An odd Cichlid question

[Rayneuki]

Hey guys, as you can obviously notice... I'm new =D
I've had fish most of my life... They're fun, beutiful, and such... But just recently I've found out about cycling and such... (Just cause I had fish doesn't mean I was an expert...)

So, I'm planning on buying a fish tank... I have the room for a 10 - 20 gal tank... I've looked around and I've become intrested in a couple of different tank designs...

First: The biOrb and biUbe are pretty neat... I think they look good, does anyone have one? Or has anyone had one in the past? How is their filter/pump system? Does the heater attatchment look good or tacky? Also, which are better? The ube or the orb?!

Second: I'm intrested in Cichlids... I know the biggest biOrb is 16 gal, I think they MIGHT have a bigger one in the biUbe... But my question on that is... What S. American (or african) Dwarf Cichlids are the best for a 'newer' hobbiest? I do have a few experienced friends, ones whom can help me if I need any... And now I've got you guys =P

Would two blue rams do well in a 16 gal? I would really like to get two Kribs... They're beutiful fish... If I have a 16 gal and possibly one or two Kribs, which upper dwelling fish should I get? If any?

I also plan to try my hand at fishless cycling (I'm going to my LFS on the weekend... There's three around here that I'm intrested in looking at.)

Thanks for the info!

EDIT:
Also... Are those alge cleaner magnents worth it? They do kinna look odd, and LOOK like they could work... but is it worth it? Or should I just transfer my little sucker-fish-like-thing... Little black and brown stripped guy.

 

[Cichlid-Man]

Those tanks don't provide much room for anything honestly. Not a big enough footprint, only height. Kribs and Apistos could work, just given the gallonage but not footprint. A pair of either not both. Rams i find to be much more sensitive....maybe its my water, others have great success with them.

Honestly some top dwelling tetras MIGHT last for a while, but once your cichlids pair up they will most likely kill anything in the general area. A 16gal is only so big and doesn't offer much room to get away.

I like my algae cleaning magnet. Works pretty well except for the harder crusty algae. Usually i just prefer to clean by hand. But the magnets would be good on something like a deep tank or a tank that you can't get easy access to.

The sucker fish is probably a pleco which will get larger then a 16gal can support.

 

[Rayneuki]

He's not a pleco, I know his name begins with an O or something. Ah I found it with a quick round on Google. He's a Otocinclus Cat, I just want to make sure he has a good life (he's my favorite in my current tank... We call him Zim cause when we got him at the pet store, his sucker got stuck and he freaked out... He's doing very well now though <3 )

So a pair of Kribs or Apistos would do well? I'm just trying to make all the mistakes I can on PAPER before I actualy go out and buy a tank.

Any other tank types you know of, between the 10 - 20 range... I like the sea clear tanks... Are they good buys?

And is it just me, or do those 'Living picture in a wall' tanks seem cruel?

Edit: Oh yeah, forgot something again...
Live rock / sand is only for saltwater right? Or can I put a little live rock in a freshwater to start the bacterial growth a bit quicker? I've also read mixed reviews on that "Cycle" stuff, so I'm a bit wary to use it.

 

[Rayneuki]

Alright I went to my LFS... It's a great place! =D
They clean the nets between uses, quarentine the fish for 6 to 8 days before putting them into the tanks when they get them, they were cleaning out a tank with a 6" oscar in it when I was there... The oscar was in great shape too.

They had an 18gal square tank up for sale and it had a lot of stuff with it. It had the stand, the tank (duh), a hood, lights, gravel, thermometer, heater, and a nice filter. Aqua-something brand filter that is... It was going for $238 or so.

And dear lord were those kribs adorable.

 

[Cichlid-Man]

I'd just do a regular fishless cycle. The Live Rock and sand are for SW yes.

Kribs would do fine in that tank, gallon wise. But i'm concerned about the footprint of the tank. Its neither wide or long, its more tall then anything. Most dwarf cichlids like to dwell near the bottem so the bigger the footprint the better. A standard rectangle aquarium would be better. Especially because its easy to use any filter on the market. With a round or odd shaped aquarium you must cater the parts of that system to the shape.

 

[Rayneuki]

Yeah that was what I was starting to think. I'm going to try to go for a 20 gal sea clear... Or the 18 gal at the LFS. It's got a HOB filter from what I could see. It looks really nice too... Blue gravel, make it different from my little 1 gal brown gravel.

 

[Rayneuki]

Wow, I just found a 29 gal 29-40 Gallon Rectangle Aquarium Kit - Aquariums at Aquariums Direct How nice is that? All I need for this is a heater and thermometer... correct? (And the food I want, I'm not sure what kind of food is with it... So I want to make sure I get what the LFS reccomends... Saying that they breed their own Kribs. )