# My 240g tank with cichlids



## cichlid_gal (Feb 7, 2016)

Hi everyone,

my husband and I just bought 8 foot long aquarium and we decided set it up as freshwater for african cichlids. We also started a saltwater 65g tank but that is a whole different story.

So...

I will also upload some pics but first lets start with some facts.

What we have: 
-240 g, 96x24x24 
-sump tank that is currently being build
-herbie overflow
-Ehiem 2x 300watt heater
-Koralia 1400 power head 
-350 lb of black sand (we got the sand that was meant for blasting and we are currently washing it)
-130 lb of rocks and stones

What we plan:
We are planning on having Mbuna African cichlidls from Lake Malawi in several different colors and sizes.

The sump will have some matrix stones in it or some bio balls (still making up my mind). I am maybe planning on buying some driftwood that I can put in but I will see about that.

I will be really happy to get some comments or recommendations about my build and I will keep you posted.

Thank you for reading,

G.


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## Mcdaphnia (Dec 16, 2003)

Sounds like a pretty tank. I like the hollow Cichlid Rocks with mbuna and peacocks. In a large multi-species tank like this I would go with all male fish. That way they fight very little and all color up.


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## tanker3 (May 18, 2015)

She wants Mbunas, and I do not think you can have that many Mbuna males with different colors.
IMO, (and being an Mbuna person) I would get about 6 species with a ratio of 1M, and 5-7F. A 240gal/96" tank would be my Zebra dream tank.

I would stock :
Red Top Zebras (Orange color)
Red Top Zebra (Blue Strip)
Aurora Zebra (Light Blue with Gold)
Yellow Labs (Yellow)
White Socolofi (White)
Rustys (Purple)

And a school of Synodontis to keep the fry under control.


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## Mcdaphnia (Dec 16, 2003)

Since many of Tanker's fry would be suspect as hybrids, the Synodontis is a good measure to take.


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## cichlid_gal (Feb 7, 2016)

I want electric yellow and blue demasoni... any suggestions with any others that I can pair with? Also, what is the best way to get them here in SoCal?

I am not familiar with fish that you listed but I will definitely look them up! Thank you! I also want them to have babies so I will definitely get both sex.

Thanks,

G.



> She wants Mbunas, and I do not think you can have that many Mbuna males with different colors.
> IMO, (and being an Mbuna person) I would get about 6 species with a ratio of 1M, and 5-7F. A 240gal/96" tank would be my Zebra dream tank.
> 
> I would stock :
> ...


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## cichlid_gal (Feb 7, 2016)

I just wanted to show you a couple of pictures of my setup and my future plans...

My rock. I got some really nice shape and sizes. I washed them really well and scrubbed all the dirt off of them so that they are nice and clean. I was able to get some really amazing rocks that I am going to incorporate in the aquascape. I will post more pics when I will be building it. 









My cichlid stones: 









My sand. I got it in size medium. I washed it really well... I changed water about 7-10 times. 









Last but not least, my aquarium.









Would it be ok if I put this moss ball in with my cichlids? http://www.liveaquaria.com/product/prod ... catid=2553

Thanks for reading,

G.


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## tanker3 (May 18, 2015)

The rocks and substrate look good. If you want to keep the fry then you will need to be more selective of the species, so they do not cross breed and have hybrids. Yellow Labs and Demasoni would be a good start. I have never kept Demasoni, but I have heard they are a little more difficult to keep (ex: You will need about a dozen females per male to keep the peace). The difficult part is the males and females look alike.


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## Mcdaphnia (Dec 16, 2003)

I've bred demasoni and yellow labidochromis. There is a good chance breeding them in the same tank will result in hybrids, even though there is a size difference between the two. The Synodontis catfish should be in the tank to make sure none of those crossbreeds grow up. If you want yellow and blue fish in the tank, and you want to breed them, choose a cichlid that has different colored sexes, one blue one yellow. That way you can breed them and should you sell some of them, not be passing off hybrids as something they are not.


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## Mcdaphnia (Dec 16, 2003)

Here is a link to one popular species with dimorphic sexes, blue males and yellow females. http://www.cichlid-forum.com/profiles/species.php?id=1

Central American cichlids will tear up moss balls, but they may be OK in with Malawi cichlids. A safer choice would be African water fern and Java fern. They attach to rocks or sit on the tank bottom.


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## wortel87 (Apr 15, 2014)

In that tank demasoni shouldnt be a problem at all.

I would like to mention that that tank doesnt fit in your living room. Doesnt look that appealing to me.

In my living room it would look much better though! 

Keep updating. Curious how it turns out!


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## cichlid_gal (Feb 7, 2016)

You have no idea how hard it was to sand and stain the stand before I put an aquarium on it... Maaan... 

I am still working on my plumbing system and will see how that will turn out...

Also, I just got the lights today:










Will keep you posted 



wortel87 said:


> In that tank demasoni shouldnt be a problem at all.
> 
> I would like to mention that that tank doesnt fit in your living room. Doesnt look that appealing to me.
> 
> ...


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## cichlid_gal (Feb 7, 2016)

Hi guys,

finally I am back to posting! 

I set up a sump (40x18x16)... It drops down to she sock up through the carbon down through the bio balls and again up through the filter and again down to the return pump.

I have a question... Where the water drops through the bio balls there is a very big space where if you would have a saltwater tank you would put in a protein skimmer. In my case there is just some water and there is some foamy stuff sitting on top and not moving. Do you suggest to put a little power head in to move that water throughout? In the chamber where the water heater is... I am also posting a pic for easier understanding...

G.


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## somebody (May 13, 2014)

You can,that's what I do. I also planted that area and made it a sort of "refugium" with it's own lighting schedule and all. I find it slows algae growth as well.

I also use it as a grow out tank for the fry I had from time to time.


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## tanker3 (May 18, 2015)

Looks OK without a PH. Will not hurt, but really not of much use.


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## cichlid_gal (Feb 7, 2016)

Just wanted to post some pics of my full setup...

For now I feel like it's really boring and I need more plants... Any suggestions? I know it's a very limited choice with cichlids and every suggestion comes in handy...

I also know that I have to build up and I am still working on it and trying to select some rocks that would allow me to do so! 

Oh, and I currently have "only" 15 fish (5 electric yellows, 4 demasoni and 6 johanni)... I had 6 baby demasonis but they got lost or eaten or fell into the sump (one time i dug one up).... that is it for now... 

Anyway here are the pics:














































G.


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## GlennLever (Dec 29, 2015)

I so want a bigger tank. I have a 110g and would love to double it.
Keep us updated on the build, interested in what you will do on the back of the tank.


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## cichlid_gal (Feb 7, 2016)

I've been asking myself the same thing... Not sure yet..


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## Mcdaphnia (Dec 16, 2003)

Live plants that would not be eaten by your cichlids are African water fern and Java fern. Anubias won't be eaten either, but for me usually starts to fail in a Malawi cichlid tank after many months. These plants prefer not to be planted, but can be attached to rocks, ceramic, or driftwood with a dab of Reef Gel (a kind of super glue) or tied on with a piece of hemp twine (my two favorite methods). Vallisneria is another plant that the cichlids usually leave alone. It needs to be planted in a substrate, so it sometimes does get dug up. Val may need more light than the previously mentioned plants, so your current light panoply may not be enough for Val.

There might be a second reason to move the heater since the heater may have something to do with the bubble formation. The main reason to move the heater (if possible) is that the nitrification process that we nickname the "cycle" is more efficient in warmer temperatures, so a heater's best location is where it can heat water just before it splashes over the bioball media.

In freshwater an air stone would be just as effective as a water pump to agitate the surface of the dead area. It seems funny to use air bubbles to remove air bubbles but it would work well.


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## tanker3 (May 18, 2015)

As a temp thing, you can always get some black cloth and hang on the back. The store "Joan's" will cut to size for you.

PS---Good luck with those 2 "Blue Terrors".


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## EnemyNSA (Jan 27, 2016)

Very nice! I have some serious tank size envy going on right now


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## GlennLever (Dec 29, 2015)

How heavy do you think the tank is with water in it?

Any thoughts on having to support the floor from underneath?


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## Mcdaphnia (Dec 16, 2003)

Roughly ten pounds for each gallon of the tank size, so a 150 gallon would weigh about 1500 pounds with the water, rocks, stand, etc. A gallon of water at room temperature is about 8.3 pounds. The added 1.7 pounds should cover the stand, equipment, and decor.

Most floors are designed to hold such things as people standing, an upright piano and piano player, a refrigerator. All of those things do tend to weigh less than 1500 pounds, but they also tend to concentrate their weight at one spot on the floor. A large aquarium spreads its weight across several floor joists or in a concrete floor, across lots of concrete and reinforcing wire or rebar. If the floor or the building sways when you walk across it, you may need to add support. But if the construction is up to local building codes, and not infested by termites or dry rot, you should have no concerns.


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## fltekdiver (Sep 27, 2015)

Looks great !


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## GlennLever (Dec 29, 2015)

Mcdaphnia said:


> Roughly ten pounds for each gallon of the tank size, so a 150 gallon would weigh about 1500 pounds with the water, rocks, stand, etc. A gallon of water at room temperature is about 8.3 pounds. The added 1.7 pounds should cover the stand, equipment, and decor.
> 
> Most floors are designed to hold such things as people standing, an upright piano and piano player, a refrigerator. All of those things do tend to weigh less than 1500 pounds, but they also tend to concentrate their weight at one spot on the floor. A large aquarium spreads its weight across several floor joists or in a concrete floor, across lots of concrete and reinforcing wire or rebar. If the floor or the building sways when you walk across it, you may need to add support. But if the construction is up to local building codes, and not infested by termites or dry rot, you should have no concerns.


I'm thinking on a 220G, or two 110 high tanks as I like the dimensions, floor joists are running the width of the room.

The tank would go on the wall that is parallel to the joists.

That would mean the tanks would sit on three 12 foot long joists.

My current 110 is in the middle of the wall and it is tied to the wall. I also lag bolted 4x4's across the joists in the basement. I have NO rock when walking in front of the tank

Thoughts? I really do not want to put posts in the basement to support the joists.


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## fltekdiver (Sep 27, 2015)

The problem is, the floor joist would need to be exactly under the foot print of the tank. Also I don't know the width between each joist. So If your floor joist are 24" apart, and your tank is 24" or wider, and you can get the load of the tank spread over two floor joist, you should be ok. Other things to consider are, the size of the joist, 2x8 , 2x10, 2x12 etc. , same as what other loads are they carrying? Load bearing walls? Couch's, anything else ? How long is the span, across the entire length of the house, or are they supported in the middle?

Lots of questions before I can give you a accurate answer


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## cichlid_gal (Feb 7, 2016)

I really don't have those issues. My house is on a concrete slope and there is no basement underneath so whatever it is, my floors can handle...  but yeah, I was thinking about putting it upstairs and that would be a whole new set of problems


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## GlennLever (Dec 29, 2015)

fltekdiver said:


> The problem is, the floor joist would need to be exactly under the foot print of the tank. Also I don't know the width between each joist. So If your floor joist are 24" apart, and your tank is 24" or wider, and you can get the load of the tank spread over two floor joist, you should be ok. Other things to consider are, the size of the joist, 2x8 , 2x10, 2x12 etc. , same as what other loads are they carrying? Load bearing walls? Couch's, anything else ? How long is the span, across the entire length of the house, or are they supported in the middle?
> 
> Lots of questions before I can give you a accurate answer


The joists are 10 X 2 X 14 feet long with no support in the center, only on the ends.

The tank is on an outside wall, so the wall in back of the tank is sitting on the rim of the floor.

My current tank is 19 inches deep, 31 inches tall, and 48 inches long (110 high).










I believe I would be adding a second tank and butt them together on a homemade stand.

Ok, I feel I have hijacked this thread and I do not wish to do that.


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## flamesfan255 (Aug 26, 2014)

If you haven't changed your stocking yet your going to want to increase your Demasoni to about 20, I would also increase the amount of rocks in the tank rather then adding more plants. in a tank that size you have a lot of options that are typically ready available from your LFS.


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## Off_register (Feb 5, 2015)

The chamber where the heater is might get a stagnant surface since the water is coming from under the bioballs. No surface agitation to churn the water. Like the others said, maybe an air stone will help. I just built a sump for the first time for my tank a few months back and I knew the water will evaporate from the sump but didn't think how quickly. I would make sure to keep an eye on the water level in the heater chamber. Looks like a short margin from your max line to your min line before the water will drop below that one piece of acrylic.


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## cichlid_gal (Feb 7, 2016)

Hi guys,

I just bought my own RO/DI system for my house (drinking water because I live in SoCal and water is kind of bad) as well as my tanks. 
Here it is: http://www.homedepot.com/p/Home-Master- ... /205618359

After doing some research I realized that this system adds calcium and magnesium back into filtered water (30-60 mg/l combined) How much of that do you need in your fish tank? Does anyone else have this system? How do you like it?

G.


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## DJRansome (Oct 29, 2005)

What is your KH and GH?


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## cichlid_gal (Feb 7, 2016)

I don't know... Getting the tests for that this week...



DJRansome said:


> What is your KH and GH?


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