New 150g Set Up Need Help Please

Blackfeet

FYI this is a link to a site with a quick gloss over brackish tank environments without getting too indepth. The listed tank mate compatability and temperments I agree with.

Starting a Brackish Aquarium, what you need and what you can keep.

Katastrophi

Thanks Blackfeet i appreciate all the helpful info.....i decided to go with freshwater cichlids

Geomancer

Which ones? South American or African? They require very different water parameters.

South American need soft water, African need hard.

If African, I'd go with a sand, I believe you can use a calcareous sand like crushed coral that will get you the hard water you need for them.

They need a hardscape, so large rock structures with plenty of holes arranged in a way to block sight lines across the tank. This helps with aggression issues. You won't be able to do most live plants as they'll tear them apart from their active behavior.

Katastrophi

yea ive decided to toss the idea of having plants, as for sand i found one that is called Tahitian Moon Sand and I was thinking about the African Cichlids

*link to the sand i found doesnt give too much info about this sand so i may read up more about it unless anyone here knows anything about this type of sand....

http://www.cichlid-forum.com/articles/sand.php

redchigh

If you're going cichlids, I'd just use play sand. It's really really cheap. (about $3 for 30 lbs.)

Too bad you decided on cichlids, I'd live to see a planted 150G tank with 200 small tetras in it.

Have you looked into some of the other less-aggressive soft water cichlids?
German Blue Rams, Discus, Angelfish, and Kribs are all cichlids, and do well with plants and tankmates...

Katastrophi

^yes i have, the thing i like the best about the African Cichlid route i took was the amount of rock i can have in my tank, just thinking of all the cool different ways and tunnels/caves etc. i can make for the fish to spread the aggression out etc. i heard they are very territorial so plenty of rock with plenty of hiding spaces etc. are good for them from what ive read and been told from helpful people on this forum :)