Meep556 Posted June 2 Share Posted June 2 Was curious about adding a couple fish in my tank. I have a 40 gallon tank with guppies, bristle noses, and a single angel fish. But I was wanting something different. Was wonder if I could may add a couple electric blue dwarf cichlids. I’ve always loved them. But I’ve never had cichlids. My tank is heavily planted and scaped. Just looking for some colorful options. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tony s Posted June 2 Share Posted June 2 If you’re looking at rams. Rams like it very hot. Hotter than your guppies can do. Apistogramma borelii could work. You could probably squeeze in an acara. But wouldn’t do more than 1. And when it gets big. Guppies may go missing Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lennie Posted June 2 Share Posted June 2 You actually have a cichlid, angels are cichlids! I agree with Tony, If you wanna add a fish, don’t add something that will breed and disturb the peace in the tank, or anything that will eat the guppies when grown. The average size of rams and apistos are good to be safe. But aggression still arises when they pair up. I once put a pair of rams in a small 50 liter tank with 4-5 guppies as dithers. It didnt go well, I witnessed them attacking and bullying, so I instantly moved rams to a bigger tank. In that tank I have a panda guppy colony, my angelfish Wedesday, some whiptails, bristlenose and gbr. The parameters of the tank won’t really let GBR to breed as the ph and hardness is high. Otherwise it is okay for now but fairly a new stocking for me. Angelfish is not a huge fan of sharing the tank with another cichlid, but they share different levels of the tank so it is usually fine This sort of setup works for me when I add bettas as last too. You can also consider gouramis instead as well. I want it better to avoid cichlid to cichlid combo no matter where they are from the world. Mixing non cichlid species usually work much better for me. But gourami to gourami may have similar aggression issues like cichlid to cichlid has depending on the species 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Meep556 Posted June 2 Author Share Posted June 2 Ok I noted all of that. I have an extra 40g tank that I might set up for them then. I have decided that ima go with the dwarf cichlid species for sure. So with that being decided. In a 40, could I scape it like I have the 40 with the angel fish in it? My favorite part of fish tanks is scaping them. So that’s gonna play a huge part in it lol. I’ve seen people with cichlid tanks and some of them just look plain… no offense to any one. I just love the planted and hard scaped looks. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lennie Posted June 2 Share Posted June 2 (edited) On 6/2/2024 at 9:05 PM, Meep556 said: I’ve seen people with cichlid tanks and some of them just look plain… no offense to any one. I just love the planted and hard scaped looks. Some cichlids basically eat plants. That’s why some of those scapes have no plants. Or they come from regions that are naturally this way. Like check malawi cichlids in nature under water. Basically tons of rocks and sand We usually try to imitate their natural environment and meet their needs, like shell dwellers commonly being kept on fine sand and shells around. Malawi cichlids being kept in tanks full of rockwork. Geophagus being kept on fine sand. Some fish like parameters that can be tough on plants too besides directly eating. I know someone who designed a beautifully planted tank for his altums and they devoured all plants. Severums are known to eat plants for example. If you want a planted tank you should avoid such fish. Your tank looks pretty. If you want something similar, make sure you dont keep fish that eats plants and enjoy similar scapes. Not all cichlids are suitable for planted tanks. That being said, if you like cichlids and scaping a different style this time, you can maybe instead focus on such fish with different natural environments this time same goes for saltwater tanks too. Not all fish/critters are reef safe or safe for macroalgae tanks as they will just eat them or hurt them. The main goal is usually deciding on species you want and design a tank around it Edited June 2 by Lennie 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Meep556 Posted June 2 Author Share Posted June 2 (edited) On 6/2/2024 at 3:02 PM, Lennie said: same goes for saltwater tanks too. Not all fish/critters are reef safe or safe for macroalgae tanks as they will just eat them or hurt them. The main goal is usually deciding on species you want and design a tank around it Salt water is next on my list. I would love to have a simple little set up in a 36g bow tank. With a pair of clowns, never done salt water though so that’s gonna be a good amount of research. You got me looking up plant friendly cichlids now lmao. Edited June 2 by Meep556 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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