cichlid question.

[ricksconnected]

thats a million dollar question. i had a roommate move out back in 2002ish.
he left them in a 30. he couldnt take them.
i think he might have gotten them from petsmart or even a resuce from a friend who couldnt care for them. their parents were in this house and maybe even their grandparents. this family of fish have been here since
1998 i believe.

 

[raisedonnintendo]

Oh and I mix sand and smooth pebbles my self. It let's them dig there caves a little better and sturdy. Oh n the sand doesn't need to be like powderd sugar so most sand just big enough to not go thru your home mesh strainer will work

 

[raisedonnintendo]

1998 nope your good then. Do u have a power head in your tank?

 

[ricksconnected]

hey show me a couple pics of your setup if ya can. i do like these types of fish and i bet you have the goods with your setup.

 

[ricksconnected]

i did have. it seemed to make him more tippy.
i had a nano powerhead in there. should i put it back?

 

[raisedonnintendo]

I would maby aim it at a wall so it's no so direct. I wish I knew how to post a pic from my iPhone

 

[ricksconnected]

just post it when you get home.
you never said what foods youi feed.

 

[raisedonnintendo]

Oh flake like u. That's the main staple with a weekly dose of rods and brine, or rods and plankton. Every 2 weeks some zucchini or other veggie on hand. Shoot if u put your finger n my tank they would try n eat that. So getting them to eat a variety has never been a problem.

 

[ricksconnected]

ok which flake? i accidently fed them my reef flakes in the purple container, forget the name. they went blitzkrig over it. i mean nuts.
let me ask you, i have a major alge problem on the glass with this 55.
any better way to control it other than to keep cleaning it off all the time?
no idea what causes it but it comes back very fast. gets thick too.
i didnt know rods had freshwater foods.

 

[raisedonnintendo]

I use el cheap'os brand flake food. Wardley I used to buy It by the box as a main staple comes in a 1ft by 1ft box. I used it for the kiddie pools when I had like 1000 black mollies running around. Still use it n everything at home as a main staple. But the key is I supplement there diets with high end foods n veggies weekly. Keeps the color up then. Rods doesn't make a fresh food I just use original or veggie 1. I've always been good at keeping cost down a quality of my animals lives up. Comon I had fish in a 10$ kiddie pool for crying out loud. Fish didn't care what the tub looked liked they just had plenty o room to swim.

 

[raisedonnintendo]

For algae maby get a zebra pleco. That look good with a striped convict u think?

 

[ricksconnected]

wow, my gang dont care for rods food (original) they spit it back out lol.
i do add a seachem sup that brings out their colors more so than anything ive seen.

 

[ricksconnected]

yes they are beautiful indeed. do they get big?
are they serious about the algae?
how many for a 55 tank ya think?

 

[raisedonnintendo]

I have only had 1 I got many of years ago if my memory serves me. He lived under the bit of wood most his life. Along side his pictus and sydontis buddy. All very healthy eaters he died not to long ago I'm gonna guess he was 6-8 years old and about the same in length. Don't know how many to put n there. Had more similar to his looks always had a couple per tank.

 

[raisedonnintendo]

If u get flake food and put it in a ziploc bag. U can mash it between your fingers into the corners. It works great as a starter food for fry since it's about dust size. Just a little FYI

 

[ricksconnected]

ive had algae problems with this tank since day 1. i bought it from a guy who had the same issues too. (plastic POS)
dont know what it is but 10 yrs later and still has algae issues.

 

[ricksconnected]

RaisedOnNintendo;586099 wrote: If u get flake food and put it in a ziploc bag. U can mash it between your fingers into the corners. It works great as a starter food for fry since it's about dust size. Just a little FYI

i use on of those cups ya get your butter in at red lobster lol.
then take a fork and chop chop chop.

 

[sarahh]

am i the only lame-o with a mortar and pestle for my fish?

i crush anything from hikari growth formula to algae wafers to flake food. i do draw the line at frozen foods

 

[raisedonnintendo]

Wifes a pharmi I actually mix my frozen with flake for coral food. It about dissolves I use a syringe n feed corals like birds nest with the juice.

 

[sarahh]

wait! dang it?!? there is a pretty little coral in this tank.. i am supposed to feed it? yikes! where do i start on THAT?
FWIW i have krill, brine shrimp and emerald entree in the freezer