# MY 55 gallon show tank



## Frank H

I plan to use this thread to document the stages of my 55 gallon aquarium. Im new to this hobby so bear with me if I sound like a newb. I am open to suggestions and constructive criticism always.

The tank is filtered by a Eheim pro3 g90 and has been running for a few days now.

The first ammonia dose was on the same day as the filter startup (4/5/13). Ammonia is still reading 2.0ppm today (4/8/13).

Right now I have 2 dual bulb t5 fixtures from Home Depot (not HO) in the canopy, with 4 6500k bulbs that I had ordered online from back in my poison dart frog days. The bulbs were only used for around 3 months before getting out of the frog hobby. The lights are on a timer for 9 hours a day from noon till 9pm. I have a strip of maybe 30 blue leds that I sometimes turn on at night. It'd be nice to put them on a timer too. Maybe Ill do that. Ya! I think the lights look plenty bright but I feel the color could be whiter - maybe change 2 bulbs out to 10,000k bulbs or maybe even upgrade to a LED fixture by beamswork or finnex.

I painted the back outside of the glass black and painted the intake and spray bar black (I need to paint the suction cups now, they stand out as is.)

The tank is a Visio diamond edge aquarium and I really like the cleaned up edges.

I plan to put Mbuna in here, and follow the cookie cutter suggestions. So far I think Id like Saulosi (1.4), Acei Msuli (1.4), and Labidochromis Hongi (1.4), but also really like the Cunotilapia Afra Cobue and the Metriaclima Estherae. Theres so many pretty fish its hard to choose. I want to be able to keep any fry and not worry about hybrids. I also want as much color variation as I can get.

The heater is keeping it at a steady 82 for the cycle process, but I plan to put an inline heater like a Hydor so its not so in my face. The power head is old and I don't know what model or how many gph, but its moving lots of water and Ill leave it in there for now.

I stacked the rocks directly on the glass then added sand. I put maybe half of a 50lb bag in and then sprayed it with a hose to try and get it to fill in the gaps under the rocks. It fogged up pretty bad despite rinsing a LOT in buckets before adding the sand to the tank but I feel it was necessary to spray it like that to get the sand to fill in the gaps. Then I put the rest of the sand in and now I see its too much sand. Ill leave it alone for the cycle process then I plan to vacuum out some of the sand in the high spots. (maybe I should do it now?)

Im pretty happy with the sand/rock/glass/stand/canopy/filter combo that make up my aquarium so far. Cant wait to add a full load of fish! (definitely going with a online reputable breader but need to look into this. Im used to buying online from my frog hobby - learned to NEVER buy from the lps as they may have hybrids or usually malnutrition frogs or just labeled 'dart frogs' and nothing specific).

Anyway, this is what it looks like as of right now. I do think the big rock on the top middle (slightly right) needs to come out. I don't know... something just isn't right.


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## ozman

g-day frank, may i make a couple of suggestions that i would look at. 
firstly i agree that you have too much sand. that may hide pockets of gases if you don't do deep vacuuming in your maintenance schedule.
maybe if you built two piles of rocks with one taller than the other? and you could hide your heater behind the rocks lower down to the substrate, heat rises of course.
it might be an acceptible choice for you than buying another heater.

but hey it's all about personal choice and your on your way to having a great tank


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## Frank H

I like your idea with the rocks. Ill leave them to cycle and will mess with them when I start reading nitrates. (someone tell me I'm over thinking this, and I can mess with the rocks all I want during the cycle, and Ill get right on it!)

Are you saying I can lay my heater horizontal? I would like that, with the power head blowing over it.. But I thought the heater was supposed to stay vertical. There is only 13 inches front to back on the outside of the glass. Not much room to pull the rocks away from the back. Not much depth at all. I wish I could have went bigger. But its in a walkway and any more depth wouldn't be ideal.


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## DanniGirl

The rocks and sand look good. I agree with you, the large, angular one needs to be either removed or repositioned. 
Other than that, the tank looks great!


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## Frank H

Thanks DanniGirl.

Today ammonia test reads .5 ppm. Hopefully tomorrow its 0!


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## iridextr

I think it looks great. It's often quite challenging to get the rocks up in the top half of a tank.. especially in a 55. The fact you stuck with one rock type is great. I'm still bothered by the fact my 55 in the living room has a few types of rocks, this spring I plan to change that. ANYWAY, I would remove some sand if I were you. But I wish you luck when you have to catch fish  Post pictures as soon as you get some fish in!


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## Frank H

haha Ya, I dread the day I have to catch a fish in there! Ill definitely post pictures. Photography is my #1 hobby.


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## Frank H

Well, 24 hours later and its still .5ppm. =(


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## 13razorbackfan

You can drop the water level and also point the power head towards the surface. That will help speed the cycle a bit. You can then put everything back to normal once you have finished cycling. :thumb:

PS...tank layout looks awesome.


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## Frank H

Thanks 13! Ill point my pump at the surface and spin the spray bar to point up some more.

I was under the impression that once the ammonia starts to drop it will drop fast. I guess Ill just check again tomorrow.


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## 13razorbackfan

Frank H said:


> Thanks 13! Ill point my pump at the surface and spin the spray bar to point up some more.
> 
> I was under the impression that once the ammonia starts to drop it will drop fast. I guess Ill just check again tomorrow.


Sometimes yes and sometimes no. Also need to worry about the nitrite conversion as well. Once both hit zero 24hrs after dosing I would do it again to be sure then you are good to go.


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## ka2zesmi786

i think your tank looks great the way it is. just need to hide the heater behind the rock.


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## Frank H

Gotcha 13, ya, I am just waiting for the ammonia to read 0 before testing for nitrites. Unless I read that wrong..

Thanks ka2!


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## fishing12

Love the setup. Did a great job for a first time setup. I agree with previous post hide the heater behind the rocks. 13razorbackfan made a good point about increasing the aeration to help the cycle. Look forward to seeing your fish once they are stocked. Also hope your cycle goes quickly, it sure is painful waiting for it to happen. Was there a little over a month ago myself, it will be a thing of beauty the moment you realize you cycled your tank properly. Good Luck!


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## Frank H

Thank you Fishing12 =)

In order to get the heater behind the rocks, Ill have to move a couple to make some room. Ill wait till the cycle is complete to move anything around. And I did point the pump at the surface and I see lots of surface agitation.

Is it true that a heater is supposed to be vertical in the tank? Putting the heater horizontal would make things easier. _at least til I get the inline heater, but still not 100% sure Ill do that.


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## Frank H

Ammonia reads .25ppm today.


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## ratbones86

What kind of rock you have in there?


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## Frank H

It was labeled pot rock at a local RCP store.


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## Frank H

Still .25ppm ammonia today. Should I start adding ammonia again? Or still wait till its 0?

It dropped from 2ppm to .5 ppm 3 days ago. And has been .25 for the last 2 days.

Im not being impatient, I just don't want to stop feeding the nitrifying bacteria and have a set back.


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## 13razorbackfan

Frank H said:


> Still .25ppm ammonia today. Should I start adding ammonia again? Or still wait till its 0?
> 
> It dropped from 2ppm to .5 ppm 3 days ago. And has been .25 for the last 2 days.
> 
> Im not being impatient, I just don't want to stop feeding the nitrifying bacteria and have a set back.


I would wait 24hrs and test again. What are the nitrites?


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## Frank H

didn't even think to test nitrites till ammonia was gone.

Not good.



Suppose Ill be changing out some water in the morning.


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## 13razorbackfan

Do a LARGE water change. You have VERY high nitrites which are more toxic than ammonia. I would do at least 85% water change and wait a couple hours and test again.


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## Frank H

OK, Thanks for your help 13.. I changed 20% this morning before I saw your recommendation to change 85%. When I saw your post, I changed maybe 2/3 of the water. now tests read .25ppm ammonia and looks like betweem the 2.0ppm and 5.0ppm nitrite (they both look the same), and the color purple in the vile is much less dense as it was last night. should I change more water out?


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## 13razorbackfan

Frank H said:


> OK, Thanks for your help 13.. I changed 20% this morning before I saw your recommendation to change 85%. When I saw your post, I changed maybe 2/3 of the water. now tests read .25ppm ammonia and looks like betweem the 2.0ppm and 5.0ppm nitrite (they both look the same), and the color purple in the vile is much less dense as it was last night. should I change more water out?


NO....my bad. Grrr......I got this thread confused with another. You don't have fish right? Then don't change the water any more. Wait till all readings are zero on their own. Then add more ammonia.....wait 24hrs and test again. Continue to repeat until you can convert ammonia and nitrite in 24hrs. Then do large water change and add fish.

I am so sorry....


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## Frank H

no worries.. Right, I don't have fish yet.

I just got done making a syphon tube out of PVC so I can just lay it over the canopy and get maybe 40%. Ill use this when I don't need to vacuum the sand. Its 3/4 pvc so should drain much faster than my puny vacuum syphon thing I got from the pet store. I sorta copied Deeda's contraption in the thread titled "just did the most amazingly fast water change" but mine is a little different. Ill take pictures..


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## 13razorbackfan

Frank H said:


> no worries.. Right, I don't have fish yet.
> 
> I just got done making a syphon tube out of PVC so I can just lay it over the canopy and get maybe 40%. Ill use this when I don't need to vacuum the sand. Its 3/4 pvc so should drain much faster than my puny vacuum syphon thing I got from the pet store. I sorta copied Deeda's contraption in the thread titled "just did the most amazingly fast water change" but mine is a little different. Ill take pictures..


Yep and the larger the ID(inner diameter) of the hose and PVC the fast it will drain.


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## Frank H

As of yesterday (apr 13) the Ammonia is 0 and nitrite still between 2 and 5ppm. I did a small water change and added ammonia. This morning ammonia is 0 and nitrite is somewhere between 2 and 5ppm. I did a small water change (maybe 15%). Now its looking like things are working according to plan.

Here is my version of Deeda's water change drain tube. Just a couple 3/4" fittings and some pvc pipe connected to a hose valve. Drains a little slow. Wish I would have went with 1" like Deeda did. However I notice the brass valve is the smallest part of the water path. Maybe Ill eliminate the valve - or maybe Ill use a PVC valve as that, I believe, has a bigger path for the water to travel. Oh well its no a big deal since the drain is set to stop syphon at a given spot so I don't have to sit there and watch the water drain.


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## Frank H

Looking good! I dosed 2ppm ammonia yesterday. And this is what it looks like today:



I am very surprised to see 0 nitrites already! 
I think Ill do a small water change and dose ammonia again. See what happens.


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## bwestgsx06

Where'd you get your tank from?


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## Frank H

The stand/canopy I found on Craigslist. The glass itself I bought at Aquatic Warehouse. I really like the Visio Diamond Edge.


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## Frank H

Its been 13 days since I first dosed ammonia. Is it possible my cycle is done already?

OK I have a confession... I added Tetra Smart Start before adding my first dose of ammonia. It was on sale at Petsmart so thought what the ****.


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## 13razorbackfan

Frank H said:


> Its been 13 days since I first dosed ammonia. Is it possible my cycle is done already?


Are you able to convert ammonia and nitrite to nitrates in 24hrs or less? If so then yes....


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## Frank H

Dosed yesterday. All 0's today.. but Im skeptical so I dosed again today and will check again tomorrow. If its true, my nitrites took half as long as the first ammonia stage.


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## Demigod

I've been using Smart Start from the start, no cycling any of my tanks, and my tanks are good to go within 24hrs. Not sure why nobody else does. 

I see it like food... you COULD dig up your backyard, cultivate the earth, plant some seeds, grow some food... and then eat it. OR.. you could buy some at the market, eat it, and do other things with your time. Just my 2 cents. Oh, and I always apply the Smart Start liberally.


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## Frank H

I bought a bottle that treated 'up to 75 gallons' and used it all. Im sure it helped. Just don't think Id want to add fish the same day. I had high very nitrites just a couple days ago.


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## Frank H

YEP! Converted in 24 hours again. Ammonia and nitrite are 0. Nitrate is between 20 and 40. Doing a water change when Im done typing this.

I'm ready to order some fish. Its tough choosing a vender. All of the site sponsors have a bunch of reviews.. and all have their share of negative ones. I'd like to find someone who will have what I want in stock so I don't have to pay shipping twice, and so I can introduce all fish at once to avoid aggression. I notice all the site sponsors are on the east side of the country. Closest one is in Texas. I was hoping to find a closer one to keep less stress on the fish and maybe be a bit cheaper.

Can someone recommend someone (PM) that they recommend that would have a good selection and knowledge of Mbuna please?

Fish on my 'want list' are:
Labido Chromis Hongi
Metriaclima Estherae red
Cynotilapia Afra Cobue
Pseudotropheus Saulosi
Pseudotropheus Acei Msuli

I know I cant have them all since I want males and females. Just listing what I like. I like the yellow labs, but I think I want salousi instead since I like the blue male. I think the Hongi's are pretty (well the males are for sure) so I think that should be my 'lab' of choice. The cobue are awesome! I think I'd choose cobue over the hongi (similar colorings) since they are a smaller fish and I only have a 55.

this is gonna be tough! Any suggestions are very welcome.


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## ratbones86

In a 55 g you will want 3 species of fish


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## Frank H

*** checked out the cookie cutter and the above fish I mentioned are my fav's but I know I cant have em all. Thinking 3 groups or 5 or maybe only 2 species. Not sure.


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## Frank H

*too late to edit but I meant 3 groups of 5...


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## fishing12

I cant wait to see your tank complete. Its a great feeling to realize the cycle wait is over isnt it!

One other note, I know I've mentioned it before on the forum but try calling some of the site sponsors to see if they have the fish you want in stock or if they can acquire them for you within a reasonable amount of time. If its not listed on the website doesnt mean they dont have what you want or cant get them for you. Happy for you, let the games continue! :fish:


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## Frank H

Thanks fishing12. I found a local member that might be willing to sell me a group of cynotilapia afra cobue. His picture of his specimen is very nice. I hope I get some! For now I picked up some Synodontis Lucipinnis (labeled as petricola at the local store). They are around an inch total length. I took some pictures, but wow, that's hard to do! I consider myself a decent photographer and got only 1 OK keeper out of many attempts. Those are 1mm sinking NLS pellets for size reference.



I poured the bag of fish through a net and let the water drain outside and put only the catfish in the tank.. so I thought...


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## bwestgsx06

What is that?! And what kinda photo equipment so you have


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## Frank H

I believe that's a brine shrimp. I wonder if they got scooped up when he was hunting down my catfish or if he added them to the bag on purpose. There were probably 10 of them in my tank after adding the fish.

I was shooting with a Canon 5D mark III and a 100mm f2.8 USM macro lens.

If you look closely at the catfish picture above you can see white spots. I didn't notice until I had pictures because the fish are so small and fast but the pictures show em clearly. I hope that's not ick.


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## k7gixxerguy

****, I need a real camera. I cant get good fish pics to save my life with what I have. I cant even imagine taking pictures of individual brine shrimp. That does look like ick to me from what I remember but then again I havent seen ick for about 12 years. If you treat, I remember raising the temperature helps shorten the life cycle of ick.


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## Frank H

Thanks k7, I made a thread with the same picture in the health forum, "Is this ick?" Hope to get some guidance there.

When thinking of photographing my future fish, I kinda wish I went with acrylic as *** read that the acrylic distorts much less than glass does. Anywho, like I said, getting good images is much harder than I thought it'd be. The lucippinis are really quick! They never stay still.


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## SkyRocker

Hello. I've been reading this thread with interest because I'm in the process of setting up a 55 gallon of my own. I got it last week and I've been down to the river collecting rocks for it. They aren't the round river stones, they look more like granite chunks. I plan on adding Mbuna's when I finally get the tank up and running. I especially like this thread because it seems that your journey is parallel to mine and I'm enjoying reading about the steps you have taken because I think that I'm on the right path because I seem to be doing the same things that you wrote about in the beginning of this thread. I can't wait to see the tank with fish in it! Thanks for sharing your experiences I'm sure that there are more than a few of us out there that appreciate the "roadmap" if you will. Keep up posted!


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## Frank H

Thanks for the pat on the back! I was starting to think I had only 3 followers. Haha Just kidding. I'm just keeping track of dates and events with the tank on here. Makes it easier on me. Plus I'm a forum junkie.

So I'm in the middle of a surprise move right now. Really bad timing with a new tank with ick! I'm treating and bumped up the temp so hopefully the catfish stay strong.

Hope to have an update soon!


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## Frank H

Update: took care of the ick, moved the tank to the new place, and now have some new fish! Picked them up from a local CF forum member. I got 1:4 Cobue and 1:5 (might be 2:4) Hara.


Cobue Male by Frank H2012, on Flickr


Cobue Male 2 by Frank H2012, on Flickr


Cobue by Frank H2012, on Flickr


Cynotilapia Hara by Frank H2012, on Flickr

I still want something yellow for the tank. It will most likely be whatever I can pick up locally but am open to suggestions.


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## SmellinFishy

Nice looking fish! I really like the yellow on the cobue, is this an all Mbuna tank?


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## Frank H

It has mbuna and some synodontis lucipinni cat fish. I plan to get one more species of mbuna, and possibly replace the hara's. I bought them as spur of the moment when I was picking up the cobue, which I really wanted, and not sure Im going to stick with them.


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## Frank H

Forgot to say Thank You SmellinFishy!


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## letsgoflyers6387

Wow, that Cobue is an exceptional fish. Those are excellent pictures. I've been debating whether or not to add a Cynotilipia species to my tank. If only the females weren't brown.


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## Frank H

Thank you!

I agree, he is a nice looking fish. I wish he'd come out more.

Looking at the tank right now, I only see 3 noses sticking out of crevices. I rarely see them. They don't even stay out when I feed, they dart out and get a pellet and rush back to hide. Sometimes I see some chasing around, but not too much. I have seen the whole group swimming in a school out in the open but when they see me, they hide. The tank is in a high traffic area between my dining room and living room. Is it just going to take some time for them to get used to their new home and the people around them? Or is this typical behavior and I should expect this to last?


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## Iggy Newcastle

You only have 11 fish in there now? Are they all juveniles? More fish may help them feel more comfortable and active. They should be attacking any passerby and begging for food. As far as getting something yellow... can't go wrong with some yellow labs.


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## fishing12

Iggy Newcastle said:


> You only have 11 fish in there now? Are they all juveniles? More fish may help them feel more comfortable and active. They should be attacking any passerby and begging for food. As far as getting something yellow... can't go wrong with some yellow labs.


+1 Yellow Labs.


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## Frank H

I agree.. Yellow labs would be awesome. But do you really thing the fish will start showing themselves when I add more fish?


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## Wilson33

Great tank and thread. Your fish will start coming out more after a few days. Once they learn that food is going to be served when you open the lid, they will charge you. I just added some new yellow labs to my tank on Sunday, and they now immediately go crazy when I turn the light on. You do need to resist the temptation to overfeed them. They will keep eating and will not stop.


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## Wilson33

I'm sorry, but I forgot to mention one other suggestion for you. Look around for a local cichlid or aquarium club. I just joined one last week for the first time, and one of the members had some F1 yellow labs for less than half of the price of any pet store. This man was serious about his fish!


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## Frank H

That would be awesome to join a club. I notice one that meets in Balboa park and its something like $20 a year or something like that to join. Ill look into it.

*** been watching the level in the tank closely since I took so long after completing the cycle and adding fish. Actually I added 5 catfish which are about an inch small and I doubt they were enough to keep up the beneficial bacteria where I want it. I added 12 fish after about a month of just having the 5 catfish and everything is good. 0 ammonia, 0 nitrites, and 20ppm nitrate (after a week with the addition of the 12 two-three inch cichlids).

I think Ill make Saturday my water change day.

The fish were all out when I came home today but they hid when they saw me and have been hiding since. Hope they get used to me soon!


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## Wilson33

All of your water readings show that your cycle should still be fine. The bacteria can multiply rapidly after the initial cycle. If you still have 0 ammonia and nitrite, you're fine. Just perform your water changes on schedule, and everything should stay good. I usually change my water when nitrates reach 20. If you change about 50% of the water, then nitrate should be around 10 ppm.

You might be able to get the $20 membership fee to pay for itself if a member of the club breeds a species that you might like to add to your tank. You will probably get a lower price than retail. Many clubs also use the fees to pay for guest speakers at their meetings.


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## promoe

I am surprised to see how yellow he looks with your lighting. Im going to post some pics on here as i was scooping him out of the 90g along with pics of parents.

http://s816.photobucket.com/user/promoe0/media/IMG2173.jpg.html

http://s816.photobucket.com/user/promoe0/media/IMG2164.jpg.html

http://s816.photobucket.com/user/promoe0/media/IMG_47443.jpg.html

http://s816.photobucket.com/user/promoe0/media/splitgenemale-1.jpg.html


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## promoe

i dont know why it wouldnt let me edit my post...lets try this again lol!


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## promoe

splitgene cobue group


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## Frank H

He does look more orange in your pictures. Im using 6500k t5 lights. What are you using?


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## Frank H

Maybe my white balance was off. Took some more.


Cobue 5 by Frank H2012, on Flickr

Picked up a group of 7 Saulosi around 1.5 inches.


Saulosi 4 by Frank H2012, on Flickr


Saulosi 3 by Frank H2012, on Flickr


Saulosi_ by Frank H2012, on Flickr

With the addition of the Saulosi, I am seeing all the fish MUCH more often! Very happy with the way things are turning out.


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## fishing12

Let the fun begin :thumb:


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## Frank H

They all actually rushed me when I went to feed them just now!! YESSS!


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## Wilson33

Watch out for jumpers! I'm glad to hear that your fish are coming out of their caves more often. You have some very nice looking fish!


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## ratbones86

Full tank shots and a video would be great!!


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## Frank H

Thank you Wilson!

Ratbones, I will be posting a full tank shot soon. And Ill try the video thing.


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## Frank H

One of the Saulosi is showing some color that wasn't there 2 days ago when I brought them home.


Salousi 5 by Frank H2012, on Flickr


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## Frank H

I took a couple videos but wasn't happy with the focusing of my DSLR (or I should say, my focusing, as the DSLR does not focus during video).

I uploaded a short one so you can see the full tank and some of the fish. Notice the male cobue going in the rocks in one spot and coming out in another?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_zloXDPg ... e=youtu.be

Oh well, cant figure out how to imbed the video


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## Bowfront

Your camera takes amazing pics.


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## Frank H

Thank you Bowfront!


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## Frank H

I think she's holding. Thoughts?


Cobue Female by Frank H2012, on Flickr


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## ratbones86

Very nice tank frank and on the fish holding it is hard to tell from that angle but i would say yes....just a guess though


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## Frank H

Thank you Ratbones!

Its hard to get a picture of her because she wont come out of her cave.


Cobue Female 2 by Frank H2012, on Flickr


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## ratbones86

Yes she is holding


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## Frank H

wow OK, that was quick. Im still getting used to having a fish tank and maintaining it and now I have to start reading about breeding/stripping/fry..


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## ratbones86

perks of the hobby my friend lol


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## Frank H

So My cycle has been complete for 3 months now and the filter flow is slowing down. I read that I should wait a long time to clean the filter for the first time. I cant find it now, but is 3 months enough for my bacteria to have a strong enough hold in the filter so I can rinse the bio media in some tank water? Its a Eheim pro3 g90 with the factory sponge and bio media that came with it.


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## Wilson33

It should be fine for you to rinse your bio-media in some tank water after 3 months. If the filter flow is reduced, then it is time for a quick rinse.


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## Frank H

Thanks Wilson33. Ill do another water change tomorrow and rinse the media in a bucket of water from the tank. Just did about 20% water change yesterday. *** been doing about 20% every 3 or 4 days. Only because I don't like looking at the poop piling in the corner. I figure since I get the bucket out and the syphon, might as well fill a couple buckets. Its really not that hard or time consuming. Its only 1 tank..


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## Wilson33

That sounds like a good plan. If the waste is usually in the same corner, then you might be able to move your intake and outtake around to see if other positions might circulate the water more. There is still nothing wrong with frequent water changes and substrate cleaning.

From looking at the photos of your fish, you are doing a great job!


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## Frank H

Thank you!


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## Frank H

Opened up the filter and the top white 'floss' was filthy! I tried to ring it out and it basically fell apart. I tossed it and cut some up out of some similar white 'floss' stuff that I bought at the local pet store to fit. I rinsed one of the trays of media in some tank water but left the bottom 2 trays alone. I also shook out the top sponge in some tank water. It was somewhat dirty but no nearly as dirty as the white stuff. The filter is spraying full force again! Did a 50% water change and an hour later its clear.


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## Frank H

oh, btw, notice all that brown algae? Good or bad?


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## Demigod

Frank H said:


> oh, btw, notice all that brown algae? Good or bad?


Normal.


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## Frank H

White Top Hara by Frank H2012, on Flickr


White Top Hara 2 by Frank H2012, on Flickr


Cobue Male 3 by Frank H2012, on Flickr


Cobue Male 4 by Frank H2012, on Flickr


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## shelbynjakesdad

Great pictures!!! That cobue has some wicked teeth! I love white tops, I have some in my tank - wish I had a nice camera like yours to take some better pics.


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## fishing12

Frank not sure if you posted or not but what settings are you using on your camera? Great shots and Im sure my camera can take better pictures than it does if set properly.


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## Frank H

Thanks guys!

Fishing12, I used a off camera flash for the last few. If you click on the picture it takes you to flickr, and on the bottom right corner, there are 3 dots ... click on the three dots and 'view exif info'.

The cobue with the teeth is 1/200th, f9, iso 100, 155mm shot with a 70-200mm f4 IS and a 5d mk III.


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## fishing12

Frank H said:


> Thanks guys!
> 
> Fishing12, I used a off camera flash for the last few. If you click on the picture it takes you to flickr, and on the bottom right corner, there are 3 dots ... click on the three dots and 'view exif info'.
> 
> The cobue with the teeth is 1/200th, f9, iso 100, 155mm shot with a 70-200mm f4 IS and a 5d mk III.


Wow awesome info. Had no Idea flickr did this. Lets see if it improves my pictures, thanks!


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## Frank H

*** taken my share of pictures, but shooting aquariums is a whole other ball game. I learned some techniques from this thread. viewtopic.php?f=9&t=234355

Im no where near his quality but I plan to keep practicing.


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## Frank H

Cobue Male-3 by Frank H2012, on Flickr


Cobue Male-2 by Frank H2012, on Flickr

Are eggs yellow?


Cobue Female holding by Frank H2012, on Flickr


Cobue Female-2 by Frank H2012, on Flickr


Hara Female by Frank H2012, on Flickr


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## Frank H

Saulosi by Frank H2012, on Flickr


Male Saulosi by Frank H2012, on Flickr


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## clhinds78

Nice looking tank!


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## Frank H

55g by Frank H2012, on Flickr


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## Iggy Newcastle

Tank looks nice Frank!

I also like the Travolta 'Pulp Fiction' picture!


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## Frank H

55-21 by Frank Hinojos, on Flickr


55-13 by Frank Hinojos, on Flickr


55-19 by Frank Hinojos, on Flickr


55-18 by Frank Hinojos, on Flickr


55-17 by Frank Hinojos, on Flickr


55-16 by Frank Hinojos, on Flickr


55-15 by Frank Hinojos, on Flickr


55-14 by Frank Hinojos, on Flickr


55-12 by Frank Hinojos, on Flickr


55-11 by Frank Hinojos, on Flickr


55-10 by Frank Hinojos, on Flickr


55-8 by Frank Hinojos, on Flickr


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## Frank H

55-7 by Frank Hinojos, on Flickr


55-26 by Frank Hinojos, on Flickr


55-25 by Frank Hinojos, on Flickr


55-24 by Frank Hinojos, on Flickr


55 by Frank Hinojos, on Flickr


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## Michael_S

Wow! That first afra Cobue picture is stunning with his mouth open! I am interested to know what camera you use?


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## Frank H

Thanks Michael.. These were shot with a 5D mark III with 70-200f4 IS. And a yongnuo off camera flash.


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## clhinds78

Looking good frank! What's that bright blue fish on the right of the second pic near the middle? Saulosi males?


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## matt duarte

heaters can go horizontal or vertical.. soo ur good on that. the tank is lookin good.. I don't see why ud have to wait for the tank to cycle to move anything though.. imo I like my tanks with the rocks higher in the corners and lower in the middle I think it makes the tank look more roomy.. keep it up its lookin nice what u planning on stocking in there?


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## matt duarte

lol you can ignore my last post.. I must not of seen all the pages lol... tank is lookin really nice and the fish look awesome!


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## Pseudeotropheus BB

Nice tank but I am even more impressed with the still shots, sweet.


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## Frank H

clhinds78 said:


> Looking good frank! What's that bright blue fish on the right of the second pic near the middle? Saulosi males?


Ya its a Saulosi male. I bought 7 young all yellow saulosi and so far one has colored up. Its looking like another is getting some color now. 

lol Matt Thanks!

Thanks BB


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## clhinds78

Frank H said:


> clhinds78 said:
> 
> 
> 
> Looking good frank! What's that bright blue fish on the right of the second pic near the middle? Saulosi males?
> 
> 
> 
> Ya its a Saulosi male. I bought 7 young all yellow saulosi and so far one has colored up. Its looking like another is getting some color now.
> 
> lol Matt Thanks!
> 
> Thanks BB
Click to expand...

Well, he's a gorgeous specimen!


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## Maurice11

Your tank looks the business.

May I ask what rock that is? I have cobbles in my Tanganyikan setup but I want to change to the rocks you have


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## chiroken

great thread, awesome photos. I can't get a decent pic with my Nikon P500. My best pics come from my iPhone 4 and I guess that tells you something about my photography skills!


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## Frank H

Its been so long since *** checked this thread.

Maurice, the RCP (construction materials company) by my house had these rocks labeled 'Pot Rock'. They were very cheap compared to buying from a pet store.


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## Frank H

I appreciate that Chiroken. Crank up that ISO so you can get a decent shutter speed. These fish don't like to sit still and pose very often.

These pictures were shot with a wireless flash above the tank. I turned the LED down to just enough light for my camera to focus. I exposed the camera so that without the flash it would have been very underexposed - to pure black.


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## zimmy

Great photos! Nicely done.


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## xyzoptics

What a great thread. Kudos to you for doing proper research and doing things right throughout this process. Plus, the photos are the best I've seen so far.

Any luck with the fish that looked to be holding?


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## Frank H

Thank you both!

xyzoptics, I have saulosi and cobue babies galore. =) Im growing them out in a 16g bowfront tank, then transferring to a 20g tank. Time to get rid of some this weekend.


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## partsrep

Your tank looks great!


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