[vacholino]

Hello all,

Im planning to purchase a new tank. *** found 55 gallon aquarium kits that fits in my budget, but im afraid that I will get tired of it after a couple of months and want a 75 gallon.

Do you guys think a 55g is enough for a malawi tank with about 12 cichlids or should I aim for a 75 gallon.

And also, where can I find cheap sand? Seems like aquarium sand found at petcos are way to expensive for me.

Can I find good sand for aquariums at home depot? what do you recommend?

regards

Vacholino

 

[chromedome]

g-day vacholino,

if you can stretch your budget go for the 75g
sure you will 15 cichlids depending on species maybe more with the dwarfs but.........
youv'e already indicated your desire for a 75g.... go for it!

as for sand how about pool filter sand? fairly cheap, just be sure to wash it well before use, as of course with any substrate. there's a guide how to in the library.
i don't have pool sand myself but lot's of members do.

good luck and enjoy

regards chromedome :thumb:

 

[Timkat4867]

In my opinion, you should buy the biggest tank you can afford. 55 is good, but I think 75 is better for malawis. I would get tired of a 55 gallon. But thats just what I think.
The 12 cichlids you want to keep depends on what species and numbers of each, and filtration.

 

[igetbombed1977]

I'm sure you could get a great deal on a 75 with everything if you try craigslist! I use a 55 gallon as my "breeding tank", but IMO to small to be your show tank.

 

[vacholino]

I actually tried craigslist! i didnt find one single 75g in a 10 mile radius.

I want to use poolsand, it looks good and seems cheap, but i remember reading somewhere that it raises the ph level of the water? is that true? does it affect the water quality in any way??

thank you for your great help

 

[Cardiff]

i have put coral sand in mine and the ph has gone alot higher

 

[chromedome]

what's your ph out of the tap?

ph for malawi cichlids should be somewhere in the region of 7.8- 8.2 however a stable ph is more desirable than a perfect number ie: stability rather than perfection.

my ph out of the tap is around 7.2 and i use coral sand but still use the buffer recipe available in the library section so as to achieve a kh of between 10-14 dkh and a gh of between 9-18dgh.
i do 50 per cent water changes weekly so adjust accordingly.my readings today are 11dkh and 14 dgh.

have you thought about filtration ? a very important point with cichlids but thats another thread.

 

[vacholino]

i dont know my ph from my tap, I have to buy a test kit. Do you know any good testkids you can recommend??

also recommend me a filter, i dont want to be cheap on filter.

 

[chromedome]

i test my ph with my swimming pool ph kit but also test for amonia, nitrite, nitrate, and gh, kh as already mentioned. i use sera test kits, a tip is to do half of the recommended water in the vial and half the the drops required. wa-la same result twice as much use from your kit !!!!

i would recommend other people from your neck of the woods sugest filters because you have different filters available than in Australia.

regards chromedome :thumb:

 

[vacholino]

ok thank you !!! appreciate it.

regards,

vacholino

 

[Twister23]

you can find a good filter at a good price on http://www.bigalsonline.com/

 

[Dewdrop]

I'd say go for a 75g. tank. I have a 55g. and am working on getting a 75g. but want to keep the 55g. running too lol. Unless you have lots of room for many tanks, I'd say go as big as you can get because it's very addictive lol. You really should have a 10g. tank for a quarentine/hospital tank too. Maybe start out with the 10g. and juvenile fish while saving for a 75g. tank. Just a thought and maybe not a good one. See what others say.

Sorry I can't help with the sand or filters. I'm using gravel and checking into filters myself for my 75g. upgrade. I use 2 hang on back filters on the 55g. but want more for the 75g.

I use an API brand test kit. :fish:

 

[vacholino]

ok thank you!

I actually have a 10g and a 29g

I will get the API brand test kit, I found it here at a local petco.

thank u

 

[vacholino]

thank you twister
im also looking for a 75G, but im having trouble finding one.

any tips?

 

[chromedome]

yep, pray if you want a good second hand cheap one or.......

have a big wallet. :lol: :lol: :lol:

 

[Twister23]

I have a 55g with 4 labs and 8 peacocks and I have an Emperor 400 that works great. They have it on sale at bigals for $39.99. If you go to Petco that same filter will cost you $80. This filter will not be strong enough on a 75g alone.

 

[Timkat4867]

Rena filstar XP3 is a good canister filter that I use, I actually have an XP2 hooked up as well for heavy filtration. Or you could go for a fluval canister filter. Both are good in my opinion.

 

[DJRansome]

I have a Rena Filstar XP3 canister on my 125G and I'm getting another for my new 75G, so I agree with Timkat4867. A lot of people also put a power filter on so you have a backup and a spare when you need it for a hospital/quarantine/fry tank.