[davidg417]

i just recently purchased a 55 gallon tank i wanna set up a tank like the img at the bottom of this post i belive the fish in there are african malawi cichlid and i would like info on caring for them and there needs and if anyone has ever had them also a big question i have is how many can i keep in a 55 gallon tank please help am heading to the store to get the filters and things for the tank i wanna know before i leave

 

[archer772]

Well you will need LOTS of caves for them to start with. I had a tank with africans for awhile and the yellow labs were some what peacefull and a friend has about a dozen in his 55 but thats because they keep breeding. It looks like there are a couple bumble bees in there and and mine were meaner than satan himself LOL, not sure on the rest of the fish in the photo. I had mine in a 4 foot 65 and I could only keep 6 because the bumble bees would kill off any more I put in there. I have never been a hard core african keeper so I cant be positive.

 

[davidg417]

i also need to know what type of filters i should buy please help am leaving in about 2 hours

 

[archer772]

I think most would say a canister filter but I dont really like them, I ran mine with 2 AC 70's and they took good care of my tank. I would say as long as you get quality filters rated for a larger tank than you have then you should be fine.

 

[scribbles]

you need to setup and cycle the tank first yoiu cant just dump fish in a new tank.

 

[obscbyclouds]

I'd make sure to get a filter with 7-10 times the capacity of the tank per hour. For a 55 gal, this would mean you'd want a filtering rate of 385 - 550 gph.

You could either accomplish this with one large (probably canister) or two smaller filters. Aqua Clear makes good HOB filters for a reasonable price. As scribbles says, make sure whatever you do that you cycle the tank first before adding fish. Also, for Africans you may need some sort of buffer to raise the Ph depending on how your water is where you live. Good luck and keep coming back with questions!

 

[ladyonyx]

If you get a HOB I'd definitely go with AquaClear; they're great. If you get a canister filter, I'd get Ehiem or Fluval; both are very reliable

 

[davidg417]

you need to setup and cycle the tank first yoiu cant just dump fish in a new tank.

no one said anything about fish yet i just asked for advice on filters and other equipment thanks for your not so helpful advice