# Various q's abt tankmates and filtration



## Hummerjoe (May 5, 2019)

Hi Guys.
*** had fishtanks for +20 years
(currently a 660liters aprx 175gl) mainly south american community tank, a 230 liter aprx 65gl with 6 small tropheus duboisi which i have saved from a friend, and supplied it with 3 leleupis and 3 dickfeldis as I was told that they could All go together. 
*** never had african cichlids before, except some kribensis, so i immediately started reading about Them, and have some doubts about this Combination.
Mainly cause of their diet. But They seem to get along fine so far haha, and at the moment i feed with a 80/90 herbivore diet, suplemented with some dried krill and artemia. *** had Them for 4 months now.

Now *** gotten hands on 6 panels of this beautiful reef ceramic background as showed on the picture, with lots of cracks and caves in it, and it will fit perfect into My big tank, and I can Even cover up one corner and it allows me to cover up All tubes, powerheads etc too... , 
so *** decided to change the inhabitants of the tanks, and move the tanganyikans into the big one, and create a really Nice setup for Them with lots of rocks to supplement the beautiful background.

But here comes the questions. 
The more and more i read about the different species, i get more and more confused of what to put in it.

I really like the fish i have now, and would be sad to get rid of Them/separate them, but if they cant get along, there Will be No other way out.

1) i know i should get more tropheus, but could i get 6-8 of a different kind like the moorii, without Them fighting or crossing? Or should i stick with duboisi, and make Them the 'boss of the tank'?

2) could i add a pair of red empress (Protomelas taeniolatus) Even tho theyre malawians?

3) Are there Any other suggestions to beautiful and interesting tankmates that would go well in such a setup?
Like fish that loves caves and rocks with holes in it and eat more or less the Same. (but not necessarily from tanganyika)

4) atm im using a background filter., but bc of My New background, i Will ofc change it and gain a LOT more swimming space for the fish. 
I Will replace it with either a large canister filter like fluval fx 6, or if you can suggest a Great diy solution to building a sump in fx a large bedroller, without having to make holes in the tank, it would be much appreciated.
My budget is running super low, after buying New led light, and this background the seller sold me very cheap. (but I would like to spend some money on fish too haha)

Im not a fundamentalist when it comes to creating biotopes, but im very aware of creating an environment where they Will thrive and feel 'natural'.

I think 3-4 different species is a little too little, but dont want to overcrowd the tank too...

Btw, the tank dimensions Are 200/60/55cms

Sorry for the long explanation, but really want to do it right 

MUCH appreciated!!


----------



## punman (Oct 24, 2003)

On this site you can look under _Tropheus Corner _and read the article on _Mixing Tropheus: Which Fish Can I Put Together? _

I have kept Tropheus on three occasions but only as a one-species only tank. It sounds like Tropheus species can be mixed with success if not of similar colours. Either way six is not enough, so you need more of tropheus. I'd say add them soon as they do not adapt well to new fish as they become adults and settled in with a routine. I have always had 20 minimum. Fifteen might work. I have not kept the other fish you have, so cannot speak to that.

My tropheus way back were fed New Life Spectrum Cichlid pellets and now this group is getting NorthFin Veggie pellets. Your other Africans would likely eat these foods just fine. I think the problem is not so much the food, but the personality of the fish. Tropheus are very hyperactive and might beat other fish to the food and you don't want to be feeding five minutes straight or five times a day for tropheus juvies and adults, just so other fish can get their share.


----------



## Hummerjoe (May 5, 2019)

Thank you so much.. This was a Great link.
So, referring to that, i shouldnt have too much of a problem with mixing My duboisi with moorii...
So i Will try find another 6 duboisi asap tomorrow, and a group of 12 moorii as well... The thing is, that it Will be about 2 weeks before My big tank is ready, and I think its a lot of fish to keep in such a small tank.. But maybe its better to add Them now, and then move Them All together in their New home, rather than adding a lot if New fish later


----------



## DJRansome (Oct 29, 2005)

If you mix tropheus species do not save fry. Wait for the big tank to be ready before adding fish.


----------



## punman (Oct 24, 2003)

Yeah. when I said "soon" I did not mean tomorrow. Just don't wait six months.


----------



## Hummerjoe (May 5, 2019)

Thanks for the feedback. I think ill stick with the duboisi, and add another type of fish instead of moorii... I think its probably Best when it comes to the pecking order of the tank. Plus, i think its more fun to have straight up duboisi Fry which i can raise up, rather than hybrids that Will be Hard to hand off...

But how about some other tank mates? It should be some that Are beautifuk, but dont clash with the leleupis, dickfeldies and tropheus...

Can a L-134 catfish survive in the tank, as I already have 4 of Them  or should i move Them to small?


----------



## Hummerjoe (May 5, 2019)

How would this combination work out you think?

Saulosi malawi +5

cynotilapia zebroides malawi +5

Red empress Protomelas taeniolatus Malawi +2

Tropheus duboisi tanganyika +10 (+6 owned already)

Neolamprologus leleupi
Lemon Cichlid tanganyika +3 (+3 owned already)

Julidochromis dickfeldi tanganyika +3 (+3 owned already)

That would make it a total of 40 fish.

Plus maybe the 4 L-134 plecos (not catfish as I wrote before)


----------



## DJRansome (Oct 29, 2005)

This is a 6.5 foot tank?

I would not add the Malawi at all...I think having leleupi and julidochromis and tropheus may been overstocked. I think you would want 2X as many tropheus however to manage aggression and keep them safe.

I would not expect fancy plecos to do well with Africans...IME the bristlenose plecos have a hard enough time.


----------



## Hummerjoe (May 5, 2019)

Ok, so maybe i should just skip the tropheus instead?
Im not interested in having a species only tank. And it seems to me like the more tropheus i can put in the tank, the merrier they Will be.
So what makes the above fish fail in svimming in a community tank? 
From what i can read i would be able to give a pretty similar diet to All the fish, and they would have different territories overall. 
Im concidering building a big hmf filter in the middle the i Will hide behind the background.


----------



## DJRansome (Oct 29, 2005)

I have tried leleupi and other Tangs with Malawi...in my tank the leleupi were the minority and the tank was mainly haps and peacocks. The leleupi did not show full color and hid a lot. Much better color and behavior in a Tang community. Survive versus thrive.

IMO filtration beyond 10X GPH does not enable overstocking beyond what is needed to manage aggression.
Three stock plans that have worked for me in a 72" tank:
1-Mbuna 5 species with 1m:4f of each
2-Haps and peacocks with 18 males that mature <= six inches and no look-alikes
3-Tangs with 20 cyps, pairs of julidochromis and calvus and a colony of shellies.


----------



## Hummerjoe (May 5, 2019)

Thank you dj.
Its great with your input.
This forum is by far the Best place *** Come across... 
There Are so many different opinion online, but All I want, is to secure that My fish Will thrive...


----------



## Hummerjoe (May 5, 2019)

Im just thinking that a pseudotropheus is smalle and less aggressive than peacocks and haps?
Or am I totally wrong here?


----------



## DJRansome (Oct 29, 2005)

Are the Tangs totally out the window?

Peacocks and haps are, in general, less aggressive than mbuna (pseudotropheus and others).

If you go with mbuna like pseudotropheus, choose species from different genera and those that look nothing alike. For example, do not mix 2 blue barred fish like saulosi and cynotilapia.


----------

