# How to improve my aquascape



## Dierianrigg (Dec 18, 2013)

Hello my friends  

This is going to be my first aquarium. I am hoping to get your advice on aquascaping. Size of my tank is 47''x17.7''x19.6'' and ~71G. I will be keeping mbunas. Yellow labs, acei and demasoni :fish: . 5 from each, 1m4f. I know they like lots of hiding space, caves and swim throughs but these rocks are all I have at the moment. I am trying to find more. This is how it looks so far;


































Any recommendations or suggestions (not only on aquascaping but also anything) are welcome, please share your good/bad thoughts :thumb:
Thanks in advance,

Ps: I will be getting plane black background soon


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## atreis (Jan 15, 2013)

Your rockscape is pretty nice as it is, although as you say, caves would be good - you could create some just by adding some additional rocks leaning slightly against the rocks you have now. The only other suggestion there would be to turn the rock on the left so that the part that's not gray (it's brownish) is less visible, or lean another rock there so that part becomes less visible.

Otherwise: The fish won't care, but get a background for the tank, even if it's just one of those plastic black or blue backgrounds that PetSmart sells. It will really help the fish to stand out better than they will with the white wall.


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## oyster dog (Jul 2, 2013)

Very cool rocks! Are they a kind of gneiss?

Your 'scape is ideal for peacocks and haps, but not mbuna. You have already mentioned they want hiding places with caves and swim throughs, and that's what your tank needs.

Have you looked at a landscape supply as a source of rocks? You will need at least 3x more than what you already have.


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## skurj (Oct 30, 2011)

That looks real nice. Paint the back of the tank black, or use black paper then take a photo or 2 after the room is dark and lets have a look. As far as stocking goes, 5 demasoni isn't enough they will kill each other... might be better off leaving them out if you aren't going to add at least a dozen..

There are 2 schools of thought with scaping.. those that think territory is needed and those that don't... both schools believe that their school leads to less aggression... I haven't tried no caves etc, but I know having caves sure does lead to aggression.


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## DJRansome (Oct 29, 2005)

They say to fill the tank to the waterline for mbuna as they are rock fish. It is a nice scape for haps and peacocks though and I do like the rocks.


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## spotmonster (Nov 23, 2006)

I 2nd the Demasoni. if you have less than 12, you will soon have only 1.

Buy 1 or 12-15. You will also need much more rockwork if you get the Demasoni.


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## Dierianrigg (Dec 18, 2013)

Thanks everyone. Your ideas are really appreciated 



oyster dog said:


> Very cool rocks! Are they a kind of gneiss?


Actually, I am not sure what kind of rocks they are. They were named "natural lake stone" at where I got them. It's little far but I will try to go and get more rocks.



skurj said:


> As far as stocking goes, 5 demasoni isn't enough they will kill each other... might be better off leaving them out if you aren't going to add at least a dozen.





spotmonster said:


> I 2nd the Demasoni. if you have less than 12, you will soon have only 1.
> Buy 1 or 12-15. You will also need much more rockwork if you get the Demasoni.


I'd like to add a dozen but I think volume of my tank will not be enough to handle mixed mbunas. What kind of mbuna woud you recommend instead of demasoni as the third species?

I will see if I can get more rocks this weekend. Thanks again,


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## DJRansome (Oct 29, 2005)

You have room for a dozen demasoni, but they are the extra work fish. You could get the same colors with Pseudotropheus cyaneorhabdos Maingano (still often sold as Melanochromis). 1m:7f on the mainganos.


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## Dierianrigg (Dec 18, 2013)

I collected these rocks from seaside. Do you guys think it should be fine to use after enough disinfection? (brush/wash, soak in vinegar and boiled water, brush/wash again) I know it is hard to tell by just looking but someone may have experience with it.


























Yeah, I, too  , would prefer to use just one kind of rock in the tank but I wonder if I could use these for temporarily.


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## spotmonster (Nov 23, 2006)

The rocks you have in the tank now look just like the ones I am going to remove from my 180 soon. They are commonly called zebra rock. I never bothered to find out exactly what kind they are.

The extra rocks you have picked up will work fine. I wouldn't go through that much trouble cleaning them though. I just power wash my rocks and put them in the tank.


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## Dierianrigg (Dec 18, 2013)

When I put them in water and wait, water stays clear. However, if I brush them mud/dirt/part of the rocks/mineral (I am not sure what it is, makes the water brownish) keeps pouring out. So, that makes me worried.


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## atreis (Jan 15, 2013)

I ran mine through the dishwasher after scrubbing, etc...  Anyway, IMO, tanks look better if there's a single kind of rock. Multiple kinds tend to look unnatural together.


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## DJRansome (Oct 29, 2005)

No matter what you put in your tank you would scrub off any loose material. Soak and use a wire brush if necessary.


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## oetheous (May 25, 2013)

Wow! Awesome tank. I am jealous. I would stick with haps/ peacocks. Forget the mbuna.


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## spotmonster (Nov 23, 2006)

Brush them good with clean water and put them in the tank, you'll be fine. You probably didn't scruff hard enough to remove the mineral deposits. I purchased a stiff bristle brush for scrubbing dishes like this one : http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_S3-Qc3ayKsY/T ... +brush.jpg

Notice it is rounded, that helps when getting into cracks and crevices.


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## Dierianrigg (Dec 18, 2013)

I am using almost the same brush. No matter how much I brush them, brownish thing doesn't go away.

Stocking wise, how about Pseudotropheus acei, Pseudotropheus saulosi coral red and Pseudotropheus elongatus jewel spot? 1m:4-5f from each.


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## DJRansome (Oct 29, 2005)

You don't need to remove spots from the rocks...just make sure to remove any loose material. Your stocking is likely to work but I'd do 3m:12f saulosi and 1m:7f elongatus.


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## Dierianrigg (Dec 18, 2013)

Since I am very new in this hobby, I am using aqadvisor as a guide. When I try 1m:7f Elongatus, 2m:10fm Saulosi and 1m:5f Acei, it says I need to do %46-50 weekly water change. That's too much, isn't it? How reliable is that?

Btw, thanks so much guys for your help


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## Kalost (Feb 27, 2013)

sounds about right.


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## Dierianrigg (Dec 18, 2013)

I think I might not be able to do that. Do you think %25-30 weekly will be fine? What would you recommend?


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## bpark83 (Aug 18, 2013)

Looks good as is!

As already said, more rocks would be best with mbuna though.


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## GTZ (Apr 21, 2010)

Dierianrigg said:


> it says I need to do %46-50 weekly water change. That's too much, isn't it? How reliable is that?


Weekly water changes in excess of 50% is typical for a fully stocked mbuna tank. Your nitrate readings before and after each water change will dictate how much and how often you need to perform water changes.


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## DJRansome (Oct 29, 2005)

I don't think your need for a 50% water change is changed by having a lightly stocked tank. But your risk of aggression is greater with fewer elongatus females.


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## WS61998 (Oct 30, 2013)

i went with some lava rock from a LFS.


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## Dierianrigg (Dec 18, 2013)

So this is the process so far, in case you guys are interested   I think the fish will like this setup better.


























As far as stocking goes I keep changing my mind  So far I have 2m7f and 4u Saulosi (2"-2.5"). They are in the tank for the last 10days. I am planing to add 8 Cyno. Hara (2") and 10-12 Elongatus Jewel Spot (2") and end up with 1m4f Hara and 1m7f Jewel Spot. I may reduce the number of Saulosis, too. Also my measurements were little off. The footprint of the tank is 45.7x16.1 and 62.8G. What do you think? Any suggestions?


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## atreis (Jan 15, 2013)

I love the new look - much improved.

Just a comment on the bubble-maker: I like it's placement and the look, but suspect you might not like it over the long-term... All those bubbles pop, and spray tiny amounts of (hard) water onto whatever is above and behind the tank. That water evaporates and leaves behind a tiny amount of Calcium Carbonate, which will build up. (This is from experience, by the way. I turned off my air pump after about three months.)


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## Dierianrigg (Dec 18, 2013)

Thanks atreis, I'll keep that in mind.

Today, I've seen black upside down catfish at my lfs. Anyone has experience with it? I think they are called Mystus leucophasis (http://www.planetcatfish.com/common/spe ... cies_id=21). They get huge :?  The fishes at my lfs were around 3" and they were in a mbuna tank with auratus, socolofi, yellow labs etc. Cichlids didn't care about them. However, the catfishes was looking curious about them but not as fast. So, they look harmless to each other. Do you think it will be ok to add one of them to my tank? Or do you think the catfish will grow up way faster than the mbunas and start trying to eat them? :-? :-?


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## Iggy Newcastle (May 15, 2012)

I'd skip that cat and look for Synodontis Lucipinnis 'dwarf petricola' instead. Max out around 4". Get a group of 6. Of course, they'd benefit from more rock work and so would the mbuna.


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## Dierianrigg (Dec 18, 2013)

Unfortunately, none of the stores(local or online) here sells any of the synos, maybe nigriventris. I don't want to get plecos. What other bottom feeders and/or algea cleaners could be a good tank mate for mbunas?


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## Shahlvah (Dec 28, 2011)

Nerite snails (fresh water ones). In my experience they are top on alga eaters, they will last about a year if you have them in a cichlid tank, I have 25 on my 240 g and 15 on my 100 g. they keep the windows and the rocks sparkling clean and they will NOT eat your plants.


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## Shahlvah (Dec 28, 2011)

you can also get some Malaysian Trumpet Snail, these will eat anything the fish don't eat, including their waste and also as they live under the sand, they will move it around eliminating those anaerobic pockets. trumpet snails don't eat algae, nerites do. cichlids don't bother them at all, and when they are on their way, they just grab them and put them in a different side of the aquarium.


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## DJRansome (Oct 29, 2005)

My MTS clog my filters...be careful with them. I consider them a pest not something I would want to add.


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## Dierianrigg (Dec 18, 2013)

Thanks for the suggestions.



DJRansome said:


> My MTS clog my filters...be careful with them. I consider them a pest not something I would want to add.


How do they clog the filters?


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## DJRansome (Oct 29, 2005)

As they die their shells remain. They can be tiny...get sucked up in the filters and the python and will not allow the water to flow. When I take apart the clogged item, I find a blob of MTS shells.


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## Shahlvah (Dec 28, 2011)

I scoop them up with a net...


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