# New guy here, allow me to introduce myself and my tank



## seerstower (Nov 13, 2008)

I'd like to share with you all my new Tanganyikan Tank. It's a new Fluval Osaka 260 from Hagen. At approximately 70 gallons, I figure it gives me plenty of room to work with Tangs.

Hardware:
2X Fluval 405 canister filters filled solely with Biomax (no carbon or other chemical in chambers)
1 Fluval 4+ Internal with carbon and Clearmax (formerly PhosX for phosphate removal)
1 300w Fluval Tronic Heater
1 Hagen Dual Glo T5HO hanging light fixture (Bulbs: 1 - 6700k, 1 - Actinic)
Carib Sea Eco-Complete African Cichlid Sand
Approx. 250 lbs. flat smooth fieldstone










More pictures below the list but (forgive my spelling) here's what I'm currently stocking in the tank in the order they were introduced (X - indicate fish loss):

Julie Marleri
Neolamp. Leleupi
Gold Compressiceps
Buscheri
Buscheri
Neolamp. Leleupi
Neolamp. Leleupi
Julie Ornatus
Julie Ornatus
Synodontis Petricola
Synodontis Petricola
Synodontis Petricola
Julie Marleri
Julie Regani
Julie Dickfeldi
Julie Dickfeldi
Gold Compressiceps
Neolamp. Cylindricus
Neolamp. Cylindricus
Cyprichromis Leptosoma
Cyprichromis Leptosoma
Julie Transcriptus bemba
Julie Transcriptus bemba
Julie Marleri
Julie Marleri
Neolamprologus brichardi
Neolamprologus brichardi
Neolamprologus brichardi


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## alicem (Jul 26, 2007)

Welcome to cichlid forum.  
Your tank and stand are very nice. I like the rounded corners.
The silver trim is very popular right now, nice and modern. :thumb: 
No doubt this setup cost you a bundle.

Are the rocks pretty stable? Rounded rocks piled that high would worry me. 

So, to make it simple, your stock list is:
3 N lelupi
4 J marleri
2 J ornatus
3 J dickfeldi
2 J transcriptus
2 gold compressiceps
2 buscheri
3 syno petricola
2 N cylindricus
2 cyp leptosoma
3 N brichardi
You are lucky in that you must have a very good source for Tanganyikas.

Did you want comments on your stock list? 
At the risk of making you mad, I have to say, be careful not to distribute fry. 
You will have alot of hybrids with that group.

Your closeup picts of your fish are really clear. 

Enjoy your setup, you're involved in a great hobby and again welcome to our forum,
Alicem


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## VT4Me (Mar 23, 2008)

Where did you buy your tank and can I ask what you paid?


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## JWerner2 (Jul 7, 2008)

+1 I want one.

It looks good but I dont know about those rocks. You must not be new to Tang's but does it not worry you having those rocks piled up like that with the sand substrate?

My Tang's dug out under the rocks and even without setting them up in dangerous ways they still fell.


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## seerstower (Nov 13, 2008)

Thanks for all of the positive comments everyone! I'm excited to find a forum that seems pretty active, good information, and friendly folks.

Seems like a lot of comments on the rocks that I've used... a few things to note:

1) There is no sand under any of the rocks. I poured the sand in after putting the rocks in. This way, there is just straight rock on glass, weight being pretty evenly distributed across the bottom of the aquarium.

2) Concerning the stability of the rock structure... You'll notice that these are not regular fieldstone pieces but rather a relatively flat variation (it was slightly more expensive at the stone quarry where I purchased them compared to regular fieldstone which is also smooth and similar coloration but more spherical boulders).

That being said, since they are so flat, they all "lock" into place pretty well under the weight of themselves and the pieces above them. The key here is definitely the "flatness" of the stone.

3) @VT concerning where I bought it and how much I paid: I bought it at my LFS for about $700. This included the tank, stand, fluval canister, dual T5HO lighting (with hanging bar - so slick!), tronic heater, some cycle and food. I added on a second fluval that I had lying around as well as the internal one. The setup is made by Hagen and is simply _stunning_. Only thing is, you have to buy it as a full setup everywhere I've seen it.

Anyways, I'd love comments on anything and everything. You won't offend :dancing: I'm not in it for the breeding per se, just for show. I've always been a show tank kinda guy I guess.

**Updated stocking list:*

3 N lelupi
4 J marleri
2 J ornatus
3 J dickfeldi
2 J transcriptus
2 gold compressiceps
2 buscheri
3 syno petricola
2 N cylindricus
2 cyp leptosoma
3 N brichardi 
2 white calvus


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## alicem (Jul 26, 2007)

We were just concerned about you tanks safety :thumb: 
Can't have that beauty busted, now can we? 


> I'm not in it for the breeding per se, just for show.


Your syno petricolas will help you out there. 
Alicem


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## eL Chupy (Aug 6, 2007)

my LFS has these tanks in right now. i OOoooOoogggle :drooling: over them every time I'm in there. Price tag is about 800 bucks for the complete set-up. . maybe when i hit the lotto... which reminds me to go check my numbers right after i type this...

does yours have a top? the one at the store by me is an open top tank without a cover ...


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## JWerner2 (Jul 7, 2008)

More fish shots please! opcorn:


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## seerstower (Nov 13, 2008)

No top on mine which I had never done before but I love it! I guess it's a European thing? You don't see a lot of open top designs in the US like this but that's part of why I really like the tank. When a friend or relative sees this tank set up, it's like "Wow!" because they've never seen anything like it. They're used to seeing the standard glass box aquarium with cheap plastic lights blah blah blah.

I agree it's a little pricey compared to buying a regular 70 gallon tank but you get soooo much more than that. Just be careful with what you stock in it and avoid big jumpers and you should be fine.


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## remarkosmoc (Oct 19, 2005)

Very nice setup. Looks great. 2 405's is a huge amount of filteration for that water voulme, that should keep them happy. :thumb:


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## seerstower (Nov 13, 2008)

Thanks Tan, it creates a lot of water movement as well. Since I can't get back behind my rock structure (without a considerable pain in the neck), the water movement is especially important for preventing dead zones of waste, food, etc.

I've got more pictures on the way so stay tuned.


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## Oscar Madison (Mar 24, 2008)

Welcome aboard and that is a real nice looking tank.


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## seerstower (Nov 13, 2008)

Hurray for new pictures!


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## DJRansome (Oct 29, 2005)

Won't the julies fight and you'll end up with one pair anyway? Or maybe two?

The cyps need way more individuals to feel comfortable...watch their health.

When the Brichardi breed they will try (and probably succeed) to kill all the other fish in the tank, except the pair of Brichardi.


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## remarkosmoc (Oct 19, 2005)

Great pics, they look beautiful!


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## Razzo (Oct 17, 2007)

Very nice setup - I like the tank iwth the rounded courners.

Very nice pics of your fish. Your julies like to pose and they look really good against your rocks.

Thanks for sharing


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## TheBanker (Jun 14, 2008)

nice setup, those tanks are really nice, my lfs has the same set up for 2,000.


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## seerstower (Nov 13, 2008)

Thanks for all of the positive comments everyone. I'll keep putting up new pics regularly. Also, I wanted to get some opinions on stocking some shellies in here... either multies or similis. Any ideas or recommendations?


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## 24Tropheus (Jun 21, 2006)

I think they would be too small to go with your very shelly bullying fish and mainly rock dwellers in a rock dwellers tank.

If you had set up an open area at the start you could maybe have risked a larger pair of shellys Lepidolamprologus etc but they would have a very hard time establishing themselves now I think.


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## F8LBITEva (Nov 9, 2007)

nice setup. My LFS has them but $$$$$


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## seerstower (Nov 13, 2008)

New pictures and new fish!

Already had the 2 white calvus but the 3 Chalinochromis brichardi in the tank are brand new, just picked them up today!!!


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## BurgerKing (Jul 1, 2008)

Those are some nice looking new guys. Neat little fish


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## seerstower (Nov 13, 2008)

Ok, looking for some opinions here. I did my first water test since starting this set up and here are the results:

Ammonia = 0 ppm
Nitrite = 0 ppm
pH = 8.1
KH = 220 mg/L (22 drops)
GH = 160 mg/L CaCO3 (8 drops)

Please chime in here! What are your tanks running at and do you have any recommendations?


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## prov356 (Sep 20, 2006)

Your water parameters look great. Your fish should do just fine.

Are you doing any buffering or adding anything to get those values?


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## seerstower (Nov 13, 2008)

No I'm not doing a thing to get those values, no buffers, no nothin'.

My water out of the tap has a pH of about 7.6 to it seems to be a little higher in the tank. Would that be due to all of the rock or what?


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## prov356 (Sep 20, 2006)

> Would that be due to all of the rock or what?


Could be, but sometimes pH bounces up after sitting for 24 hours. Try leaving some sit out and test next day.

If you're getting that either out of the tap or a combo of tap and rock/substrate buffering, then I'd be real 
pleased and leave it as is. One less thing to deal with. There's no need to fine tune to some value that 
you find listed somewhere as 'ideal' for these fish. They should thrive in what you have.


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## cichlidaholic (Dec 7, 2005)

I think the tank looks really great!

I do expect you'll have problems with that stock list, though. Once they mature and start pairing off, you'll definitely experience a high level of stress in the tank. I agree with DJRansome 100%.

The tank would look just as nice with singles of each species that you have and stand a lot better chance of long term success... all male would be ideal!

I also suspect you will lose a few of them as "jumpers" once they all start to sexually mature and the aggression sets in. I love the open concept of the tank - I think they look amazing, but they are not practical with these species, or any other cichlid I can think of.

I would also be concerned about the rocks...And for what it's worth, sand will wind up underneath them! :wink:


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## seerstower (Nov 13, 2008)

How long until they all reach maturity do you think? What signs should I be looking for?


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## Fogelhund (Dec 3, 2002)

seerstower said:


> How long until they all reach maturity do you think? What signs should I be looking for?


The brichardi are likely to be the first to hit sexual maturity, probably just over 2". Most of the Tanganyikans that you have are not like Malawian cichlids. Given they are substrate spawners, they tend to need a larger territory when spawning. Typically it is anywhere from 1 metre, to 3 metre cubed depending on the species... at least with the list you have.


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## GlennCastle (Apr 4, 2008)

welcome. nice tank!


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## FLGirl1977 (Jul 24, 2007)

Beautiful tank! I've always admired that set up in the store. I would have gotten it, but it would have only been able to house a couple of discus comfortably. Before I gave my orange comp. to a friend, I thought about getting that tank just for him. Unfortunately, unaware of our future and where we might be moving, I'm minimizing the number of tanks we own and traded in one of my tanks for a 120 gallon.

Anyway... :lol: Gorgeous tank. I really like the species you have picked. I see the possibility for aggression that could be a disaster though, but the other members have pointed that out. Tangs are very territorial, and it may not be a problem now, but we just want to give you a heads up so that you have the healthiest tank possible. I would get rid of the brichardi. They will without a doubt run that tank and kill most of the other fish. You could keep 1 male brichardi, because they're actually not bad as long as they're not breeding IME.

Keep up the great work, and keep us posted! Congrats on a beautiful tank! :thumb:


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## cichlidaholic (Dec 7, 2005)

seerstower said:


> How long until they all reach maturity do you think? What signs should I be looking for?


I can't give you a time frame, but as Fogelhund has said, the brichardi will probably be the first to start giving you problems, followed closely by some of the others.

You'll have alot of stressed fish when it starts, probably many of them will be trying to hang out at the top of the water line in an effort to "disappear", since the mature fish are going to be fighting for the floor space in the tank, they won't have anywhere else to go. You don't have a top on the tank, so when they are attacked from below, they may very well wind up dried out on your floor.

Some may die from the aggression, while others may just become ill from all the stress in the tank, which can also lead to death and alot of expensive medications.

You just have such nice fish, and the tank looks amazing. IMO, the stock list would be much easier to straighten out now, before the problems start.

And I would really try to come up with something to cover the top of the tank without taking away from the look of the tank! I really really believe you'll lose some fish unnecessarily if you don't!


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## 24Tropheus (Jun 21, 2006)

To be honest I am not sure you will have horrid problems of too many fish being killed or injured.
Or at least no more than forming pairs in breeding tanks.
I have kept very much the same mix except the cylindricus, leleupi (which I did have together but ended up having to separate and remove both) in a longer tank of about the same volume.
I got pairs (even two pairs of 1 species of julie and one pair of two others) breeding in there. Yep all fish that did not pair and grab a small cave were killed or bullied and had to be removed and a pulcher and brichardi pair and swarm did dominate the open water.
And there is a risk of hybrids.
Life was fine in there once each pair had staked out its own patch.
There was even an open water patch were the young could mix and enjoy fighting with each other between two rock piles (this is the only thing you will miss having a tall wide tank that is not long enough for separate rock piles)
I got no hybrids I could identify but maybe I was lucky.

Safest bet is to go for one of each but you miss most of the point of a Tang rock dweller community that way I think.

I agree about the top though. Lost lots of these fish jumping through even small gaps in the cover glass over the years.
But this may not happen so much in such a tall tank (I have not got experience of such short tall tanks.)


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## seerstower (Nov 13, 2008)

Well, I'm not really concerned about hybrids in breeding because I don't really care about breeding... Perhaps my intentions with the tank are different than most people on here, really just to create a beautiful living picture. If I have to make some changes down the road due to maturity in certain fish, so be it that's ok.

Obviously having an open top tank the threat of jumpers is real so if it becomes a problem, it will be addressed. Until then, :dancing:


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## seerstower (Nov 13, 2008)

New pics


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## DJRansome (Oct 29, 2005)

As long as you have a plan to dispose of the fry, not a problem. :thumb:


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