# Rate The Tank Above You (mbuna style!!!)



## padlock 08

Ok so this is a rip-off of the "rate the tank above you" thread except with a twist. only mbuna setups allowed! they can be any size and a mixed or species aquarium just so long as it contains mbuna









that tank now has no plastic plants left in it and the peacocks were only there for three days while theyre permanent homes were being arranged. So, rate me and make sure you add your own. Be brutal!!!


----------



## jbacker7

Aww.. no haps or peacocks.. no fun  .


----------



## padlock 08

i know but thats the rules


----------



## khaki

*padlock 08*
From a 1-10, I give your tank a 7/10! :fish:

Here is my 60gallon Mbuna Tank.









And here is my 29gallon Mbuna Tank









opcorn:


----------



## padlock 08

forgot to say it before, but also add in advice on how to make it better, carry on opcorn: :fish:


----------



## bac3492

I clearly see a peacock in your tank padlock. You dont even follow your own rules. 

I will try and get some pictures of my 2 tanks soon.


----------



## padlock 08

the peacocks were only there for three days and there are no more plants left either. try and get them pics soon opcorn:


----------



## khaki

ummm come on people and post some pictures.


----------



## kevin3020

I give it a 9 Heres mine


----------



## Steve St.Laurent

I'd give it a 5. I'm not a fan of flowerpots. It would look MUCH better without them.

Here's my 90 gallon all Mbuna tank (well, there are 3 Albino BN Plecos in there to keep the rocks clean but you hardly ever see them). In the tank are:

1m/3f Pseudotropheus polit
1m/3f Pseudotropheus saulosi (+3 fry in main tank)
1m/3f Cynotilapia afra (cobue) (+1 baby in main tank)
1m/4f Iodotropheus sprengerae
5? Metriaclima estherae
3 Albino Bristlenose plecostomus

I have good closeup pics of the fish here - http://www.cichlid-forum.com/phpBB/view ... p?t=186938


----------



## padlock 08

come on people, get some pics up


----------



## non_compliance

I'd post, but A.) my tank sucks and B.) I have peacocks and tangs with my mbuna..


----------



## padlock 08

ok then and im sure it cant be much worse than mine


----------



## Fogelhund

I'll rate the tank above. I'll give it a 6/10. Some nice contrasting fish, nice clean tank. I'm not a fan of Holey Rock, nor plastic plants.

*Click on Photos to enlarge*


----------



## gbleeker

Looks great Fogel - 9/10 !


----------



## khaki

*gbleeker*
very nice tank! What kind of rocks is that?


----------



## gbleeker

khaki said:


> *gbleeker*
> very nice tank! What kind of rocks is that?


Black Obsidian


----------



## gtphale

Wow I have to follow that tank up?? I can't find anything bad about the tank so I have to give it a 10. I hope one day to have my tank look something similar to that.

Well here is mine. Its a 55 gal, with an ac110 and a fluval 304. Been setup for around 6 months now.

I have 4 yellow labs,3 rusties,3 afra cobue,3 syn lucipinnis, and 1 albino bn. I'll be adding atleast 1 more afra cobue and 1 more rusties at the swap on the 8th.


----------



## briansbelle

i give the tank above me a 7/10. the rocks look too arranged, i like to place the rocks a little all over the place. 
here is my tank, soon the 2 fake plants will be gone and i will have some anubias and java fern in there. stocking list: 4 afra cobues(1female holding now)the peacocks are gone,4 labeotropheus,2 unk mbuna, and 2 juvie petricolas...soon to be adding 1m/? polits(as soon as the fry grow up :wink: )
filtration: xp3, eheim 2217, and a regent 40-60 filter. :thumb:


----------



## briansbelle

come on people, lets see some pics.... :dancing: :fish: :fish:


----------



## Deadhead7

I will give the above tank a 7.5. I like the way that the rocks look, would be an 8 w/o the plastic plants. The following pic is my very first tank, I have only been in the hobby for about 5 months. It is a 55 gallon, containing 12 demasoni, 6 rusties, 5 yellow labs, 2 small synodontis petrocola, and a couple of bn plecos w/ long fin gene. The plants are only a few days old, not sure if I like the placement of them or not. Any feedback on where I can improve this tank would be appreciated as well as like I said I am still very new to this. 








Closer shot of a few of the fish, one of my syno's decided to make an appearance, they are generally pretty camera shy.


----------



## TTANKOFISH1

8/10 gbleeker nice color ,clean and I like the rock!

















90%+ mbuna
light colored rocks are new and will match with time


----------



## TTANKOFISH1

Sorry I was looking at page one when I posted so I give Deadhead7 a6.5-7of ten would be better with some variaty in the stone.


----------



## padlock 08

nice to see such good tanks up ,keep up the good work


----------



## TailorO

I really like the contrast of lighter colour rock. i think it would be better if the colour stayed that way. I give you an 8  here is mine. please ignore the breeding box. i have since taken it out


----------



## football mom

OK, I'll play.
Everyone's tanks look great, IMO.
Here's my 90 gal with juvie M. Maison Reefs and BN pleco









and here's my 55 gal demasoni colony with their "hobbit holes"


----------



## gmaschke

Sorry no picks just wanted to say TTANKOFISH1 I love your tank lots of rock and natural looking :thumb:


----------



## cichlids _killer

jbacker7 said:


> Aww.. no haps or peacocks.. no fun  .


+1 for it ..this's BS ,jk. my 90 gallon mbuna is still cycle now. no fun till another 3weeks or so for me


----------



## padlock 08

football mom you forgot to rate the tank above you!!


----------



## kmh280

I've recently added some more fish, but here is an old photo of my 54 gallon corner. Enjoy.


----------



## cichlids _killer

tank above me is a 8 ...
here's my .just done set- up about a week or so ...still need to get the suction cups for the eheim and add more fish ..
90gallon 
2 X eheim 2028
AC 110
10 yellow
10 socolofi
48" JBJ light fixture 4x65w


----------



## azzman

Tank above, pretty sweet, will look good finished and full of fish 6/10.

My 5ft 60g.

all juvies apart from 4" greshakei and 5" clown loach
1 greshakei
2 elec yellows
2 cyno puplican
1 albino red zeb
2 unknown, labeled as zebs in shop.
3 clowns, 1 large 2 small.


----------



## edouthirt

Azzman, I'll give you a 6/10 as well. Attractive layout, not quite a natural mbuna setup though so I had to deduct a few points for that. Also, not really a fan of the background... if it were me I would either go with a 3d background or just paint it black. I like the rocks and the dark substrate a lot!!

Here's mine...

60 gallon, overstocked which keeps aggression very low (except for one male red zebra that I keep trying to net out... but I think I'm going to have to take out all of the rockwork... errrgghh...) Red Zebras, Yellow Labs, Kenyi (females only), Yellow Tail Acei, and an F1 Cyno Afra (Hai Reef).


----------



## edouthirt

Sorry, you have to click on the picture to see the uncompressed version.


----------



## kevin3020

8/10

Here is mine after some remodeling


----------



## shotwellbrian

I give Kevin a 7. Im working on a background and getting more rocks, but I figured I would throw mine in here.


----------



## Stickzula

I'll give shotwellbrian a 6. It is a good start, but I would add a background and arrange the rocks differently.

Here is my 55g grow out tank. I had to move my adult kenyi in so it is becoming more of a community lol.


----------



## yellow

Padlock , Is that Meath in Ireland, I'm in waterford


----------



## kevin3020

Nice tank stickzula 9/10


----------



## umesh54

8/10 Kevin - too much brown in my opinion but other looks excellent.

- 6 Yellow Tail Acei
- 3 Fire fish
- 1 BN pleco








[/code]


----------



## emptyhead

Fogelhund said:


> I'll rate the tank above. I'll give it a 6/10. Some nice contrasting fish, nice clean tank. I'm not a fan of Holey Rock, nor plastic plants.
> 
> *Click on Photos to enlarge*


What is the white fish with the red blaze?


----------



## Mobius1230

Pseudotropheus sp. Perspicax orange cap
http://cichlid-forum.com/profiles/species.php?id=911


----------



## padlock 08

yellow said:


> Padlock , Is that Meath in Ireland, I'm in waterford


yep im in meath!


----------



## padlock 08

ok, clearly having only mbuna tanks isnt working and there are some fantastic hap and peacock tanks out there so we'll just change it to a malawi tank thread  :thumb: so let us all see some of them tanks you guys got :fish: opcorn:

p.s i have a new tank b ut have yet to upload the picture, probably tomorrow or the next day :thumb:


----------



## cichlids _killer

padlock 08 said:


> ok, clearly having only mbuna tanks isnt working and there are some fantastic hap and peacock tanks out there so we'll just change it to a malawi tank thread  :thumb: so let us all see some of them tanks you guys got :fish: opcorn:
> 
> p.s i have a new tank b ut have yet to upload the picture, probably tomorrow or the next day :thumb:


uh too late man  just finish what you starts man ...jk


----------



## kelownacichlids

It just cycled and I am trying to find fish but that's another story. It is going to have mbuna in it for sure so I'll stick it in here . 72gal, DIY background, local rock which I tried to match the BG to, chunk of malaysian driftwood.








moonlights


----------



## kimismenos

I give that a 9! I reckon you can put the heater behind that background, then just add fish!
I put it in this in the other thread before I saw this one, but anyhow, i'll go again since its Mbuna only...


----------



## gtphale

Well here's my reaquascaped tank.










And the old










And my first african setup LOL


----------



## Woundedyak

gtphale said:


> Well here's my reaquascaped tank.


Nice setup! What substrate are you using?


----------



## gtphale

Just white play sand, I have some black quartz that I'm thinking about switching it out for. Oh forgot tank above mine .I think it would look awesome if rock was all the same color, but its still a gorgeous tank. I'll give it an 8.5.


----------



## doza42

Now I really love some of the tanks I have seen, really, really nice. Mine is a working process so this is what I got right now but Im about to change out the rock to something that is bluish gray with black lines in it and add something to lighten up the black sand since I painted the background black. But here it is.










Sorry I have not quite got the hang of taking pics of my tank yet. Think I may need a new camera.


----------



## willny1

I like the dark substrate. I agree with you changing the rocks for something else. Black background looks good also. Nice touch with the wood. Maybe have that middle one more on a slant instead of straight up? Anyway I give it a 7.

Here is my work in progress.

My colors look washed out. The Stones are different shades of brown from the Delaware river.


----------



## dan_mccabe

my setup... ill be rating dozas pics cuz the above is not currently working... id give doza a 6/10

aside from my own tank... i looove gbleeker's setup love the white sand white black granite rockery... i plan to start setting up my 55 gal bowfront soon and that rock will for sure be going into that


----------



## Trawler

7/10 nice tank maybe a few more caves

Here is mine


----------



## dan_mccabe

heres another pic ... a bit better to see without flash 









i dont know if u can see or not but my whole tank is made up of caves. lol. each rock forms a cave.. :lol: and u have no caves?


----------



## doza42

Trawler top tank about a 9.5 Background is awesome! I would ace those fake plants for something more realistic. *** seen some good looking fake hornwort. What you using for substrate? looks real nice.


----------



## bluepitbullz

Trawler's tank is a 9 out of 10 IMO. Def like the rockwork in the first pic though minus the plants... heres my 75 in wall. Older pic theres a few more fish now.


----------



## fishkid951

i will rate the tank above me an 8. i like the rockwork cause it doesnt look to placed if u know what i mean. i hope the fish that u added were yellow because i think thats the main thing your tank is lacking, yellow fish. maybe also change the substrate, im not a fan of gravel in mbuna tanks but hey, im only new here...

here is my first atempt at a cichlid tank, its 6x2x2 but doesnt have water in it yet. also the coral sand is all pushed towards the front as i am still arranging the rock and adding more when i get around to it. so what do you think? and how can i make it better?










sorry about image quality...still getting hang to taking pics of tanks
i will post another image up once i get water and fish in the tank
but for now, rate my tank and let me know what u would change

thanks


----------



## bluepitbullz

Well i added a trio of Lab. Hongi the male has a yellow blaze... and 4 Maingano... not a big fan of yellow labs or red zebras so yellow might be hard for me to find... i do want a large group of salousi in there so maybe the yellow females will be enough...


----------



## Norse76

*Fishkid951*

I give your tank a solid 7 since there is no fish and it isnt finished yet. :thumb:

Here is my 90 gallon, the Giant Danio are no longer in the tank.


----------



## ridley25

Norse76,

I like the simplicity of the tank, I like the look of driftwood, and the equipment isn't obvious - 8.5 out of 10.

Here's my 38 gallon Ps. saulosi species tank:
















And a movie...
http://s257.photobucket.com/albums/hh23 ... V01328.flv


----------



## melo

180g started in November...


----------



## Stickzula

I don't have another pic to be rated, but I wnated to comment on melo's tank. Normally I would be opposed to so much horizontal shelf type rockwork, but in this case I LOVE IT! It is very well done. It isn't natural loking (like I normally like) but it has an order to it that I really like. One question though, is that lattice thing on the right in the tank or behind it, I can't tell. Anyway GREAT work on an unusual aquascape!


----------



## melo

Thanks

It's behind the tank with pathos growing on it... not that much yet though since I just started it a couple months ago...


----------



## Buckeyereavis

*melo*

i like your tank alot... very cool!
8 out of 10

Here is mine... i have 3 vics in there but the rest are mbuna!!

cyno. hai reef, cyno. cobue, yellow labs, psu. salousi...which have now been given away!


----------



## doza42

Very nice I rate an 8.5

I posted a pic of my tank a few days ago, well made some changes since then check it out.










The before pic is on page 4


----------



## Buckeyereavis

*doza42*

much better i think... 8.5

im changing mine again lol!


----------



## Dewdrop

doza42
Love the new rock but I would have left the substrate black so it *didn't* blend in so much with the rock. I would put one of the tree branches on the other end of the tank & get rid of the green plant.
I know...I'm not playing right


----------



## doza42

Yeah I made a big mistake with the white sand I added, the pic doesnt give it much credit but it looks good sitting in front of you but the white fine sand is totally clogging up and damaging my filters, changin yet again.


----------



## Dewdrop

:lol: Keep those arms wet :wink: Maybe make a taller rock pile on each end of the tank with the middle open and the tree branches in the middle? Have fun and keep us in pictures :thumb:


----------



## willny1

Everyone's tank was rated above me so I will throw mine in.










Everyone was hiding because I had no idea what I was doing with my camera. I think the flash was driving them crazy :lol:


----------



## klc9100

nice. i'll give it a 7. maybe even out your stacks a bit & hide the heater. it's cool though.

here's my relatively new 75g. i'm constantly changing it. my g/f says i will never be satisfied with it. lol. cell phone pic, so sorry about the quality.

any suggestions are welcome. . . . .


----------



## Cichlids n Treez

Melos tank is very nice i might add. heres mine


----------



## dan_mccabe

*Cichlids n Treez* what size is that tank?


----------



## Cichlids n Treez

55


----------



## Cichlids n Treez

55


----------



## jhunbj

klc9100 tank = 8.5 .....love the look of that plant on the right side. :thumb: 
Cichlids n Treez = 8.0 .......those r some fat looking fish. 

Here r my tanks:
30 Gallon








75 Gallon


----------



## dan_mccabe

Cichlids n Treez said:


> 55


 nice... i got a 55 bowfront with bearded dragons in it.. but theyre gonna be kicked out soon... lol... :thumb: more cichlids :thumb: my 45 is maxed out for population


----------



## Buckeyereavis

*jhunbj*
NICE TANKS 
30: i love it 9
75: 8

here is my updated tank

The Tank:
55 gallon









the Residents:

6 Cynotilapia Hai Reef (3 m/ 3 f)









6 Afra Cobues ( 3 m/ 3 f)









6 Zebra Obliqidens (1 m/ 2 f 3?)


----------



## AlphaWild

Buckeye, I don't see the images of your tank, only of your Hai Reef...but I'll give the fish a 9! 

I didn't want to post pics of my new (and first ever) 75g. until completed, but I wanted to see this thread keep going. And I can handle the critiques! The juvies have been in about 2 weeks; 12 demasoni, 10 afra cobue, and 10 yellow labs. I have tons more rock in the garage to add, just haven't had time to clean it. Unfortunately, it's not going to match the rock that's in there exactly. I'll slap a background on as soon as I'm satisfied with the setup.


----------



## Stussi613

AlphaWild, really like the way you did your rockwork, it will look much better with more rocks and the background...I give it a solid 7 right now.

Here's my 55g (36") with 12 demasoni, 10 yellow labs and 3 acei. I'm going to drop the yellow labs to 6 as they get bigger.

front view









right side









left side


----------



## Stussi613

Don't tell me mine was the last tank that hasn't been posted...


----------



## superfly4477

Alphawild: I would give yours a 9/10. I love tanks with a lot of open space like that. beautiful. i would definetily add some plants though ;].

Stussi: I'll give yours a 7/10. I would get different kinds of rock, make it a little more natural looking.

how are those 12 demanasonis for both of you? *** been thinking about getting about 14 or so for my 55.


----------



## AlphaWild

Working out great; see my post on multiple moms! My tank is actually a lot less open now that I added more rock. I'd love to share an updated pic, but I lost my camera on a fishing trip a couple weeks ago


----------



## Stussi613

superfly4477 said:


> Stussi: I'll give yours a 7/10. I would get different kinds of rock, make it a little more natural looking.
> 
> how are those 12 demanasonis for both of you? I've been thinking about getting about 14 or so for my 55.


I'm actually planning a rock change in the next couple of days since I'm likely going to have to take everything out to get my holding female out.

My demasoni are great, they were uber aggressive when I first got them, but since I added the sp. Acei they have calmed right down.


----------



## padlock 08

my new tank will be posted soon but it still has another 21 cichlids to come and some more rocks now that school is over and *** got a job


----------



## spdspappy

Stussi613: Nice tank! I like that there's a lot of hiding places for the fish.

Here's my 90G tank I just set up...


Once the fish get bigger, I'll get rid of some of the males.

2 Labidochromis sp. "Mbamba" 
5 Metriaclima estherae (Red Zebra) 
5 Pseudotropheus flavus 
4 Pseudotropheus socolofi 
5 Labidochromis sp. "Hongi" 
1 Synodontis multipunctatus 
4 Labidochromis caeruleus 
4 Metriaclima lombardoi


----------



## ibr3ak

Resurrection time 

spdspappy, I'd give yours a 7/10, I really like the open look of the tank and the contrast of thr with the substrate, but I vote for a background 

Here's mine:


----------



## iplaywithemotions

ibr3ak, I give yours 9/10. I love those rocks and arrangement looks so natural. Only way to improve, that I can think of, would be to add a three-dimensional background to match the rocks. However, I realize that can be quite costly or time consuming (DIY), which is why I don't have one either lol.

Here is mine:


----------



## kme38

iplaywithemotions, I would give yours an 8.5!! Love the rocks they make a cool feature and the fish stand out against it really well.

Here is mine

150g









and with the moon lights on......










Go on, be brutal....!! opcorn:


----------



## esparzar1

bump....now that I have this whole "photobucket" thingy figured out I thought I would try to revive this great thread!!!!! 
I really love looking at all the tanks. It's really amazing to see what some of you have done!!!!!!!

kme38, I would give yours an 8. I think the picture doesn't give your tank justice. It's looks really nice but it's sorta at a wied angle? Anyway, I really like the tank.

Here's mine (std 55) not the best pic but, I'm still learning........let's keep this thread going!


----------



## cjacob316

khaki, is that yellow tang part of your background?


----------



## bertolli

esparzar your tank is so cute with all those little stone bridges!!!11! I think the plants are a bit over done but overall it is a nice looking tank. I have the same size tank and fish except mine are all juvies... ill try and get some pics up tomorrow. 
nice revival btw :dancing:


----------



## fishkeeper93

Great looking tank *esparzar1* i rate your tank a 8 your tank looks so vibrant and clear your fish look realy healthy only thing i would change is the plants as i prefer a more natural look to my setups but dont get me wrong your tank looks gtreat 

Well heres i my pride and joy i hope you like it apparently my fish dont like my camera :? well here it is :thumb:


----------



## MCKP

I would rate yours a 7 but only because I think it is a little plain and I like more plants...

Here is mineit's a little dusty still because of the sand)
9 Yellow Labs
6 Clown Loaches
4 Acei
2 Fryeri maybes?
1 Peacock Mix
2 Greshakei


----------



## newday

I rate the tank above 7 as I like drift wood but not in a Malawi setup. I preferr live plant look to plastic.

Here's my 220G with live plants (no issues with fish eating them), fish are 2.5 years old tank is new as of january. Plan on adding a lot more rock this fall up to the top. I preferr natural look and algae covered rocks.


----------



## aandfsoccr04

I would rate the tank above mine 7.2 
I really do like your tank I just wish you had more rock maybe on both sides and left the middle and the top for open swimming...Here's my tank that I set up 3 weeks ago before knowing anything about africans and just randomly picking them assuming they were like south americans where you can add any type of cichlid to the tank...


----------



## bertolli

I give the one above me a 5
heres mine









not the best photography :roll:


----------



## car0linab0y

Finally clear and finally stocked... 65g in need of background. The tall plant does an alright job hiding the heater, might get a few more.

12 dems (juvies) in there taking full advantage of the holey rock.

suggestions welcome


----------



## iplaywithemotions

^^^ You forgot to rate the tank above yours.


----------



## car0linab0y

iplaywithemotions said:


> ^^^ You forgot to rate the tank above yours.


we'll call it an 8. I'm not one for bare tanks, and that one definitely isn't. Makes mine look empty lol


----------



## justinf67

i rate the one above me a 7, love the THR, but like u said, a background would help a lot. and im not a fan of the substrate, but to each their own. the design is nice though.... heres my 55 gallon, unfortunately i only have my cell camera, so quality on the pics suck.


----------



## alfalex

I'm not a big fan of fake plant so I give a 7!

Here my new setup, first time with Malawi!


----------



## TheSimster

I give the tank above me a 6.5. I'm not into the rock and gravel contrast, and I know alfalex isn't into plants but I think they add alot to a tank.

Here's mine, I just finished setting up the rocks yesterday so they're liable to change. One more thing, all the fish are on the left side in the pictures because that's where I usually feed them so when they see me come close the tank they all go to one side, but normally they're everywhere.


----------



## mmd

this is my old set up, it's all haps now


----------



## car0linab0y

man I want a bigger tank!!!!!


----------



## Dewdrop

I know. mmd's tank was amazing =D> . Wish I had room for a tank that size  .


----------



## Oscar Madison

mmd said:


> this is my old set up, it's all haps now


  :thumb:

What else can I say?


----------



## mmd

Thanks alot, heres some more


----------



## mmd




----------



## ladybugzcrunch

MMD, that red top is amazing. What did you do with him? I hope mine looks like that when he is all growed up! Beautiful tank!


----------



## mmd

9i got him in an austion, 7 adults (5m 2f), 2 of the m's were c"marmalade cat".
that f held around 20 babies and when she spit they were huge, every single on left. all have gone to lfs or auctions. that may have been one of the nicest set ups i ever had


----------



## justinf67

i rescaped my tank, still have a **** camera, but i think it looks better...
before:









new:


----------



## car0linab0y

updated pic, added black bg, killed the bubbles... i think the plants are next to go.


----------



## XwingMike

I'd give it a 6, seems too bare for my tastes.

Heres my 55, My camera broke so I had to use my phone.


----------



## Matt1986

I'd give the above a 7 - I like the innovative background but the decor is a bit too bare/artificial for my tastes.

My Mbuna Biotope:

May:









September:


----------



## justinf67

Love the background mike. give that a 9. Like yours too matt 8.5. the rocks look good.

been trying to get my own tank up to snuff, and I added some stuff again. heres before:









rescaped....

























now, i just need my sisters camera for a bit to get some decent pics of it....


----------



## Guams

The tank above me, I rate it at a 7.5-8. A few more rocks and a small change in the rock pile on the left side would make for a nice set up. Right now, the rocks look a little too... intentionally placed? Overall it's a nice, clean looking tank. The crystal clear water is a plus, too. By the way, justinf67, what kind of plant is that?

46-gallon bowfront. Please ignore the fry-bin.  The residents include:
11 Pseudotropheus demasoni (4 of which are under 1-inch), 1 female is holding as well.
4 Labidochromis caeruleus
3 Pseudotropheus "Acei" (yellow tail)
1 Synodontis petricola (I think it's a petricola)










And a close up of the rock work. I have the day off tomorrow, so I'm going to drive around and see if I can find a few more rocks that would look good in the tank. I also plan on adding one or two more plants to off-set the Java Fern in the center.










And here's a shot of the tank with my DIY cold cathode moonlights:


----------



## justinf67

I rate your tank a 7.5. I like the background, and moonlight, but you need a higher rock stack. 45 is a little small for a diy background, so u need some rocks to give the dems some hiding area. The plant I have in the middle is a regular amazon sword. if your looking for rocks try your local nursery/ landscaping store. cheap.

I added some rock on the right side of mine, its very functional. theres like 30 little caves in it. I plan on stopping and getting some more rocks for the left side prob this weekend. heres a new pic:


----------



## Guams

I agree, my rock pile needs to go up. I was at Petsmart last night and one of the employees mentioned that his cichlids shredded his Amazon Swords. Prior to going there, I read on here that they'll typically leave swords alone. Either way, I erred on the side of caution and didn't pick up the sword.

Maybe I'll get one in the near future.

The rocks on the right side of your tank look much nicer now. Bravo!


----------



## justinf67

I have a few small holes in it, but nothing major. when I have had small amazons in there, I had a ton of issues with them eating it and digging it up. Since I put a bigger one in there, they leave it alone for the most part. I want to add some anubia soon. maybe 2 of them stuck to the rock pile on the left. thanks, I like the right side much more now. I actually took some thicker holey rock that I had in another tank, and drilled a few well placed holes with a hole bit, and it came out pretty nice. it added Id say 4-6 more caves


----------



## csaxe21

I'll give the tank last tank a 7.5/10
Has a bit too much empty space. Could use some more rocks.

Heres my tank, unfortunately it's a little small... Hoping to upgrade sometime soon

Details in my signature 
http://s259.photobucket.com/albums/hh30 ... G_2828.jpg

Sorry, I don't really know how to post a picture , so the link will have to do for now.


----------



## rpc07

I'll play along here I think the tank above is a 6/10 could use some more rocks imo

Here is my tank

BEFORE:









And after i switched to Sand


----------



## Floridagirl

Think the tank above is 8/10. Love the Rock placement. Some black sand added to the white may give more contrast to the rock. 
I am a horrible picture taker. I never do my fish justice, and my fish don't pose well, but here is my 5ft 120 gallon, DIY Featherrock background. Mostly Mbuna, with 6 Borleyi and 3 Pheno Star Sapphire . It's almost time to decide what to keep and what to get rid of...lol


----------



## csnake

WOW! Now that's a malawi setup! Out of all the aquariums in this post, I'd say yours and fogulhund's are definitely the best!!! 9.75 out of 10, and the only reason I wouldn't go 10 is because I can see your return! Hide it, and a perfect score would be yours.

Here's mine... 75 gallon with 6 Pseudotropheus sp. "Elongatus Chailosi", 6 Cynotilapia sp. "hara", 5 Labidochromis caeruleus, and 4 Pseudotropheus socolofi (Albino), along with 20 or so 1-2 in juvie labs and chailosi.


----------



## mbunatic

I like the clean look of it. Lots of places for mbuna to hide. I think the rocks are too many colors and detract from the fish....but very nice indeed, a solid 9.0
Sorry, I am a horrible photographer.

This is my 75g tank
























[/img]


----------



## justinf67

tank above me i give an 8. i like the hiding spots. very reeflike which is cool. Im just not a fan of blue backgrounds. other than that very nice


----------



## bwah

i rate the tank above a 5..
negative
dont think the plants needs to be there, too much contrast between the different rocks (stick to one kind and add more), rocks and substrate blend together too easily (maybe try darker substrate?)
positive
fish look nice, black background, hidden appliances

heres mine


----------



## Rhinox

I would give the tank above a solid 9. I like the looks and variation of fish, and the looks of the rocks, sand, and BG. I'd spread the rocks around more however, maybe a couple piles of different heights rather than 1 big pile in the middle.

Well, I've been waiting a long time to participate in this thread and I've finally got my tank set up in a way I'll be keeping it for a while.

55g
~350lbs granite boulders
~30lbs Home Depot Quickcrete Medium sand
Somethings missing... :fish:


----------



## Jamjarjames

Id give the above 7, i like the black background, the sand and the pebbles, but i feel the pebbles could do with rearranging to make them look abit more natural oh and of course some fish!

Heres my 50G









and a close up


----------



## infotech

Tank Above Mine: 8
Likes: Rocks and Substrate go together well and the plants look very natural.

That's a great aquarium you have there.

Here's my freshly stocked (not fully) 75 Gallon:


----------



## gtphale

Tank above a 7.

Hide your intake,output and that power cord and it would come up to a 7.5 8 ish. I'm not a big fan of holey rock so the look doesn't appeal to me a whole lot. I think adding some java fern, or maybe a darker colored rock would help break up the really white looking tank. As is I think once the algea starts to hit those rocks it will really start looking a lot nicer.

Ok here's my 6' foot mbuna tank. I just got it together, wasn't going to post till done with rockwork and some plants ,Along with fish. :fish: But I just had to post it up see what you guys come up with, might trigger some idea that can make the tank stunning.

Let it rain, don't hold back and don't worry about hurting my feelings. Your idea might help me big time.

























Water is still a little cloudy, been running only 2 days, temp prob will be moved to a hiden location after I'm 100 % sure my temps are solid.


----------



## mbunatic

changed the background, redid lacerock and added some anubias that the fish are destroying!















































[/url]

BTW...tank above me is looking to be great.....a little early to tell, but it looks like you are putting some work into it. A tentative 8.5


----------



## justinf67

tank above me an 8. like it. looks a little empty though.

heres my newly rescaped tank. I took out my holey rock and added more of the same I had in there. I still need a little bit more to build it up another layer or 2. I do like it, and the fish seem to enjoy so far...hard to see all the crevices that are in there, but theres a ton.

before:









after:


----------



## esparzar1

Have to revive my favorite thread   

I rate the tank above an 8.5, very clean and simple. Looks a lot better than the previous pic.

I've posted mine before but I've changed it since last pic, so I'll post it again! Don't have the best camera but I tried. Let's keep this thread going!


----------



## bmweiler09

I'll give the tank above me a 7, mostly because I like fewer, larger rocks better. Just personal preference.

Here is my 30 gallon Mbuna tank:










(sorry its not clear I'm still trying to figure out flash less tank pics with a basic digital camera.)


----------



## justinf67

I rate an 8. I really like your rocks, placement, background. Only thing I could do without is the plant. seems a tiny bit out of place. Love it otherwise though!


----------



## J.B.

Sorry, I just realized this is for Lake Malawi species. My tank is a Lake Tang tank, so I moved my post to the other rate the tank above you thread...my bad.


----------



## car0linab0y

bmweiler09 said:


> I'll give the tank above me a 7, mostly because I like fewer, larger rocks better. Just personal preference.
> 
> Here is my 30 gallon Mbuna tank:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> (sorry its not clear I'm still trying to figure out flash less tank pics with a basic digital camera.)


Exactly how basic? Is there a mode selector where you can manually adjust the settings? If so, try adjusting the ISO up/down until the image on the screen looks close to the way you see it with your own eyes. I rate the tank a 7 btw. Good Malawi setup, but nothing really eye catching to me. This is my new 55g Dem tank. 5 in there now, the other 14 (+ however many fry survive) in the next few weeks.


----------



## cichlify

silly question but....how do you put pics on a post?? :-?


----------



## car0linab0y

broessle said:


> silly question but....how do you put pics on a post?? :-?


upload them to an online photo hosting site (like photobucket.com) and then link the pic from the site to your post. photobucket will give you a link (


----------



## cichlify

ooo okay..some problem solving there!! haha thanks.


----------



## cichlify

well...here mine. i need a background or at the very least move that board outta the way.


----------



## cichlify

oo and id give the tank above mine a 7 just because i think it would look a lot better with sand.


----------



## millphoto

Floridagirl said:


> Think the tank above is 8/10. Love the Rock placement. Some black sand added to the white may give more contrast to the rock.
> I am a horrible picture taker. I never do my fish justice, and my fish don't pose well, but here is my 5ft 120 gallon, DIY Featherrock background. Mostly Mbuna, with 6 Borleyi and 3 Pheno Star Sapphire . It's almost time to decide what to keep and what to get rid of...lol


your background is awesome! It looks ultra real. :thumb: :thumb:


----------



## Liam_Doherty

Hi people. This is my 55 gallon Malawi tank. Let me know what you think. Don't be too harsh though. lol Thanks,
Liam


----------



## CichNewb

Great looking tank I'd give it an 8. Love the gravel, nice contrast with the rocks and background. Not big on the plants in Mbuna but that's pp.

Here's my first Malawi tank. A little austere but I like the focus to be on the fish.


----------



## Tigerfish85

I already posted this and have since upgraded the mbuna's into a 40 gallon where they will grow up until they go into a 75g Malawi tank. Here is a pic of the 10 gallon they first grew up in and I am selling the bumblebee and N. livingstonii since they are gonna be to big for what I want. I have also added 2 more albino socolofi and am adding additional female yellow labs. I will post the 40 gallon when the water settles a bit from aquascaping.


----------



## Tigerfish85

here is my 36 mbuna tank I am trying to set up as a breeding tank, which the best will go into 75 gallon wave tank. I cant see the tank for Cichnewb but the one above I will give an 8.5 looks very clean with the rock setup too!!


----------



## Ramseydog14

I like your rocks and black substrate,..looks very clean. I might pile some of the rocks up unevenly in front of one of the side plants just to break up the uniformity some. Also, I like a few plants..and these will look better once some algea develops on them,..takes some of the shine off and makes them look more real. I go 8 on this one..

here's the latest one of my home tank (55g / 48"w) with Demasoni, Yellow-Labs, Cyno Nkhata Bay (Yellow Blaze) and a pair of Acei.


----------



## Tigerfish85

Ramseydog14: your tank is a solid 8.5 I really like your rock caves setup and the species are perfect your 55. Totally how im building out my 75g to become. I am using this hand me down 36g to grow out until july and then I want to have 5-6 albino socolofi 1 m 5 f, as well as 1 m 5 f yellow lab, and maybe a breeding group of a blue Cyno breed. Here are a few pics of the rocks I moved to look more naturally like ya said. Also I put some black electrical tape over some of the corner led lights so that it dims the corners down slightly. My Livingstonii, bumblebee, and kenyi have to go unfortunately but the wife sure does love em lol. Thanks for the comments.

I guess I should add a different tank if im rating yours lol.. rules.. this is my wife's princess 5 gallon hahaha!


----------



## Ramseydog14

Very nice Tigerfish,..rockwork looks MUCH better!..exactly what I had in mind. Now 8.5 ;-) 
One other very minor suggestion. If you can move the clear/white intake tube over to the side more that would help also.
It stands out a little too much,..or if you could find a black tube that fits and replace it maybe. Again,..very minor suggestion but your tank looks great! I have all white sand in my 3 tanks..and this one makes me want to try black in my next one.


----------



## ITALIAN926

Id rate the last one a 7.. Heres my 125 .. cameraphone sucks..


----------



## srkd

I would rate the tank above @ 8.5.

Here is my 40B:


----------



## cruizer8

I would rank the tank above an 8, looks pretty nice.

Here is my new tank, just put the fish in there today.

























This is my first time with cichlids and I didn't realize how fast they are. Makes them hard to photograph.


----------

