Ph ?

[bunafireman825]

Wanting to keep cichlids and have read that the Ph needs to be from 8.0-9.0 is there any way to safely raise the Ph without chemicals?
My parms are
Ammonia-0
Nitrite-0
Nitrate-10
Ph-7.6
Gh-25
Kh-40
Thanks
Bunafireman825

[Tommy Gun]

Short of discus and maybe some other cichlids I haven't heard much about yet, I think your best bet will be to stick with the pH you have and just take a little extra time to acclimate your new fish to the water chemistry that occurs naturally in your tank. I am keeping mbuna in a pH of about 7.2-ish and they are not only thriving, but breeding on a pretty regular basis these days.

If you don't agree with me on that though, I suggest using a substrate such as crushed coral or argonite sand to buffer the pH of your tank. Keep in mind that you might have to change the Kh of your water in order to change pH and these substrates can/will do that for you. Like I said though, I don't think you really need it though.

[bunafireman825]

Originally Posted by Tommy Gun

I am keeping mbuna in a pH of about 7.2-ish and they are not only thriving, but breeding on a pretty regular basis these days.

If you don't agree with me on that though, I suggest using a substrate such as crushed coral or argonite sand to buffer the pH of your tank. Keep in mind that you might have to change the Kh of your water in order to change pH and these substrates can/will do that for you. Like I said though, I don't think you really need it though.

This is good news due to i want the mbuna. If i don't have to adjust the Ph then i won't(didn't want to anyway) and i always drip acclimate all my new fish, it seam like the best way to do it. With my Ph already 7.6(closer to what i read was needed) than yours i should be alright.
Thanks
Bunafireman825

[Tommy Gun]

With my Ph already 7.6(closer to what i read was needed) than yours i should be alright.

To be honest, because of the time in which I became interested in this hobby, I am not 100% sure why so many people are adamant about matching the pH of his/her fishes' natural environment. My guess would be either our understanding of water chemistry and its impact on livestock or simply the propagation of the opinions of the various 'naturalists' in the world.

Obviously pH isn't always a restrictive factor seeing as how a very large number of hobbyists who keep fish from different areas of the world in the same tank without having the ability to maintain two different types of water.

i always drip acclimate all my new fish, it seam like the best way to do it

Definitely the best way IMHO as well. Even if you were to take pH completely out of consideration, there are other reasons which support the use of drip acclimation or an equivalent.

I am 100% sure that you will be OK with your current pH...and if you wind up having a lot of problems, pH is probably not going to be the reason as long as it remains steady/stable all of the time.

This is good news due to i want the mbuna.

Awesome! I am a huge mbuna fan myself and can all but guarantee that you are not going to be disappointed.

Any ideas on which cichlids you want to keep yet?

[bunafireman825]

I only know the scientific names but these are the ones i want.
Petrotilapia Tridentiger-this one has been hard to find
Metriaclima estherae
Labidochromis sp.
Melanochromis Cyaneorhabdos
Labidochromis Caeruleus
Pseudotropheus Saulosi

I know that the two Labidochromis will compete for the same niche and thus be aggressive toward each other so thinking of replacing one of them with the Pseudotropheus Saulosi.
All this will be for my 125gal when it gets done.

Thanks
Bunafireman825

[Tommy Gun]

I have to say that I really like your taste in fish!!!

I know that the two Labidochromis will compete for the same niche and thus be aggressive toward each other so thinking of replacing one of them with the Pseudotropheus Saulosi

I could be wrong because I can't remember if I have done it or not in the past but I don't think your having two Labidochromis in the same tank is going to be a big issue. The yellow lab (Labidochromis Caeruleus) is usually a passive fish (when compared to other cichlids anyways) so if anything, my bet would be that they are the ones to get picked on. Of course, that isn't always the case - I have kept very dominant yellow labs - so your experience may differ. My point being, unless someone corrects me, I think you could keep all of the fish on your list in the same tank. Not only is your tank relatively large, aggression is an issue you will be faced with in any case.

How many of each species do you want to have?

[bunafireman825]

I was told 1 male and 5 females for each. I have read that overstocking a cichlid tank will help cut down on aggression, maybe due to a couple of factors. One being that if one starts chasing another there are other fish that can distract it from finishing the chase. Also it may not want to chase to far due to it having to worry about another fish entering it's "territory".

Also i have a question for you Tommy Gun
That differs from this post.


What would your opinion on drilling a tank on the back glass for an overflow?
I ask this because the stand i built has a bow in the top(not extremely bad) so i don't want to drill the bottom. I plan to use 1/2" tempered for the bottom.

[Tommy Gun]

I was told 1 male and 5 females for each.

Good plan!

I have read that overstocking a cichlid tank will help cut down on aggression, maybe due to a couple of factors.

I agree with this as well....my cichlid tank is pretty much overstocked right now. I think your large tank will also help curb aggression levels. The key to keeping many cichlids - including those on your list - is to provide a large number of 'caves' (even more caves than you have fish) throughout the tank and do your best to break up sightlines so one fish cannot see another on the completely opposite side of the tank....which should be easy to do in a long tank.

One being that if one starts chasing another there are other fish that can distract it from finishing the chase.

True...having more fish also means that dominant fish have more 'targets' to choose from so the aggression is diluted, so to speak. In fact, I use a couple types of barbs to act as target fish (aka dither fish) and it works great.

What would your opinion on drilling a tank on the back glass for an overflow?

Well, I am sure that it would work out in the end....I drilled the sides of my bio cube in order to use it as a refugium so the holes dont have to be on the bottom. Of course, it can be a pretty risky venture and it may or may not be worth doing it yourself if your tank is expensive (are you talking about the 125?).

I have found that drilling the back and/or sides of a tank does pose a problem because any horizontal pressure that is place on the plumbing can twist the glass. This actually happened to me the other day with my bio cube when I was stupid enough to yank on the cord to a power head. Luckily it was a very small crack and even though only a minute amount of water was getting through, I fixed it with some silicone. Of course, this could happen even if the holes are on the bottom of the tank, but I do think it is the safer way to go.

[bunafireman825]

I am building the tank myself so drilling glass is not a problem for me. I actually am a glazier(lead man at a glass shop) so i have all the tools and supplies on hand. As far as the bottom piece goes i can drill the holes then send it off to be tempered. I just wanted some opinions from somebody in the aquarium world.
Thanks
Bunafireman825

[Tommy Gun]

I actually am a glazier

In that case, I will come to you when I want to build my dream tank!

As far as the bottom piece goes i can drill the holes then send it off to be tempered

Out of curiousity...

Do you think it is impossible to drill a hole in tempered glass...or at least way too risky to even try it?

Can you explain how glass is tempered? For some reason I thought it was heated up or something but wouldn't that make it challenging to keep a hole the same size and shape? Maybe I am thinking about tempered steel or metal.

I recently saw a 1200 gallon cylinder aquarium and I am dying to know how they made it. I am 99.999% sure that it didn't have any seams at all so I was thinking someone must have some sort of machine to make a tank like that....but on the other hand, I don't know how many people would be willing to buy a tank like that so I am not sure if anyone would be willing to build or more importantly, pay for what has to be a huge machine.

Are you going to post a bunch of pictures and your experiences building this tank? (or have you already started?) I think that would be extremely interesting and helpful for those of us who would love to have a completely custom aquarium. So far all I have see as far as a DIY tank in person are a couple large (900+ gallons) acrylic tanks. I recently saw a little blurb about a guy who transformed what amounted to a walk in closet into an aquarium down in his basement and I would LOVE to do that. I think he even had to cut a hole in a first floor room in order to access the tank and would literally have to go swimming in order to scrape the glass and vacuum out wastes!!!!!!!!!! However, as bright as the guy must be, he did have quite a few sting rays in the tank so I don't know if I would want to be swimming with them based upon Mr. Irwin's experience.