# project Wal-Mart.



## Jtak77 (Oct 24, 2006)

I recently traded a crappy nintendo wii game to my neighbor for a 20 gallon aquarium. I spent some time on here, doing some research, asking some questions, and when I had all of my plans worked out, my wife squished them like a bug on the sidewalk. A little discouregd but never the less determined, I finally agreed to fixing it up on a Wal-Mart budget. meaning salvage what I can, and purchase aquaria and livestock only from Wal-mart. (BTW I hate WalMart but it is what it is.) So I broke everything down and gave it a thorough bleach cleansing. I managed to atleast come up with a little stash money for an Aqua clear 300, and a new heater. I'm also working on getting some granite scraps from a local headstone yard to make some caves. So here it is from first obtained to almost 4 weeks. I've had my Wal-Mart "African Cichlids" for two weeks now. They seem to be doing really well. The Jungle testing kit says .3 ppm ammonia and water hardess around 8.0 (The city water where I live is really hard). I'm currently in the process of already trying to trade up for a bigger aquarium with a nice ball python set-up. Where I live, times is hard, but I've still found a way to enjoy this hobby on a Wal-mart budget. Does anyone know what kind of "African Cichlids" these are anyway? LOL, the card at wall mart just says "African Cichlids" I picked 5 of their finest. Catch ya on the flip, Josh.


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## Jtak77 (Oct 24, 2006)

pics of the fish up close.


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## josmoloco (Aug 23, 2008)

I see kenyi, aratus, red zebra, electric yellow and ? possibly a melechromis?


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## lilstephii143 (Feb 19, 2009)

very nice improvement


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## Jtak77 (Oct 24, 2006)

Thank You. So how long do I have to get larger housing? What happens if I don't?


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## josmoloco (Aug 23, 2008)

Well, the fish should be ok for a couple of months, but watch that aratus! (yellow and black one)


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## lilstephii143 (Feb 19, 2009)

i would say its not exactly a countdown time. but the fish are limited to space . they will be getting larger quickly. a 20 gallon for 5 cichlids is pretty small. they can get to 6 inches . but they wont reach 6 inches in a 20 gallon tank. hopefully they grow in that tank. i used to have africans (now have americans) and i had them in a 55 gallon. they didnt grow as quickly as i thought they would. but i had about 10 cichlids 1.5 inches - 4 inches in the tank. didnt have much success. but if you want your cichlids to grow and be healthy id say less then 6 months till an upgrade. depending on how much there growing.. 
wait till a real expert goes on and tells you correctly. i think i was on the right page though . opcorn:


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## lilstephii143 (Feb 19, 2009)

i just noticed the gray cat in the background LOL


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## Jtak77 (Oct 24, 2006)

Yeah, thats Apache, one of my snow leopard bengal cats, He wanted to live in it, LOL!


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## cevvin (May 2, 2008)

The blue one with the screwed up stripping is a Kenyi. If it starts morphing yellow, might want to get rid of him, pretty aggressive.


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## Maddog (Nov 7, 2008)

josmoloco said:


> I see kenyi, aratus, red zebra, electric yellow and ? possibly a melechromis?


that's waht i see, 
are the aratus and kenyi both very aggressive even for a tank 3 times that size?


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## non_compliance (Dec 4, 2008)

Your tank should have zero ammonia and zero nitrIte..... you need to keep a VERY close eye on that and do 25% water changes every day until those counts are ZERO. Also, you need to test with a kit that has test tubes and drops... not the strips.. good luck!


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## srook23 (Feb 21, 2009)

I'm guessing you have no idea if they are male or female...aratus and kenyi are gonna be nightmares if you have a female in there.


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## Jtak77 (Oct 24, 2006)

Yeah I have no idea, I just picked them out because they were all different. I hope they don't kill each other. They all seem to be getting along just fine for right now.


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## srook23 (Feb 21, 2009)

They are all small right now. If you got them at walmart I'm guessing they are probably 1" or less.

These fish get pretty big and as they get bigger they start getting aggressive.


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## iceblue (Apr 27, 2004)

I realize your on a budget and Walmart has cheap (and looking at your pictures) poorly bred Mbuna, but a twenty gallon tank simply will not work for these species long term. Sure they all seem to get along fine now, but in about 6 months to a year your going to see what they really are all about.

These fish need a large tank footprint with rock work in which the males can claim territory. The auratus and the Kenyi, if male, (and even the females of these aggressive species) will make life miserable for the other fish in there. Twenty gallon tanks simply aren't suitable for the larger Mbuna and this one will end badly.

I would recommend taking the fish back to Walmart and see if they carry any of the dwarf South Americans that you could build a nice community around. Also check out the cookie cutters for cichlids that would work comfortably in your tank. You may have to save some money to get them but in the long run you'll have a much better and more satisfying set-up.

Remember that for a lot of species the footprint of the tank can be important. Check-out the recommendations for the 10 and 29 gallon aquariums also.
http://www.cichlid-forum.com/articles/c ... er_20g.php


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## spotmonster (Nov 23, 2006)

I'd like to add that you don't have to go only to walmart if your on a budget. Things like buying fry from a reputable dealer work great and is probably cheaper than adults from walmart. You can also use the trading post and purchase from other people in the hobby. Or check to see if there are any fish auctions in your area.

When I started my 90 gal tank and got back in the hobby, I bought all 1" fish because they were cheap. It was fun and rewarding watching them grow. I now have fish that retail for 40.00-60.00 a piece that I paid 3.00-5.00 for 2 years ago, that's the nice part

But having said all that, if walmart is all you got, that's cool. In that case I'd always check back every week and only buy species that you think are more peaceful. If it takes 6 months, then it's worth the wait. You could get away with 3 peaceful "not large" fish in this tank, but it may take some work.


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## srook23 (Feb 21, 2009)

One thing I hate about Walmart is they sell fish that they shouldn't sell, or have fish grouped in the same tank that shouldn't be together.

I remember going in there a few times and seeing giraffe cichlids (think that's right). I'm pretty sure a giraffe can get 10+". Also you see a lot of pretty aggressive fish in there mixed in with yellow labs and whatnot.

I know our walmart sells red belly pacu. It says on the card "can grow up to 12" or bigger" lol. I asked the woman if that was true and she said it was...guess if the card says it, it must be true.

On a side note when I was buying feeder fish when I had an Oscar Petco was like half the price of walmart. I haven't checked any other fish, but from what I have seen just passing by the fish at Petco and Petsmart seem to be happier/healthier/bigger fish.


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## VT4Me (Mar 23, 2008)

Fortunately no one here has got too sanctimonious about this. My first reaction was small tank, Walmart Cichlids, oh dear. But in fairness you've done a great job getting that tank looking decent and at least you get yourself on the forum where you will get some good advice. Things could have been worse for those fish, they could have ended up in a community tank where they would have either suffered due to water parameters or wreaked havoc.

The advice you have been given is pretty spot on. It won't break the bank to get these guys into a bigger tank at some point (try any of the used on-line sites) with more appropriate aquascaping; a few rocks and some play sand will transform things.

Good luck with things and keep us up to date with how things progress.


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## chrisFewell (Feb 3, 2009)

ya the kenyi are mean fish, I just had to get rid of my blue onebecause he was beating u my peacock and my acei cichlids.


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## Jtak77 (Oct 24, 2006)

Thank you for all of the feedback. I do what I can do. So to whomever said I should take the fish back to Walmart, and get something different? So.....someone else can kill them? LOL! Its sad corps like Wal-mart are allowed to sell poorly bred Mbuna, however they are mine now and I will do for them what I can. Face it, being sold at Wal-mart, they never really had a chance anyway. Again, I can't wait till things pick up , As I aspire to have a larger fish tank, keeping cichlids. in the mean time, my unfortunate fish and I will just have to get by. LOL, keep on keepin on, josh.


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## VT4Me (Mar 23, 2008)

Jtak77 said:


> Thank you for all of the feedback. I do what I can do. So to whomever said I should take the fish back to Walmart, and get something different? So.....someone else can kill them? LOL! Its sad corps like Wal-mart are allowed to sell poorly bred Mbuna, however they are mine now and I will do for them what I can. Face it, being sold at Wal-mart, they never really had a chance anyway. Again, I can't wait till things pick up , As I aspire to have a larger fish tank, keeping cichlids. in the mean time, my unfortunate fish and I will just have to get by. LOL, keep on keepin on, josh.


Well said buddy. Good luck to you.


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## iceblue (Apr 27, 2004)

You might have mentioned you were in the market for a larger tank when you started the thread. My advice, for what you think it's worth, would have been different. As far as I could tell you had put together a group of fish that were doomed whether languishing at Walmart or in your own 20g aquarium sometime down the line.

I would start looking now for a deal on a larger tank and the associated filters. Spotmonster has given you some excellent places to start searching.

When it comes to the type of Mbuna you are starting with I would look for a tank no less than 75 gallons with as large a footprint as you can get as apposed to height. These fish are very territorial and a longer, wider tank is more important then the number of gallons created by a higher tank.

The Kenyi should it turn out to be male can grab large sections of territory which he will defend fiercely.

The auratus should it turn out to be male is considered the psycho of the Mbuna clan and while he may not claim as much territory he also has no problem dispatching another fish if he gets it in his mind to do so. Some would say they should not be kept in anything less then a 100g tank.

If you wish to build your larger aquarium around these fish I would also recommend some of the things I and others use to help keep aggression down.

Crowd the tank with other aggressive Mbuna. This will also mean a lot better then average filtration. You'll have less losses if the aggression gets passed around so no one fish takes all the abuse that these fish can put on each other.

You need to decide if you want an all male tank which allows you to add more species or, a tank with a few species and a large ratio of females to males. For the Kenyi and auratus a ratio of 5-7 females to one male is not out of line. They are very aggressive breeders and have been known to kill females that rebuff their advances. Larger groups of females stand a better chance of survival.

Keep the temperature at the lower end of comfortable. The cooler the tank the less activity you'll have.

Frequent smaller feedings. Competing for food becomes less of a trigger problem.

Lots of rock-work that creates caves for harried fish to take refuge.

You may also consider keeping a small hospital tank handy to nurture wounded fish.

And as I mentioned earlier you'll want to add the more aggressive of the Mbuna. The less hardy will be in a constant state of stress.

Jtak77, my intention is not to be a flamer or an ogre. I made a lot of mistakes early on with the same fish you have now and I still keep a very aggressive Mbuna tank although it is now down to just one male Kenyi and one male auratus along with many other aggressive Mbuna. I've had a lot of losses due to ignorance and only wish to pass on some of the things I've learned the hard way for the proper husbandry of my favorite group of cichlids.


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## Jtak77 (Oct 24, 2006)

No, no, Iceblue, its all cool, I didn't think that you were at all. I have a hrd time expressing myself in text sometimes. I'm glad to have your advice. I just don't know how soon I'm going to be able to upgrade. I'm probably going to weed out the meanies as they get older, and keep a couple of what I have right now should I not be able to upgrade as soon as I like. Again, I appreciate all your feedback.


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## Jtak77 (Oct 24, 2006)

So you think by removing the yellow and black stripped one, and the kenyi the rest may be ok? Or atleast more ok? Also who is this guy? or what kind?


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## srook23 (Feb 21, 2009)

IF they are all male then they might be ok. I have an all male tank with some aggressive fish. They do fine. Throw a female in the bunch and you got trouble.


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## KaiserSousay (Nov 2, 2008)

All in all, very good thread. Got to admit, when I frist saw the heading I expected to open it and flames to shoot out of my monitor...Well done all.
Welcome back Jtak77 and good luk to ya.


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## Phonetic Diabetic (Mar 18, 2009)

Josh-

Just wanted to make a suggestion for searching for a bigger tank. Craigslist is one of THE best sites for people to dump their old tanks. You can find all shapes and sizes, and some people are literally giving them away just because they're too lazy to take care of the tank. Search deep and often, and you will more than likely find a heck of a deal. Good luck with your search.


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## JoshuaS (Mar 18, 2009)

Phonetic Diabetic said:


> Josh-
> 
> Just wanted to make a suggestion for searching for a bigger tank. Craigslist is one of THE best sites for people to dump their old tanks. You can find all shapes and sizes, and some people are literally giving them away just because they're too lazy to take care of the tank. Search deep and often, and you will more than likely find a heck of a deal. Good luck with your search.


Josh,
This is some good advice. I started my cichlids in a 14 gallon starter kit from Walmart. (Please don't flame me, I know better now.) I went out to Craigslist as soon as I realized that I was in trouble, and found some killer deals.


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## acrosstic (Mar 24, 2008)

The Aratus will eventually want to kill everyone. Eventually the size of them will be a problem.

Find someone who might like to buy/take the adults off your hands in 6-12 months and then restock. Maybe if at that point you have a little more money and you can stock with some dwarf mbuna's like demasoni or something.


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## Jtak77 (Oct 24, 2006)

So its been around 5 months since I first started this thread, I have long since gotten rid of the Aratus, and the Kenyi. The other 3 are thriving just fine, all water parameters are in check, zero's across the board. Im really attached to these guys now, (Red Zebra, Ice Blue, and a Yellow lab, I believe them to be) I recently helped my best friend and his girlfriend move, to make a long story short they have me their 60 G aquarium. Im still broke unfortunatly, So as with the the last one, I gave it a good scrubbing, recycled the gravel (bleach soak followed by a good boil, finished with a good healthy rinse) My cousin, who runs a sign shop applied a piece of black sign vinyl for the back ground. Heres the sweet part, the tank came complete with a nearly brand new auqaclear 110, (Im also gonna run the new AC 70 Im currently using on the 20) a GLO light, marineland heater, and some other odds and ends. I finished setting the tank up yesterday afternoon (Sunday) filled it with water, added Tetra Aquasafe, and let it roll till this morning, my wife added her betta, and a piece of the betta decor, (which is to be removed shortly) I also added 2 black fin tetras to try and get it cycling. Here are my questions

1. When I break down my 20g to move my fish, should I transfer most of the 20g water, (as in drain 20 from the 60, and and the established aquarium water)

2. Should I bag my fish?

3. Is there anything else I should do?

4. I planned on adding some more black tetras, a few more cichlids of the same type I already have, and a pair of clown loaches down the road. will this be ok?

Thats all I can think of for now, Im tired of typing, and by now Im sure your tired of reading. Thank you in advance for all of your help. Josh

first pic, is the 20G as it is now, the other pics are my new tank, Im pretty excited!


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## Galloyien (Jun 22, 2009)

Jtak77 said:


> my wife added her betta, and a piece of the betta decor


Your tank looks great. I really like the 60g you acquired. Something I discovered, getting the wife involved in the fish tanks will help you raise your budget. I was able to buy a 150 gallon tank with no complaints from the wife after she became interested in my 90g saltwater. 

I will send you a PM about a really good LFS in Southern Indiana. Definately better than Walmart and cheaper for the most part.


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## ben1988 (May 2, 2009)

same here on the wife side of things. let her put the beta in the 20 and put it next to the tv. mine loves the fact that i could have babies swimming around our tank at any time. already had my convicts breed twice. and since the 29gallon i went to a 55 and then i bought her a set of pans and she let me get a 150 so it helps to let her help.


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## Chrispy (Apr 8, 2006)

Just a note about LFS's. Look around, you will more than likely find a nice one with a nice owner close by. These people, for the most part, enjoy fish keeping and you can often start a nice friendship and can get valuable tips and information. Also you might get really lucky and get some great discounts on open box stuff or discounts on multiple fish purchases for being a good customer.

All in all, its alot better than the local, pimply-faced youth in the Walmart fish section.


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## dawgfish (Feb 6, 2009)

Nice job working on a budget! :thumb: In order to help stock your new tank, I would seek out your local aquarium club. The club where I live have monthly meetings and the members bring fish and other related items to sell for great prices. They may also have a forum where you can buy/sell/trade. The members should be very helpful. The link below is for the Champaign club. I am not sure what part of S. Indiana you live, but it was the closest that I could find with minimal effort. Even if the meetings are too far to drive you may find someone that lives near you that you could barter with. Good luck!


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## iceblue (Apr 27, 2004)

Sweet.

When you do your fish transfer you don't have to exchange the water. Just make sure you get your filter material containing the bacteria transferred with the fish. This should be enough to see them through but just in case test the water and do water changes if necessary.

No need to bag the fish if the water temperatures are the same. Just net them and transfer them over.

I would keep an eye on the Tetras. Most likely the Mbuna will pick on them. The loaches should be fine.

If your going to get more of the same type of Mbuna I would recommend getting a few females for each species and not double up with males if you can avoid it. With the yellow lab it doesn't matter to much..........most of the time.


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## football mom (Feb 19, 2006)

Hi, 
I enoyed your thread, and great job with your starter tank, and congratulations on the great deal on the larger tank.

CraigsList is a great way to find deals, and most people are willing to bargain. I find that when someone is ready to get out of the fish hobby, they are willing to deal.
I have found a lfs where I live, he mostly deals in salt water, but buys and sells used equipment, I have got some great deals from him. 
You don't have to spend a ton of money to have a nice set-up.
Keep us posted.
J


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## Jtak77 (Oct 24, 2006)

Thank you all for the kind words. Finished setting/transferring everything up yesterday, so far everything looks great, Here are some new pics. (even though I dont think they are very good) I will keep you all posted, Thank you all again for all of your help, Josh.


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## toph017 (Aug 15, 2006)

nice improvement!


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## Nanni (Jul 14, 2009)

Looks great! Congratulations! 
I will take your improvement as encouragement for me .


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## cichlidfeesh (Apr 6, 2009)

jtak77,

Very nice story. It reminds me of when I first started out, using the major stores such as walmart/petsmart as my base. Now I have found, like others who posted on this thread, that some LFS's have really good deals on fish and plants. You just need to look around and compare prices :thumb:

Anyways, I have some ideas for you on possible improvements. I have found that sand is a great alternative to gravel. Not only does it (IMO) look better, but your fish will enjoy it alot more. You can buy 50lb. bags of it for around 3 dollars at Lowes. Also for africans I would suggest natural rock work. I think it is worth the effort of going down to a river near by and picking out rocks, cleaning them, and adding them to the tank. Also, depending on your preference, the fishes attitude, and your lighting/CO2 system (future possible upgrades) you could go with nature plants. Natural plants can be a whole new adventure apart from fish if you really get into it.

Good work and good attitude! I wish you the best of luck!


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## BurgerKing (Jul 1, 2008)

Wow, you have come a long way with these tanks. Good job and I hope everything continues to go smoothly.


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## JennKS (Jul 12, 2009)

spotmonster said:


> I'd like to add that you don't have to go only to walmart if your on a budget. Things like buying fry from a reputable dealer work great and is probably cheaper than adults from walmart. You can also use the trading post and purchase from other people in the hobby. Or check to see if there are any fish auctions in your area.
> .


Ditto! I've found that walmart is only cheap when I need a quick fix (extra tubing etc.). Otherwise, utilize local message boards, craigslist, local dealers, local aquarist groups, even Pet store chains will send you coupons and their sales via email (when ya need a new air pump cos the walmart one crapped out on ya-- yes, that's my personal experience). On a local message board, I came across a local giving away platys for FREE and another aquarist selling their yellow labs for $2 each. That's cheap!


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## mithesaint (Oct 31, 2006)

Well done. Welcome to the illness known as MTS (multiple tank syndrome).

Couple thoughts.

I'd either not do the tetras, or plan on keeping those in the 20 gallon long term. They probably won't do too well with the africans. Those long fins and slow movements just don't do well in a group of africans.

Is that a 3 foot tank? If so, it may not be ideal for a loach, as they can get pretty big. That will take awhile, but it basically puts you back into the "I'm gonna need a bigger tank" situation that you finally got out of. I'm not a loach fan anyway, so ignore my bias if necessary :lol:

I'll second the recommendation of switching to sand at some point. I'd look for pool filter sand instead of play sand though. It's a little more expensive ($7-8/bag) but it's cleaner and larger grained. One 50# bag should be enough for your tank with some left over.

Rocks will help too. Mbuna like rocks piles to hid and spit fry into. Once the lady friend sees the baby fry, she'll be more onboard with bigger tanks :thumb: Do I detect a theme with wifey involvement here??

Think about adding P. acei as part of the stocking as the tank seems to be rather tall. They tend to swim higher in the water column.

Most Mbuna trash plants pretty quickly, so I'd save that for last. Spend your cash on sand and more mbuna, and go rock hunting.


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## goldoccie21 (Jun 15, 2008)

i am on board with the baby fish equals easier time to get more tanks and fish. i found most girls like when plankton eaters freak out over live bbs. it nevers fails fish are like "oh no get all the tiny things". its great. and for the record the loach people hate us for putting softwater fish
in our "kalkwasser". and the greatest girl convincing african are the shell dwellers with babies. it never fails. whahahahah!!! or beg and be annoying. and really the best place for the best pricing is the internet.


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## goldoccie21 (Jun 15, 2008)

i am on board with the baby fish equals easier time to get more tanks and fish. i found most girls like when plankton eaters freak out over live bbs. it nevers fails fish are like "oh no get all the tiny things". its great. and for the record the loach people hate us for putting softwater fish
in our "kalkwasser". and the greatest girl convincing african are the shell dwellers with babies. it never fails. whahahahah!!! or beg and be annoying. and really the best place for the best pricing is the internet. and awesome job BTW

Christian, the fish hoarder.


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## Jtak77 (Oct 24, 2006)

Weell, I have now got back to work, and things have started looking up around here. I have made a few changes to the free 65G I got awhile back, I thought it looked really pretty tonight, so I snappede a few new photos. To update: I have added some "fake" holy rock from pets mart. new glass covers, I still have 3 of the original fish from last feburary; the red zebra, the yellow lab, and the Ice blue, they are all very well. I have added a few more form some nicer fish stores; a female venustus, a Bumblee (that was a rescue) some form of calico colored peacok, an an electric blue hap, and a red top zebra. I know, I know, Its probably headed for a disaster, and we've probably broken every mixed fish tank rule, however, we've had them all together now for a few months and so far so good no quarrling, although the 5 tetras I started the tank with have been picked off one by one over the last few weeks. I let my wife handle the fish picking, It makes her happy and keeps her interested, not to mention, Im sure it will make for great "I told you so's" later on. Plants to come here in the near futue. Anyway, as always thank you for looking. Josh.


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## D-007 (Jan 3, 2008)

Absolutely brilliant Josh and congrats on being able to get back to work too!! =D>

Tank looks very nice indeed.


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## eddy (Jan 16, 2009)

I got my start with a terrible looking tank like that 20 gallon(mine was a 29 gallon). Then when I got it up and running and looking good I sold it for a profit.

Making my self money and giving other people good deals on nice turn key aquariums.

After 5 or 6 55 gallons,two 72 bowfronts,1 46 bowfront, a 120,a 75,a 24 nano,12,nano and countless #s of 10-30 gallon aquariums I bought cheap then fixed up nice and sold I now have a 6' 180,7'foot 200,6'150 reef ready up and running and I am dead even on cash.

I didn't have to do it this way I just think hobbies should pay for themselves and I enjoyed doing it this way.

Sometimes I made like 2$ an hour doing this after all the scrubbing or completely resealing but other times I made some good quick turns.

I also did my stock this way by buying 10-20 (peacocks were my first) fry for a buck per and the selling the males for 20+ when they colored. Again It was paying for my stock and at the same time giving people great deals on mature colored peacocks.

I am pretty much done with all that now and just selling fry to maintain but it was fun while it lasted.


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## Jtak77 (Oct 24, 2006)

Thank you guys!


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## Dj823cichild (Mar 30, 2009)

Your starting to make it work and you have come so far from what you originally started with. I'm very proud of you bro. I would watch out for that Venustus though I'm not sure how females are but I had a male on in my tank about 5 months ago big mistake!!!!! But if you can pull it off then I wish the best of luck to you :thumb:


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## Jtak77 (Oct 24, 2006)

Thank you all for your very kind words and making me feel welcome here. I will keep an eye on the venustus. Anyway, I am very proud of how far this has come, not to mention it has helped the wife and I come together during a stressful time. Like I said things have been looking up. Here is a project I've been working on secretly for myself at my school living quarters, If you havent seen it already here is the link. (I wanted a species only tank) I have just been collecting over littles bits and pieces at a time.

http://www.cichlid-forum.com/phpBB/view ... highlight=


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## Dj823cichild (Mar 30, 2009)

Looks like your rolling on all cylinders! That's great brotha. Keep it up and good luck with work and the wife :wink:


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## austinramirez (Aug 15, 2009)

Wow nice job with the clean up, really shows a tanks true potential.Just watch your ammonia levels, and about the fish, just keep an eye on them too.If they are not killing eachother you should be fine, each tank is different.Good luck!
By the way, i picked up two sunburst peacock cichlids from walmart, and after a couple weeks they turned out beautiful despite their initial pale colors.


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## mithesaint (Oct 31, 2006)

Looks great. What a huge change from before.

One suggestion - Hide that heater! My attention is completely drawn to it, and it takes away from the rest of the tank. In my tank, I have a tall plant in the corner. The cord goes down behind the heater, and sits horizontal along the bottom of the tank. Just make sure your rock is stacked well and won't fall.

Looks great! :thumb:


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