# Apistogramma in hard water



## slackovic (Mar 28, 2016)

Hi all!

I have Malawi cychilds in a 55 g tank for little over a year now. Now a friend wants to give me Juwel Lido 120 tank and of course, I wanna use it  The problem is I just don't know what to put in it so I'd like your advice. I just love Apistogrammas, but the problem is that my tap water is extremly hard (I didn't measure it but if it would be any harder, we'd have rocks coming out). I read about softening water with R.O., but it's just over my budget to purchase R.O. Is there any chance the fish will be OK in hard water? I don't care if they not breed (at least for now).


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## Mcdaphnia (Dec 16, 2003)

Apistogramma cacatuoides is a species that has been bred in captivity for so long that it may spawn in hard water. Apistogramma steindachneri is another with tolerance for somewhat hard water. Adding lots of oak, hickory, or other deciduous tree leaves to the aquarium will recreate their natural habitat to a degree. Refer to the species profiles here to identify other Apistogramma species that show tolerance of some degree of harder water than they naturally occur in. http://www.cichlid-forum.com/profiles/r ... hp?genus=9


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## slackovic (Mar 28, 2016)

Thank you very much Mcdaphnia


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## slackovic (Mar 28, 2016)

Could you tell me how many Apistogramma cacatuoides can I put in the tank? Its dimensions are little bit strange. Base is 60 cm by 41 cm (24" by 16").


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## Mcdaphnia (Dec 16, 2003)

I prefer to put a single male female pair in a tank, whether larger or smaller than yours. If they breed, they will fill the tank with fry. However with good filtration and a supply of leaf litter, they can be crowded. If they are full adults, you will lose some males to aggression. The interplay between a single male and a single female is more interesting to me than what happens in a crowded tank.


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## slackovic (Mar 28, 2016)

OK. Great! And one more question. Can I put some other fish species with cacatuoides (it doesn't have to be apistogrammas)? I plan to heavily plant the tank with slow growing plants (anubiases, cryptocornas, microsorums...) and some tree roots.


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## Mcdaphnia (Dec 16, 2003)

Even sedate dither fish such as cardinal tetras can pick off the young fry. In theory they give an "all clear" signal to the apistos so they know no large predators are cruising around. You might see them about more with dither fish. If they breed, then the dithers can be removed because the parents will be escorting their fry to the sponge or Mattenfilter and the leaf litter where some live micro food will be.

I use fast growing plants because they remove more minerals and fish waste from the water than slow growing ones.

Tree roots and driftwood are good. Coconut caves (half shells from coconut) are good. But the tree leaves are important. Don't forget them. You don't have to buy imported Indian almond leaves. Oak and hickory leaves are very good and can be collected under trees in the fall where no fertilizers and chemicals are used.


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