i am ready to start to switch over from a planted barb tank to a chiclid tank with all rock....i want to change my substrate also...any suggestions to what type i should use.....what looks and works well with cichlids..its a 30 gl tank and i aint sure yet what type of fish i will put in yet...also is it unsual to have no plants or should i put just a few in..
switch over
- Thread starter snoce
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Sand Sand Sand Sand Sand! 
You will love to see the cichlids spit the sand.
Its not unusual at all. I have 2 plantless tanks, just rocks, sand and fish.
If you want some plants its ok to put a few in. Java ferns and anubias do good in cichlid tanks, tough easy to grow plants that can be attached to things and still grow, oh and low light. A few other choices to (val, swords, etc). Only problem you will find with substrate plants is that the fish will dig and the plants will go floating up.
You will love to see the cichlids spit the sand.Its not unusual at all. I have 2 plantless tanks, just rocks, sand and fish.
If you want some plants its ok to put a few in. Java ferns and anubias do good in cichlid tanks, tough easy to grow plants that can be attached to things and still grow, oh and low light. A few other choices to (val, swords, etc). Only problem you will find with substrate plants is that the fish will dig and the plants will go floating up.
Cichlid man are u saying i should use a low light...do cichilds like dim lighting....I use 2 lights now a 65w and a 20w....should I use the 65w or even use less with the 20w....also...what i plan to do is only empty bout half of my tank water because i want to keep some of the already cycled water then I will take out old gravel and place in new(sand i think)...or should i empty entire tank and clean it then just restart....what type of sand do i use is there a basic type that my lfs sells
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Your water is not what is cycled....its the filter. As long as you dont rinse the filter with chlorinated water or let it dry out...you'll be fine switching out all of your water.
I think if you're changing the substrate completely it'll be nearly impossible to do it with water still in the tank Dont forget to rinse the sand REALLY WELL before putting it in the tank or you'll be doing about 5 big water changes before you can even see your fish I would just get playsand from Walmart or Home Depot. You can check around. All the sand I have in my tanks came from a 50 lb bag of playsand I got from Walmart for less than $3. The sand your LFS has is probably MUCH more expensive, but of course that will work too.
Depending on the cichlids that you want to keep, I dont know that I'd put plants in it. The ones I have uproot the fake plants constantly. I have to replant them almost every water change lol
Which cichlids are you looking at getting?
I think if you're changing the substrate completely it'll be nearly impossible to do it with water still in the tank
Dont forget to rinse the sand REALLY WELL before putting it in the tank or you'll be doing about 5 big water changes before you can even see your fish I would just get playsand from Walmart or Home Depot. You can check around. All the sand I have in my tanks came from a 50 lb bag of playsand I got from Walmart for less than $3. The sand your LFS has is probably MUCH more expensive, but of course that will work too. Depending on the cichlids that you want to keep, I dont know that I'd put plants in it. The ones I have uproot the fake plants constantly. I have to replant them almost every water change lol
Which cichlids are you looking at getting?
some of the tanganyikan cichlids stay relatively small...but it would probably be best to stick with one or two types of them. I think 30 is too small to do an mbuna (usually those mixed african cichlids) tank because each of them gets up to 6 inches or so and overcrowding would happen with only a couple of fish. n. Brichardis are kinda fun, gorgeous, breed like rabbits It would be fun to have a species tank of them. This could be a case of going to see what your local stores have and bringing names home to research??
It would be fun to have a species tank of them. This could be a case of going to see what your local stores have and bringing names home to research??Play sand is great. $3-$5 for 50lbs.
Well if you have the lights then go for any plants you can wedge somewhere or keep them down. I was just trying to say that most people who go towards cichlids (generilization coming up, not everyone is included.) doesn't get those huge expensive lights for plants because they focus on the cichlids and don't keep a heavily planted tank. So if you have the lights your options will open up a bit more, i was just saying "generally" you don't see the big light kits in cichlid tanks. Excluding of course the real heavily planted amazon type tanks.
I'm more of an african guy myself so i would suggest some kind of african. Yellow Labs would be a pretty good choice, pretty common and good to see across the room.
As froggy says tangs would be good. Brichardis are a good choice, might even get a spawn soon after too.
I also suggest what froggy says, go to the store, see what grabs your eye and come home with its name. Or browse through our profiles...i believe we have quite a number of cichlids listed that would go well.
Well if you have the lights then go for any plants you can wedge somewhere or keep them down. I was just trying to say that most people who go towards cichlids (generilization coming up, not everyone is included.) doesn't get those huge expensive lights for plants because they focus on the cichlids and don't keep a heavily planted tank. So if you have the lights your options will open up a bit more, i was just saying "generally" you don't see the big light kits in cichlid tanks. Excluding of course the real heavily planted amazon type tanks.
I'm more of an african guy myself so i would suggest some kind of african. Yellow Labs would be a pretty good choice, pretty common and good to see across the room.
As froggy says tangs would be good. Brichardis are a good choice, might even get a spawn soon after too.
I also suggest what froggy says, go to the store, see what grabs your eye and come home with its name. Or browse through our profiles...i believe we have quite a number of cichlids listed that would go well.
You can take an airline tube and hover it over the sand to siphon/ pick up debris. Sometimes I take the back of a fish net, stir up the sand, and then use the other end to scoop out the poo. You gotta stir the sand every once in a while to prevent pockets of anaerobic bacteria from forming anyway.
Good to see you back, snoce my buddy *BOUNCINGS
Good to see you back, snoce my buddy *BOUNCINGS
um...if you have a lawn I would suggest hooking up a hose...grabbing a pillowcase and a couple of buckets (my lawn could seriously use the water)
No lawn....do it in your sink or bathtub...but beware that there will be a lot of grime coming out and you'll probably make a mess with the sand (I always did)
You can fill up the pillowcase with say a couple pounds of sand...and then start rinsing. You want to rinse and move the sand around until the water runs nearly clean out of the pillowcase. I wouldn't try to rinse too much at the same time.
You could also try the bucket method...where you put some in the bottom of a bucket and let the water fill the bucket up and run out the top... when you stir the sand in the bottom everything that floats will flow out. I think this may waste a lot more water...but maybe not. Just again, you can't do too much at the same time.
(my lawn could seriously use the water)No lawn....do it in your sink or bathtub...but beware that there will be a lot of grime coming out and you'll probably make a mess with the sand (I always did)
You can fill up the pillowcase with say a couple pounds of sand...and then start rinsing. You want to rinse and move the sand around until the water runs nearly clean out of the pillowcase. I wouldn't try to rinse too much at the same time.
You could also try the bucket method...where you put some in the bottom of a bucket and let the water fill the bucket up and run out the top... when you stir the sand in the bottom everything that floats will flow out. I think this may waste a lot more water...but maybe not. Just again, you can't do too much at the same time.
OK SOUNDS GOOD...ANOTHER QUESTION BOUT MY FILTER AND MEDIA...I HAVE 2 PENQUIN 170 RUNNING....WILL SAND EFFECT THE FILTERS...DO I STILL USE THE FILTER MEDIA....ALSO HOW MANY TIMES DOES SAND GET RINSED WHEN WILL I KNOW ITS TIME TO PUT IN THE TANK....THANKS....SORRY FOR SO MANY QUESTIONS..I JUST LIKE DOING IT RIGHT THE FIRST TIME...I HAVE HAD SUCCESS FOR 3 YEARS NOW WITH MY BARB TANK AND I WANT TO MAKE THIS SWITCH WORK...
Rinse and rinse and rinse it until you can't rinse anymore, and then do it three more times. lol. Seriously, it will take a bit, but you'll know when it's ready because the water will be completely clear and you can dig your hand in the sand and swirl it about and it won't turn all the water cloudy.
I've had trouble with my filters and sand. I use a prefilter of floss rubberbanded on the intake grid, and that cuts out most of it. Be sure to wait a half hour or so until the sand settles after you fill your tank with water.
I wouldn't go anymore than an inch of sand. I did 2 inches and got swamp gas in three days. You know it's too deep and anaerobic conditions are forming when the sand bubbles.
This doesn't happen in my 3 gallon tank cause the sand is only 1/2 inch.
Sand is cool, I think i'd use playsand in all my tanks if I ever started over again.
Edit: oh yeah, still use the media, same as always.
I've had trouble with my filters and sand. I use a prefilter of floss rubberbanded on the intake grid, and that cuts out most of it. Be sure to wait a half hour or so until the sand settles after you fill your tank with water.
I wouldn't go anymore than an inch of sand. I did 2 inches and got swamp gas in three days. You know it's too deep and anaerobic conditions are forming when the sand bubbles.
This doesn't happen in my 3 gallon tank cause the sand is only 1/2 inch.
Sand is cool, I think i'd use playsand in all my tanks if I ever started over again.
Edit: oh yeah, still use the media, same as always.