# New 55 gal. stocking questions



## lundungurl (Jan 31, 2014)

Hello, I am new to African Cichlids and will be setting up a 55 gal as soon as the tank stand is completed and set in place. I have been doing a ton of research on different species and I have a plan to put 3 varieties in the tank. After the tank is cycled I want to put in 3 clown loaches, 1 Red tail shark and a featherfin catfish to help get things going and also because I like them and have read that they should do ok with the Cichlids.

The 3 varieties of Malawi Cichlids I want to add are Perlmutt, Yellowtail Acai and Rusties. I like these varieties because they are beautiful (both male and female) and aren't too aggressive. I plan on buying 6 of each as youngsters and hopefully I will get a male for each group and then sell any extra males back to the pet store. I understand that the yellowtail Acai likes to eat algae off of driftwood so I will put a piece in the tank along with plenty of rocks for caves and hiding places.

So my questions are:
Do you have any observations or tips about any of these species?
Will these 3 species get along ok without to much fighting?
Will any of these species breed with another species (don't want hybrids)?
Will I be able to use the same food for all 3?

Oh, tank dimensions are the typical 48 x 13 x 20 in. I also plan to do a 3D background but I don't want to take up to much tank space so it's up in the air right now.

Thanks in advance for any help or advice with stocking.


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## Ramseydog14 (Dec 31, 2013)

Others here can probably answer your questions better than myself but I think I have a few answers for you to start.

That sounds like a nice combination to me as far as low aggression, color, and fish that swim in all levels of the tank.
I'm not so sure about the sizes of each when full grown but I know the Acei get rather big, so with 18 cichlids plus the companion fish, it may be crowded,..which you may prefer.

I wouldn't worry about adding driftwood for the Acei unless you just like it a lot. They don't need it really with feedings plus algae from rocks, plants and tank walls etc. I've also read that it lowers PH levels, which you want to maintain with Mbuna.

Yes, you can use the same food for all.

I'm not sure at all on the crossbreeding,..but I would guess that it would be no more of an issue than with any other similar combination.


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## DJRansome (Oct 29, 2005)

Your combination is good except as noted acei get borderline too big for a 55G.

I'd also skip the clown loaches since they like to be in groups of 6 and grow to 13"...a 72" tank is ideal for them.

I'd choose the featherfin (Synodontis eupterus) or the red tailed shark but not both. Actually I'd choose the Synodontis.


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## lundungurl (Jan 31, 2014)

DJ, Just a quick question... Why would you not have both the red tail shark and featherfin cat in the same tank? Will they fight?

Also, I will be overstocking the tank and will like to ultimately have 1 male to 3-4 females per group. So with 15-18 Cichlids and a featherfin catfish do you think there will be any room for any male peacocks?

Ramseydog, I am going for movement in all levels of the tank so I think it will be a nice selection of Cichlids. The yellowtail Acai can get 6", the Rusties and Perlmutt about 4". I think I might like the look of a piece of driftwood or tree root in the tank but if I find my space limited I might scratch that idea. Thanks for all the tips!


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## DJRansome (Oct 29, 2005)

You want at least 4 females per group. The eupterus is a big fish and territorial so I would predict he would defend the tank against the red tail but I've never tried the combo.

I would not combine peacocks with any mbuna but yellow labs and I would not add them to a 55G that already has 15 mbuna in it. You want at_ least_ 4 females per group.

If you want peacocks in a 55G I'd either do just peacocks (8 of them, all males and no look-alikes) or I'd do yellow labs 1m:4f and 3 peacocks.


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## lundungurl (Jan 31, 2014)

Ok, so the tank is filled with water and the water is conditioned with stresscoat. My PH is 8.2 out of the tap, my Ammonia, Nitrite and Nitrate is all at 0ppm. I will be adding the fish tomorrow along with a bottle of Tetra Safe Start Plus I decided to go with all male peacocks and a featherfin catfish. My filtration setup is 1 HOB Penguin 350 and a Penn Plax Cascade 1000. The rock work is Ozark Mountain Quartzite But I will be putting more in Probably Slate from Home Depot or something. The substrate is a sandy/pebbly mix specifically for African Cichlids. I want to overstock (do you think my filtration can hadle it?). Also, I'm very fortunate to live within a few miles of the Wet Spot Tropical fish store in Portland, Or. so I will be getting my stock from them. Ultimately, I'm looking at Chitande Type Masinje, Mamalela "Lemon Jake", maylandi "Sulfurhead", "OB", saulosi "Greenface", Sunshine peacock, Ruby red/German Red Peacock, hansbaenschi Cobue F2, koningsi Mbenji F1, korneliae Blue & Gold F2, Maisoni Chitimba Bay F1. These are all Peacocks and I'm hoping The Wet Spot will have them.

I would like anyone's opinion on these as a stocking list or if you have any other suggestions, feel free to chime in.

So, a couple questions:
How many Featherfin Catfish should I get for adequate clean up?
I am able to get about 6 Peacocks now and the other 6 in a week or two. Do you think this should be ok?
Overall do you think my setup is ok?

Thanks for all the help!


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## Mschn99 (Dec 24, 2012)

how did you go from a very planned tank.......to an overstocked (bad idea IMO) tank that has a ton of different species in it. A 55 is a very limited tank because the footprint is small for the volume.

As far as syno catfish, you want 1 in a 55. They do best in groups if you want more than one.....and a 55 will not support a group.

I personally think your setup is NOT good. Are the peacocks going to be sexed males? If you put two species of unsexed peacocks in the same tank, you might as well plan on throwing away the females and fry. You will never be able to tell them apart


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## lundungurl (Jan 31, 2014)

Sorry, I forgot to add some pics. The stand isn't complete yet (need to add trim and doors) but I'll do that later. Excuse the cell phone camera  The tank is your typical 55gal long.


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## lundungurl (Jan 31, 2014)

Hi Mschn99, Thanks for the response. When I made my first post I was toying with the idea of breeding. As you can see by my 1st post it was several months ago and I have since decided that jumping into breeding right off the bat with no previous experience with Cichlids would be a bad idea. I have seen several posts where people overstock to reduce the aggression because it's spread out more among the fish. I know that I shouldn't get any peacocks that have similar coloring and yes, they will all be males. I'm willing to pay extra for known males. Is it true that only males have the egg spots? If so, I will go that route. According to The Wet Spot current stocking list they have known males that are around 2" long right now for about $20.00ea.
I think I might go with Synodontis lucipinnis "Dwarf Petricola". They only get about 4 inches long and I think my tank could support 3 of those. That way they will be in a small group. I think that would be better than 1 large catfish with no friends to hang around with. What are your thoughts on that?


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## lundungurl (Jan 31, 2014)

Also, All the fish I listed above are from The Wet Spot website listed under Lake Malawi "Peacocks"


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## Mschn99 (Dec 24, 2012)

In an all male peacock tank, the likelihood is that a decent number of the fish will never show full color, especially if purchased as juveniles that are only part color. Just something to be prepared for.

I personally am not a fan of the overstocking theory. In a tank with properly set up decor, I don't think it's needed. And no, eggspots are not a proper or reliable way to sex most African cichlids

And synodontis lucipinnis would be a great choice but I would get 6 of them. 3 will beat each other up and will hide a lot more. They do better in groups. My group is 14 fish.


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## nicklang58 (Jul 15, 2011)

This is just my two cents, but I'd add more rock for caves. Plants make the tank look nice, but really serve little purpose for a cichlid tank from what I've read. In the past I've done slow introductions with different fish, but at least in my opinion there is no sure thing. Mschn99 is right though, you'll likely end up with some males that are going to look much more like their female counterparts than the ideal photos you see on websites. If you want a certain fish to show color, usually it must become the dominant in the tank, and really the only way to "help" the odds is to make it bigger, which can also end up in it destroying others.


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## Austinite (Jul 27, 2013)

You should not add fish until you've properly cycled the tank, which can take many weeks. Adding stresscoat and Tetra Safe Start is not cycling the tank, you can't test your water out of the tap for ammonia/nitrite/nitrate. You have to build up beneficial bacteria in your tank that will process the ammonia you fish will create. Otherwise they will suffer and/or die from ammonia poisioning.

Have you read up on fishless cycling? Have you already added the fish?

It sounded from your post that you filled it with water and were going to add the fish the next day, I hope I misunderstood that.


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## lundungurl (Jan 31, 2014)

Hello, I found out about Tetra Safe Start from another website. I don't think I'm allowed to mention it but if you google 
"Q & A With Tetra About Tetra SafeStart" and click on the 1st link, you can find out about it. I then went to Amazon and found it. The exact thing I bought was Tetra 77962 SafeStart Plus for 70-gallon Tank, 250-ml, 8.45-Ounce. Before I purchased it, I read ALL the reviews. I even asked them about it at the LFS and they didn't say anything bad about it.

On Tuesday, I put in 6 Chichlids ranging in size frrom 2-3 inches. They are all doing very well and none are gasping for air or look sickly. Tomorrow, I will take my 1st Ammonia, Nitrate and Nitrite readings and post them. I will post regularly until my tank is cycled.

Thanks everyone for your input.


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## lundungurl (Jan 31, 2014)

Readings are: Ammonia between 0 and .25 (I could barely notice a change), Nitrite 0, Nitrate 0. The fish have been in since Tuesday 5:00 pm. So, about 3 1/2 days. I'm feeding them once a day as much as they can eat in about 30 seconds. They don't seem as veracious after that amount of time either. As my tank cycles, I will increase the amount of food as needed. Today, I will be making some of my own food also with spinach, raw shrimp, spiralina, frozen peas and carrots and garlic set in gelatin.


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## Kanorin (Apr 8, 2008)

I suggest testing for ammonia and nitrite (and in a few days nitrate) twice a day while your tank is still cycling. Even low levels of ammonia (0.25 ppm) could harm your fish. Perform a water exchange or detoxify the ammonia and nitrites as needed.


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## lundungurl (Jan 31, 2014)

Mondays reading were: Ammonia .25, Nitrite 0 and Nitrate 5. Nitrate readings mean my good bacteria is working! All are doing fine so far. The tank is very active, they all come up to the glass to say "hi" to me, and they are eating well.

Oh, Here is a list of the Cichlids I have:
Aulonocara jacobfreibergi Otter Pt.
Lab Perlmutt
Lethrinops sp Red Cap Itungi
Mamalela Lemon Jake f1
ob-peacock
Protomelas sp. Steveni Taiwan
Red Shoulder Peacock
Yellow Lab
And a syndontis catfish


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## DJRansome (Oct 29, 2005)

I'd change the water to get that ammonia reading down. Fish being harmed by ammonia may be active and eating.


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## lundungurl (Jan 31, 2014)

Hello, I just checked my readings again this morning. Ammonia=0, Nitrite=0 and Nitrate=5


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## DJRansome (Oct 29, 2005)

:thumb:


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## Austinite (Jul 27, 2013)

that's great news!


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## lundungurl (Jan 31, 2014)

Hi everyone... I have a question about a red peacock I purchased online. The seller doesn't know the exact name so I was hoping someone could take a good guess. I think it might be a german red or ruby red. Anyone know for sure?



I also bought a Strawberry peacock and a sunshine peacock. All males and at least 2 1/2" long. In the last month I lost the Red Cap Itungi. I don't know why but it just never grew in fact some others that I bought about the same size had exceeded him in size within a week or two. I also lost my little perlmutt I think due to bloat. After doing more research on diet I think I was feeding to much tubifex worms. I have since purchased a more vegi based pellet and will only give tubifex about once a week. Very sad to loose those 2. So, that left me down to 6... A few days ago, I bought 3 from LFS I bought a Moori (blue Dolphin), a little Rusty male and a Hansbaenschi Cape Maclear that is a very nice blue. So, once I get the 3 from online, I will have 12 plus my awesome catfish. My tank parameters are good except, I will do a water change tomorrow. My ammonia and Nitrites are still zero, but my Nitrates are around 35-40.


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## Kanorin (Apr 8, 2008)

I suggest cutting the tubifex worms out entirely. Malawi cichlids have very sensitive digestive tracts - they don't tend to tolerate worms and other fatty foods well (can cause malawi bloat).

I'd call those peacocks Ruby reds. German red, ruby red, reuben red - are all linebred (man made) strains anyway. They don't really have a scientific name, nor a standard way to differentiate one from the other.


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## lundungurl (Jan 31, 2014)

ok, thanks for the info... I shall call him a Ruby Red then. Any suggestions for a good varied diet and scedule. I am currently feeding Aqueon color enhancing cichlid pellets and Hikari Cichlid excel alternately. The Hikari is more vegi based. I also made some gel food that I feed once a week. I has peas, carrots, garlic, spiralina powder and a small amount of raw shrimp that I blended up and I keep it in the freezer until needed. I also drop in an algae wafer every other day for the catfish but the cichlids always go after it. I'm not sure how much the catfish is actually eating. Let me know if this sounds ok to avoid bloat. Thanks again


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## lundungurl (Jan 31, 2014)

I just purchased:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/231271262663?ss ... 1439.l2649

I'm hoping it will help to get the bacteria that eats Nitrates. I just did a 50% water change because the Nitrate level was about 40ppm. I know water changes help but if I can grow some good bacteria, it will make the fish more comfy and reduce algae. I have brown algae, not green. I don't know what that means. Anyway, has anyone ever used one of these Nitrate reactors before and what was your experience with them?


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## Mike_G (Nov 8, 2011)

Ruby reds and German reds are both line-bred from the Stuartgranti complex so they can properly be called Aulonocara Stuartgranti.

Another no on the tubifex worms- NLS pellets are all you need to feed for good health and color.

The brown algae is most likely diatoms and is common in newly cycled tanks- it will be replaced by green algae in time.


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## lundungurl (Jan 31, 2014)

Thanks Mike for the response. I will stop with the tubifex worms.


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