Home aquariums.

[El Barto]

Yeah, I think that qualifies as fish crazy.

What cichlids?

[bosk1]

Pro-tip:  When setting up your 75 gal., temporarily take a handful or so of the substrate from the 29 gal.  Beneficial bacteria lives on and in your substrate and will jumpstart your cycle in the new tank.


Also, what kind of Cichlids in the 55?  I don't think Africans are compatible with plecos because of much different water condition requirements.  A lot of South Americans are, but not all.  In my tank, for example, Firemouths are usually just fine with plecos...unless you wind up with a mated pair, in which case they become VERY territorial.  In my case, they killed a good-sized pleco that was bigger than them.

[Nick]

Pro-tip:  When setting up your 75 gal., temporarily take a handful or so of the substrate from the 29 gal.  Beneficial bacteria lives on and in your substrate and will jumpstart your cycle in the new tank.

I was planning on taking a decoration from the current tank and moving it over temporarily, so with ya there. I was also planning on keeping my 29g filter running on the new tank as well. And once the 29g gets set back up I plan to run two filters on it, so I have an extra filter for a quarantine tank in the future.

What cichlids?

Also, what kind of Cichlids in the 55?  I don't think Africans are compatible with plecos because of much different water condition requirements.  A lot of South Americans are, but not all.  In my tank, for example, Firemouths are usually just fine with plecos...unless you wind up with a mated pair, in which case they become VERY territorial.  In my case, they killed a good-sized pleco that was bigger than them.

I haven't done a whole lot of research into the specific fish yet because that's way far off. Basically were I'm at now is that I love Plecos, but don't want to risk them in a planted tank. I love Cichlids but same deal. And from what I've read if Cichlids are going to work with any fish it's going to be a Pleco. People have had a wide range of experience between the two, but generally it's a pretty good fit it seems. So while I'd love to plant the 55g, I'll keep it plain if it means being able to house those two types of fish.

[bosk1]

Basically were I'm at now is that I love Plecos, but don't want to risk them in a planted tank. I love Cichlids but same deal. And from what I've read if Cichlids are going to work with any fish it's going to be a Pleco. People have had a wide range of experience between the two, but generally it's a pretty good fit it seems.

Generally, yes.  But, again, it depends on what kind of cichlid you are talking about.  And, to an extent, it also depends somewhat on what type of pleco.  But there are many types of plecos that are suitable for a great variety of fish as well.  If you want common plecos, for example, you want them with bigger fish that won't get swallowed.  But there are lots of really cool smaller plecos that are great for a community aquarium as well.  If you have smallish fish, having a few rubbernose plecos around can be really cool.  Probably my favorite of the smaller plecos that go great in a community tank are the gold nugget plecos.  They are just great fish in every respect.  I had one for a few years until my heater conked out on me one winter and the tank temp fell too low before I caught it.  But he was a great fish.  Had him in a community tank with some clown loaches, roseline sharks, and gouramis.

[El Barto]

Since you've got time, sign up for the newsletter from https://www.wetspottropicalfish.com/.  They're cool people, and they'll ship fish nationwide for a very reasonable price. Once you start getting into things more exotic than an oscar or generic plecostamus, they'll come in quite a bit cheaper than your LFS, even with shipping. They breed a lot of fish themselves, and they also make frequent trips down South to catch their own. As for the newsletter, every week they feature 2 or 3 fish you've never heard of, and this guy loves him some plecos. There are literally hundreds of variety, categorized by L-numbers. He comes up with some really off the wall plecos that you won't see anywhere else. Some of them are really spectacular. Within a couple of months, you'll see a one or two that really interest you. An added advantage is that you'll get some history on them. In my case, there are a few varieties of pleco that they stock which come from the same tributaries as my red head Tapajos, so they're naturally friendly to each other.

[Nick]

Basically were I'm at now is that I love Plecos, but don't want to risk them in a planted tank. I love Cichlids but same deal. And from what I've read if Cichlids are going to work with any fish it's going to be a Pleco. People have had a wide range of experience between the two, but generally it's a pretty good fit it seems.

Generally, yes.  But, again, it depends on what kind of cichlid you are talking about.  And, to an extent, it also depends somewhat on what type of pleco.  But there are many types of plecos that are suitable for a great variety of fish as well.  If you want common plecos, for example, you want them with bigger fish that won't get swallowed.  But there are lots of really cool smaller plecos that are great for a community aquarium as well.  If you have smallish fish, having a few rubbernose plecos around can be really cool.  Probably my favorite of the smaller plecos that go great in a community tank are the gold nugget plecos.  They are just great fish in every respect.  I had one for a few years until my heater conked out on me one winter and the tank temp fell too low before I caught it.  But he was a great fish.  Had him in a community tank with some clown loaches, roseline sharks, and gouramis.

Yeah, Plecos are awesome, and the gold nugget one is one I've always enjoyed, but my favorite of the reasonably priced ones I've seen is the Medusa Pleco.



Will do more research when the time comes to determine of those that would work which I like best!

Since you've got time, sign up for the newsletter from https://www.wetspottropicalfish.com/.  They're cool people, and they'll ship fish nationwide for a very reasonable price. Once you start getting into things more exotic than an oscar or generic plecostamus, they'll come in quite a bit cheaper than your LFS, even with shipping. They breed a lot of fish themselves, and they also make frequent trips down South to catch their own. As for the newsletter, every week they feature 2 or 3 fish you've never heard of, and this guy loves him some plecos. There are literally hundreds of variety, categorized by L-numbers. He comes up with some really off the wall plecos that you won't see anywhere else. Some of them are really spectacular. Within a couple of months, you'll see a one or two that really interest you. An added advantage is that you'll get some history on them. In my case, there are a few varieties of pleco that they stock which come from the same tributaries as my red head Tapajos, so they're naturally friendly to each other.

Only had a few moments to check it out for now, but that looks like an awesome site, will definitely sign up for the newsletter. When it comes time to stock the tank I may just do an order from them. The thing about the fishless cycle is that because you're literally dumping ammonia in the tank to build up the bacteria you can build them up to a degree to handle any initial load you want in the tank, so I could do a nice bulk order right off the bat.

[El Barto]

Something to be mindful of is that the fishless cycle can rebound on you. In short, you build up more critters than what your initial fish load can supply waste to feed. The excess critters die off which creates too much waste (now that the critters are diminished) and everything's out of balance. Probably not a problem, but you don't want things too ramped up because of huge ammonia loads.

The fish I went with were $28ea at the LFS. I paid $7 each for them and another $30 or so for shipping from The Wet Spot.  I believe I was out $75 for 6 of them. And they're friendly people. I got an email the next day making sure everything went alright. Although the main benefit is that they have any kind of fish you might want, and if they don't they might well fly to Africa to catch it for you.

Check out the leopard frog pleco. I always thought plecos were coolest when they have pronounced modeling. 

Also, don't discount clown loaches. They're cool looking, get along with damn near anything, can fend for themselves, and once they get comfortable they're just downright goofy.  I kept some for about 10 years and really got a kick out of them.

[bosk1]

leopard frog pleco.

Nice.  I dream of someday doing a really big community tank (100 gal. or more) with a gaggle of clown loaches, half a dozen or so smallish plecos, and somre more roseline sharks.  I loved the loaches and sharks I had before my heater cooked them last year.  They were really cool fish.

[El Barto]

Oh yea. Plenty of plecostomi will out grow that 75g aquarium in a great big hurry. Plenty of others will never get more than a few inches. Be sure and research their max size requirements.

[Nick]

That leopard is pretty awesome Barto! And yeah, will only be getting 4-6" Cichlids and none of the giant Plecos.

[Nick]

The more I think about it the more I think I'll do something like this...

Once I have the 75 finished (with the 2 permanent fish and 7 temps) I'll be planting the 29g like I said. Once the fishless cycle on that tank is ready I'll place an order for fish online. That order will include 4 barbs, which will go into the 29g along with the 7 temps coming back and making the stocking on that finished. The other half of my order will be 5-10 fish to put in the 75g to continue where the 7 temps left off. This will allow me to get barbs I can't easily get locally (likely Snakeskin, Checker, Odessa and Black Ruby), and some rarer fish for the 75g.

[Nick]

The skull is just to help cycle the tank, and that lone plant is a transfer, should be getting more in tomorrow hopefully.

The Fluval 406 is POWERFUL. My god does that thing move water. Rock formation may change over time, but it will be in that spot with moss on it. Main goal is just to provide a limited light area for my Raphael catfish.

[El Barto]

I like the Fluvals; good design.  Got a much smaller one, but still very effective.

As for the structure, keep in mind that the more hiding places fish have, the less they tend to hide. Particularly with cichlids, you want a ton of structure in there so they feel safe. If they're always exposed they get really skittish. 

[Nick]

Yeah, the Cichlid tank will have a ton of big rocks, but this is not that tank. I will perhaps sprinkle some other rocks throughout this tank though.

[bosk1]

As for the structure, keep in mind that the more hiding places fish have, the less they tend to hide. Particularly with cichlids, you want a ton of structure in there so they feel safe. If they're always exposed they get really skittish. 

Tell that to my idiot firemouth cichlids who seem to think, "Oh, bonus!  Lots of hiding places.  Let's use all of them at all times and never, EVER just sit out in the open where we can be seen." 

[Chino]

Back to the topic of pleccos a while back. I had a wide mouth plecco not long ago. Had him for a little more than a year before he died shortly after a week of no power. The entire time I had him he would demonstrate this weird behavior. It was almost like he'd play dead. I had a piece of driftwood that he would lay on his back under. The first time he did it, I thought he was toast. As soon as the net got near him, he flipped over and went to hide. I witnessed this dozens of times, but he always seemed really alive an animated whenever he wasn't laying there. I'm convinced he ate two of my other fish over that year as well.




He'd chill on the glass for hours. I know the tank looks dirty in this pic. This was right after the week of no power. It went from spotless to this in less than a week.


This is what he'd lay upside down under.

[El Barto]

As for the structure, keep in mind that the more hiding places fish have, the less they tend to hide. Particularly with cichlids, you want a ton of structure in there so they feel safe. If they're always exposed they get really skittish. 

Tell that to my idiot firemouth cichlids who seem to think, "Oh, bonus!  Lots of hiding places.  Let's use all of them at all times and never, EVER just sit out in the open where we can be seen." 

Yeah, my Tapajos are pretty chickenshit, as well. If I approach the tank from the side they'll usually come out for food. If I approach from the front, or even walk past it they'll run and hide. The strange part is that they're pretty cool with tank maintenance. They don't like it but they don't panic or hide for days. Anyhoo, their behavior is kind of annoying because they're finally getting big and showing some real color (although they still have a ways to go).

Interestingly, their skittish behavior happened when the population mysteriously dropped from 6 to 5. I have no idea what happened, but I've always wondered if they blame me somehow. 

[Chino]

As for the structure, keep in mind that the more hiding places fish have, the less they tend to hide. Particularly with cichlids, you want a ton of structure in there so they feel safe. If they're always exposed they get really skittish. 

Tell that to my idiot firemouth cichlids who seem to think, "Oh, bonus!  Lots of hiding places.  Let's use all of them at all times and never, EVER just sit out in the open where we can be seen." 

Yeah, my Tapajos are pretty chickenshit, as well. If I approach the tank from the side they'll usually come out for food. If I approach from the front, or even walk past it they'll run and hide. The strange part is that they're pretty cool with tank maintenance. They don't like it but they don't panic or hide for days. Anyhoo, their behavior is kind of annoying because they're finally getting big and showing some real color (although they still have a ways to go).

Interestingly, their skittish behavior happened when the population mysteriously dropped from 6 to 5. I have no idea what happened, but I've always wondered if they blame me somehow. 

I feel you guys. In my glow/artificial reef tank (former Avatar tank), I have two of the glow tetras. Absolutely beautiful fish. They are bright green and their eyes glow red. In the Avatar tank, you could always see them. They stood out among the half dozen glow danios I had in there. Once I converted the tank and put in the giant coral insert, they hide virtually all day behind it. The only time I see them is when I drop some food in.

[Nick]

So here is my current stock idea for when my 75g is ready (1-3 weeks probably)

Transfer from 29g tank:
Silver Tipped Shark
Raphael Catfish
Red Tailed Shark

From LGD:
9 Blue Tetras
Koi Anglefish

New:
6 Dwarf Chain Loaches
2 Bristlenose Plecos
1-3 Longfin Rainbow
2 Roseline Sharks
2-4 Gouramis
6-10 Swordtails/Mollies

I've broken down and bought a CO2 tank off of Craigslist and have bought all the parts off of ebay for a CO2 setup. *hopefully* all those things will be in by Saturday morning (as I bought from like 7 different sellers for good prices who knows), because I have this coming weekend off which would be perfect for setting everything up.

I also seem to have got snails, so the Loaches which I planned as a late addition will move up to an early add.

Here is the tank so far:


I have moss on the way for the right hand rocks and for in front of the left hand rock (to be used as a grassy area). The skulls are just seeding material. And while most of the plants seem to be doing either poor (banana plant, red tiger lotus) or alright, my red/green cabomba has been going crazy. An inch every 3 days or so.

[bosk1]

Not sure dwarf chain loaches will eat snails.  Clown loaches and yo-yo loaches will tear up a snail population in no time.  Dwarf chain loaches?  Don't think so.

Most loaches are pretty prone to ich when they are stressed, so they are a good fish to add early on so you can monitor and treat them without huge risk to your whole tank.  Put your loaches in first, watch them for a week or so, and if no ich, you are probably good to go (although they can potentially get it later, but new arrivals are generally where the biggest risk lies).

[Nick]

Been reading up on them and most reports are they will in fact at least keep populations in check, so I'll still likely go with them. I have to have them shipped in though with some other fish, costing many $$$, so they won't be the first in.

Here is my predicted final stock:
Transfer from 29g tank:
Raphael Catfish
Red Tailed Shark

From LGD:
9 Blue Tetras
Koi Anglefish

New:
6 Dwarf Chain Loaches
2 Bristlenose Plecos
6 Roseline Sharks
3 Pearl Gouramis
6-10 Swordtails/Mollies/Danios/Rasbories/etc

Today I got my CO2 setup together and up and running. Friday I do a 90% water change to finish off my fishless cycle, and Saturday I add the Angelfish, Tetras, and hopefully the BN Plecos. As long as they do well for the first 2-3 days I'll be adding the Red Tailed and Raphael. And when things have been running smoothly for 2-3 weeks I'll be placing the order for the other fish.

I also have an extra HOB filter sitting on my 29g tank for the last month, and when the new big influx of fish comes in from the online order I'll be moving that over to this tank to help with the added bio load.

[Chino]

So I went to feed my fish last night and something caught my eye in the lower corner of the tank.... FRY! There were only three in there, so I'm assuming a bunch didn't make it. I separated them in a separate container. I never had fry in a tank before.

[cramx3]

Cool with the fry

I set up my 30 gallon tank about 7 months ago now.  I put South American ciclids in there.  I got 7 of the "assorted ciclids" so I am not really sure what kind they really are, but they have great color.  One passed after a month so I have 6 of them now and they have grown a lot in size, but due to my tank not being huge I am assuming they wont get much bigger.  This may be my favorite tank Ive ever set up as these guys are great.  Really active and go nuts whenever anyone gets close to the tank.  I used the south american ciclid sand and I think that wa a great decision as the water has been great and I havent had to do really anything to keep it with the right levels of Ph and whatnot.

[El Barto]

So I went to feed my fish last night and something caught my eye in the lower corner of the tank.... FRY! There were only three in there, so I'm assuming a bunch didn't make it. I separated them in a separate container. I never had fry in a tank before.

Meh, let Darwin raise them. From what I recall 2 or 3 survivors is pretty normal, and since you know you've got active breeders you can probably expect to keep adding them 2 or 3 at a time. Nursing them along so you get 10 at a time is going to get A: boring and B: crowded really fast. The exception is if they're fish that your LFS will pay you well for, but even then they tend only to pay in store credit, and it's often only for stock and not dry goods which makes it fairly worthless.

Cool with the fry

I set up my 30 gallon tank about 7 months ago now.  I put South American ciclids in there.  I got 7 of the "assorted ciclids" so I am not really sure what kind they really are, but they have great color.  One passed after a month so I have 6 of them now and they have grown a lot in size, but due to my tank not being huge I am assuming they wont get much bigger.  This may be my favorite tank Ive ever set up as these guys are great.  Really active and go nuts whenever anyone gets close to the tank.  I used the south american ciclid sand and I think that wa a great decision as the water has been great and I havent had to do really anything to keep it with the right levels of Ph and whatnot.

Thirty is definitely small for 6 Africans. They won't outgrow the tank but it forcing them to stunt their growth isn't healthy. Not so much that they're all going to quickly croak or anything, but you could think of it as the difference between living a full life in Japan vs Puerto Rico.

As for assorted Africans, all fist stores tend to do this. Some are just stragglers from the breeders. Sold 16 out of 17, number 17 becomes assorted. Some are hybrids that breeders won't sell as pure. Some are just stuff that the LFS is too lazy to sort out. None of this makes them a bad deal, you'll often find peacocks in there for a third of the normal price. It's just that plenty don't want hybrids or unknown fish in their tanks. The downside of buying them is that you have no control over what size they'll be or how aggressive they'll be. If the seller knows that they're all Malawians or Tanganyikans, then that'll help out a bit; same water conditions and similar con-specific aggression.  Sounds like in your case they're doing alright so it probably worked out well.

[Chino]

So I went to feed my fish last night and something caught my eye in the lower corner of the tank.... FRY! There were only three in there, so I'm assuming a bunch didn't make it. I separated them in a separate container. I never had fry in a tank before.

Meh, let Darwin raise them. From what I recall 2 or 3 survivors is pretty normal, and since you know you've got active breeders you can probably expect to keep adding them 2 or 3 at a time. Nursing them along so you get 10 at a time is going to get A: boring and B: crowded really fast. The exception is if they're fish that your LFS will pay you well for, but even then they tend only to pay in store credit, and it's often only for stock and not dry goods which makes it fairly worthless.

I did let Darwin raise them. He left three. I have no idea which species they are as there are multiple in the tank. Like I said, I have never seen fry before. I took a neon tetra and two red tetras off a friend of mine a few weeks back. I wondering if it's theirs.

[El Barto]

So I went to feed my fish last night and something caught my eye in the lower corner of the tank.... FRY! There were only three in there, so I'm assuming a bunch didn't make it. I separated them in a separate container. I never had fry in a tank before.

Meh, let Darwin raise them. From what I recall 2 or 3 survivors is pretty normal, and since you know you've got active breeders you can probably expect to keep adding them 2 or 3 at a time. Nursing them along so you get 10 at a time is going to get A: boring and B: crowded really fast. The exception is if they're fish that your LFS will pay you well for, but even then they tend only to pay in store credit, and it's often only for stock and not dry goods which makes it fairly worthless.

I did let Darwin raise them. He left three. I have no idea which species they are as there are multiple in the tank. Like I said, I have never seen fry before. I took a neon tetra and two red tetras off a friend of mine a few weeks back. I wondering if it's theirs.

Yeah, but then you adopted them. 

I know neons breed like--well, never-mind.

[cramx3]

So I went to feed my fish last night and something caught my eye in the lower corner of the tank.... FRY! There were only three in there, so I'm assuming a bunch didn't make it. I separated them in a separate container. I never had fry in a tank before.

Meh, let Darwin raise them. From what I recall 2 or 3 survivors is pretty normal, and since you know you've got active breeders you can probably expect to keep adding them 2 or 3 at a time. Nursing them along so you get 10 at a time is going to get A: boring and B: crowded really fast. The exception is if they're fish that your LFS will pay you well for, but even then they tend only to pay in store credit, and it's often only for stock and not dry goods which makes it fairly worthless.

Cool with the fry

I set up my 30 gallon tank about 7 months ago now.  I put South American ciclids in there.  I got 7 of the "assorted ciclids" so I am not really sure what kind they really are, but they have great color.  One passed after a month so I have 6 of them now and they have grown a lot in size, but due to my tank not being huge I am assuming they wont get much bigger.  This may be my favorite tank Ive ever set up as these guys are great.  Really active and go nuts whenever anyone gets close to the tank.  I used the south american ciclid sand and I think that wa a great decision as the water has been great and I havent had to do really anything to keep it with the right levels of Ph and whatnot.

Thirty is definitely small for 6 Africans. They won't outgrow the tank but it forcing them to stunt their growth isn't healthy. Not so much that they're all going to quickly croak or anything, but you could think of it as the difference between living a full life in Japan vs Puerto Rico.

As for assorted Africans, all fist stores tend to do this. Some are just stragglers from the breeders. Sold 16 out of 17, number 17 becomes assorted. Some are hybrids that breeders won't sell as pure. Some are just stuff that the LFS is too lazy to sort out. None of this makes them a bad deal, you'll often find peacocks in there for a third of the normal price. It's just that plenty don't want hybrids or unknown fish in their tanks. The downside of buying them is that you have no control over what size they'll be or how aggressive they'll be. If the seller knows that they're all Malawians or Tanganyikans, then that'll help out a bit; same water conditions and similar con-specific aggression.  Sounds like in your case they're doing alright so it probably worked out well.

Got them from Petland and was told I should get 7 to start.  Only expected to grow 3-4 inches and they are at like 2.5 now.  I think the person who sold them to me thought they would die or something.

[bosk1]

Got them from Petland and was told I should get 7 to start.  Only expected to grow 3-4 inches and they are at like 2.5 now.  I think the person who sold them to me thought they would die or something.

I have heard various theories about doing a "community" aquarium with aggressive fish (which African cichlids definitely are) that suggest that having certain numbers or certain types of fish can temper the aggressiveness.  That may be where they are coming from. 

...but then again, it may simply be a marketing directive from management. 

[Chino]

So I went to feed my fish last night and something caught my eye in the lower corner of the tank.... FRY! There were only three in there, so I'm assuming a bunch didn't make it. I separated them in a separate container. I never had fry in a tank before.

Meh, let Darwin raise them. From what I recall 2 or 3 survivors is pretty normal, and since you know you've got active breeders you can probably expect to keep adding them 2 or 3 at a time. Nursing them along so you get 10 at a time is going to get A: boring and B: crowded really fast. The exception is if they're fish that your LFS will pay you well for, but even then they tend only to pay in store credit, and it's often only for stock and not dry goods which makes it fairly worthless.

I did let Darwin raise them. He left three. I have no idea which species they are as there are multiple in the tank. Like I said, I have never seen fry before. I took a neon tetra and two red tetras off a friend of mine a few weeks back. I wondering if it's theirs.

Yeah, but then you adopted them. 

I know neons breed like--well, never-mind.

I didn't adopt them per say, I just gave them a temporary safe zone until they can't fit in the mouths of the other fish. I have a spare ten gallon tank I'm not using. I did entertain the idea of using that as a breeder.

[cramx3]

Got them from Petland and was told I should get 7 to start.  Only expected to grow 3-4 inches and they are at like 2.5 now.  I think the person who sold them to me thought they would die or something.

I have heard various theories about doing a "community" aquarium with aggressive fish (which African cichlids definitely are) that suggest that having certain numbers or certain types of fish can temper the aggressiveness.  That may be where they are coming from. 

...but then again, it may simply be a marketing directive from management. 

lol maybe, but i made it clear that it was a new tank and i wanted cichlids, oh well.  The fish are healthy and lively and I love them.  Id love a bigger tank but that requires more time from me which I dont have anymore.

[Nick]

With Cichlids bigger numbers often are better.

[El Barto]

With Cichlids bigger numbers often are better.

Only with Africans. SA/CA cichlids just get pissed off about it and view it as more chum for the ensuing bloodbath. It also requires a massive increase in filtration and water changes.

[bosk1]

As Barto knows, in this iteration of my 55 gal., I started off with 3 firemouths and a pleco.  (why I chose 3, I'm not sure...can't remember if I was planning on getting more or whatever)  2 of them paired up, killed the pleco, and started bullying the third a bit, but it was okay.  Now I have a thriving multi-generation single species tank made up of around 20 fish. 

[El Barto]

As Barto knows, in this iteration of my 55 gal., I started off with 3 firemouths and a pleco.  (why I chose 3, I'm not sure...can't remember if I was planning on getting more or whatever)  2 of them paired up, killed the pleco, and started bullying the third a bit, but it was okay.  Now I have a thriving multi-generation single species tank made up of around 20 fish. 

Start looking for those deformities. 

As for mine, they demonstrated some breeding behavior once but I never saw any fry. They're mouth-brooders so it's not uncommon for them to botch the job the first time our two. Never seen them act horny again. They'll occasionally rearrange the tank, which is a customary first step, but that's about it. As it turns out the 6 I started with turned into 5 with only 1 (from what I can tell) female. They're surprisingly well behaved under the circumstances, but she's understandably nervous and skittish most of the time. Now that the water temp is up I might start doing daily water changes and see if it inspires them.

[cramx3]

whoops, i was wrong earlier, I have African, not South American cichlids.  So I guess its all good in my tank world (which I figured anyway since the fish look and act as they should).