A lot of cichlids would love to have a crayfish for lunch. When he molts he may get eaten. If he is big enough, he may have one of your fish as a midnight snack.

 

I would stock five yellow labs, six rusties and six demasoni.All these fish will be very colorful whether they are male or female. Chinese algae eaters work sometimes. They even get aggressive and defend themselves. Tropheus Moorii are somewhat effective algae eaters, but only get one for this tank.

 

Schneider it's only a 29G tank, that's 30" long.

I would not do mbuna in this tank, 36" is my minimum, even for dwarfs.

If you want to try mbuna anyway and take a risk I'd do a peaceful, dwarf species like cynotilapia afra cobue, 1m:4f.

I would not put crayfish with fish for the reasons mentioned.

 

DJ, no offense here, but many people do not want 1m:4f or do not only want dwarfs, most people don't want to breed too. I have seen and heard of setups that worked perfectly despite all the hubbub of "professional" aquarists who said the exact opposite. For example, I have had many people in forums tell me that a 29 is too small for mbuna, however, the only reason I considered getting them in the first place was because the owner of my local Petland told me that it would be OK. And I've found the mbuna have their own personality and the general temperament of a species might not be what you get. SO with all that said, it is perfectly fine to get Malawi's in a 29, with the right research.

 

To have a nice crowded active Mbuna tank with a mix of species...? A 29 gallon is not recommended!
Not long enough for the fish to avoid each other's personal space, not big enough to sanely stock with enough fish and have them grow normally.

If 29 gallon is the best you can possibly do...? Maybe, as said, some small Cynotilapia afra with some dither fish or maybe Yellow Labidochromis. 4-5 each Afra and Yellow Labs. This could sorta work and still be an interesting tank, just don't expect perfection.

 

I disagree, I believe 6-8 Mbunas could be kept nicely in a 29 gallon.

 

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I think it's in the best interest of everyone to provide good, safe recommendations. With that understanding, a 29 isn't ideal for keeping mbuna.

With that said, if you are dead set on trying a 29 out - make sure you have a second tank close by (or better yet, setup) just in case. For a tank this size, I would consider a few smaller mbuna species.

C. afra or other small Cyno.
Ps. saulosi
Ps. polit

With the 1st and 3rd choices, I would shoot for 1M/3-5F, and with the Ps. saulosi I'd go with 1M/3-4F or 3M/5F.

 

Thanks noki and why_spyder for chiming in. And yes, TheSimster, you are right, I am very conservative. I will tend to advise stocking that has as close as possible to 100% chance of working.

Maybe I should add that to my sig...advice for high odds of success available here, long odds gamblers search elsewhere. :lol:

I personally have a 36" tank (my first tank, bought before I researched, LOL) and went against all advice and stocked 9 Demasoni and 3 yellow labs. It worked wonderfully for the first 8 months too and I felt very smug. But at 8 months I found out the Joea and cichlidaholic were right. When my fish matured, started fighting, and dying of bloat. I cured the tank, added the requisite Demasoni and things straightened right out.

It's very stressful to relax in front of the tank and see terrorized fish instead of playful chasing, especially for a newbie who has not yet developed the confidence that he/she can fix it. And the dead bodies take all the fun out of it entirely.

 

Thanks, this is very helpful. For now I am will stick with the 29, it fits in well with the size I have. If I enjoy it I may move up. Yes the dwarf species are a fit for me and they look like the fish I had before. I agree that have a bunch of fish terrorizing each other does not seem too relaxing or enjoyable.

The suggestion on the Chinese algae eaters helps I had them before with cichlids and they seemed to survive. Will any catfish type fish work? The crayfish seem out are there any other fresh water crustaceans that work in here?

Finally any general recommendations on the type of store I can go to find the rocks I need. I remember that aquarium stores seemed expensive, landscaping supply places?

Thanks again for all the replies its helping me put together a plan.
:thumb:

 

Landscaping suppliers are a great place to get rocks cheap. It is a very common practice.

 

CAE's have a reputation of sucking the slime coat off the fish instead of eating the algae after a while, which can kill the fish.

I had a trio of synodontis lucipinnis in my 36" tank that worked well. If you are looking for an algae-eater, a single bristlenose pleco would perform well and have at least a 50/50 chance of survival in a mbuna tank. They seem to be the best balance between effective algae cleaning, no harm to the mbuna, and survival chances.

I have never seen a success story with a crustacean. The crustacean harms the fish before it molts, and the fish eat the crustacean as soon as it molts. Even with lots of hiding places.

 

DJ, no offense here, but many people do not want 1m:4f or do not only want dwarfs, most people don't want to breed too. I have seen and heard of setups that worked perfectly despite all the hubbub of "professional" aquarists who said the exact opposite. For example, I have had many people in forums tell me that a 29 is too small for mbuna, however, the only reason I considered getting them in the first place was because the owner of my local Petland told me that it would be OK. And I've found the mbuna have their own personality and the general temperament of a species might not be what you get. SO with all that said, it is perfectly fine to get Malawi's in a 29, with the right research.

I find it very encouraging that the OP is actually asking about what fish to add to this tank before going through with it. I'm sure his / her fish will appreciate it, as well.

People don't generally ask for advice just to ignore it, and I can assure you that very few of us go to the trouble of typing out a response if we're not trying to help both the poster AND their fish.

DJRansome gives some of the best advice you could ask for as far as Malawi cichlids go.

TheSimster, don't ever claim success with a cichlid tank unless it's been set up for 2 years. You might just have to change your mind. Or you may wind up in the health and illness folder, trying to figure out where you went wrong.

Most hobbyist want to set up a tank with a good chance of long term success.

A 29G tank is too small for most mbuna. Period...

AND...The OP stated this is a 29G HIGH.

So, we really want to verify the dimensions of the footprint of the tank before making any suggestions at all. :thumb:

Once we have that, then we can really help! Too many custom tanks on the market to make assumptions!

 

And I've found the mbuna have their own personality and the general temperament of a species might not be what you get. SO with all that said, it is perfectly fine to get Malawi's in a 29, with the right research.

Tell that to the 9 yellow labs and 9 demasoni that died due to aggression in my 60g 36" long tank.

Having just gone through the painful, and expensive, process of losing most of the fish in my first mbuna tank I would 110% agree with DJRansome et al. that a 29g is too small for cichlids, unless the OP is willing to stick to a single dwarf species in the numbers listed by people who I consider experts. So far every piece of advice I've received from people like DJ, Cichlidaholic and the larger community here has been bang on, whether I wanted to hear it or not.