care of blue rams

[Bubble]

Yesterday I went out and bought a gorgeous little blue ram - my first ever cichlid!
After i put him in my tank i came on this website to see if i could find any useful info about rams. A lot of people seemed to think that rams won't live very long unless you give them exactly the right water conditions. So i was wondering, is this true? And if so what are the water conditions a ram needs, and how often will I need to do water changes to keep him healthy?
He's doing fine so far but i'd hate to lose him.

Also, if you know of any other cichlids who are peaceful enough for community tanks (with fish such as tetras) please will you mention them.

 

[kool_sk8a]

you should really find out info before u buy the fish!
yeah they do need exactly the right conditions. I dont know what these conditions are because i have never kept them before. someone will probably be on later who can give u a good detailed answer ok.

 

[Managuense]

i am assuming you read my post earlier?

that is what my personal experience with them was, but i suppose YMMV.

what is your water ph, kh etc.?
M

 

[Cichlid-Man]

Yes water conditions are important. People think they can just put fish in the tank and they would be fine.....even goldfish.

Kribs, rams are the 2 most common community cichlid. Also harder to find but great little fish the.. Cockatoo Dwarf Cichlid.

 

[Bubble]

i have never tested the pH of my water because the fish store said it didn't really matter. i keep everything from mollies to tetras in the same tank and they are all doing really well. I don't add salt for the mollies but this has never affected them.

what pH should it be for the ram?

 

[Cichlid-Man]

O yes.....test test test. Just to be sure. Yes you can get away with not doing it but i am not advising anybody to do this.


I'd say about 6.0? Anybody else?

 

[Bubble]

if the pH is wrong how can you change it?

 

[kool_sk8a]

there are many chemicals or powders etch which u can use to change the PH but i wouldnt advice using them unless u really need to

 

[kool_sk8a]

also by not putting salt in the water of your mollies i heard it can cause them long term kidney damage

 

[wayne]

I think if mollies aren't kept in salty or at least very hard water they get a whole bunch of health problems inc. kidney damage, misshapen bones....

Back to rams - nice, pretty fish, farmed ones now have less colour unfortunately and are a bit less hardy. Rams prefer, and only seem to do well in soft , slightly acidic water, though there is room for slack. If your ph is above 7.5 you will likely struggle, ditto if you have hard water, though you may always get lucky and get a tough one.
Making water more acidic and stable is a tough one, and if you aren't experienced with fiddling with water chemistry, I'd normally advise don't bother - fast pH swings are very harmful, and very easy to generate.

 

[catfishmike]

i have had good luck with my rams.my female died in a move but not water related.my male is one of the biggest rams i have ever seen and full of color.but ikeep him in a large tank.i think a big tank that's no too heavly stocked will make a happy healty ram.i keep mine in a ph 7.8 and pretty hard.does that mean i'm saying is easy? no.rams are not the most hardy fish i see many more die than what live an i hardly even recognize them in the stores.so often they are pale and don't look much like a ram at all.my advice good water quality thats what i think keeps my ram nice

 

[Managuense]

i have tried using 'pristine' water quality with blue rams and still have had them drop like flies after only a few months. my water had a ph of 7.8 and was quite hard both kh and gh.

i guess YMMV, but i have never had good luck with them.
M