filled yesterday. Nothing wrong with trying your mix, but this way you know what to look out for in the long run. It is common to need to tinker with an male tank over a period of 2 years to get most fish colored up. It can be fine for a year...and then not.


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## Roos421 (Feb 17, 2018)

Hmmm everything as fine beside the white night being a touch nippy to all my fish. which isn't a big concern for me.

But now my Yellow Benga chases my Taiwan reef when he is sight, leaves all the other fish alone. nothing overly bad....
Also my new 4 inch Blue neon is getting chased by my 3 inch Red shoulder.... again red shoulder leaves all my other fish alone.

Could all the gold vine i have in my tank be the cause? eg: Territorial ? Make the tank more open with not much places to claim?

or just be patient and hope they get along as time goes by....?

Thanks for any input.


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## Roos421 (Feb 17, 2018)

no fin nipping or jaw locking going on at all.
I understand cichlids will be cichlids, just wish to do my best to minimise aggression, i worry to much about them perhaps.
I do think a more open tank will help...??
And i have seen i the past , first hand , that no matter what you do some cichlids are just plain bully's no matter what you do, i understand this. There are always rouge angry cichlids around. Even though there suppose to be a peaceful fish species.


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## DJRansome (Oct 29, 2005)

My blue neon never colored up...he may be too timid for the other fish in your tank.

Watch for injuries and any fish lurking under the surface or behind equipment (a sign of harassement). Also if fish are being kept out of half the tank. Otherwise they are fine. A more open tank will not help.


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## Roos421 (Feb 17, 2018)

Thanks DJ, 
And yeah, same here my Blue neon is not colouring up at all, touch of blue and yellow but that's it.
Maybe to timid, shame shame, there supposed to colour up so so nicely.


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## Roos421 (Feb 17, 2018)

Yeah i am starting to see what you mean DJ, the longer they stay together the more the hierarchy battle begins. It will take some tinkering for sure, i will see how it goes, but some out and some in will happen for sure, i can foresee it already.
Its a challenge for sure , till i get the right mix.
Older they become more forgiving they become? or more nasty they become?
I will Pm you later DJ with the scientific name of all the fish i have, i would like your take on it, as i am new to Africans.
Thanks DJ!! and i hope i am not a bother to you.


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## DJRansome (Oct 29, 2005)

The aggression comes and goes and changes from individual to individual and from time to time until they have been together around two years...then things seem to stabilize.


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## Roos421 (Feb 17, 2018)

update on my stock, fish are looking more nice in colour now, seem to tolerate each other more as times passes. Thanks for pm reply DJ !!
Keeping my tank as is for awhile yet, there all looking great. Neon blue did go, poor colour on him. see what happens as they get larger, guessing i might take afew out....but so far just keeps looking better, all colours in fish keep getting a touch nicer.


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