[DrivingMissFishy]

I've been wondering, how does a rift tank compare to a 'brackish' tank? Fr example I am wondering if scats/monos and brackish catfish would survive in there. I know bristlenose can live quite happily in a rift tank so I'm just kinda confused
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[rrcoolj]

I've been wondering, how does a rift tank compare to a 'brackish' tank? Fr example I am wondering if scats/monos and brackish catfish would survive in there. I know bristlenose can live quite happily in a rift tank so I'm just kinda confused
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Rift lake isn't a type of water it is just the type of lake it happens to be. Brackish water has a certain amount of salt like from the ocean in it. The rift lakes are purely fresh water systems with no salt in it. You cannot keep africans in brackish water they need fresh water. Monos need brackish water. You defiantly should not mix them. Not sure what you mean by the plecos. They need freshwater not brackish water.

 

[Christople]

Exactly what I thought when I just found out about them. There are three large lakes formed by a rift. tangynika,victoria,moliwe. They have hard water and high pH. No salt

 

[DrivingMissFishy]

Oh wow....so what's all this 'cichlid salts' I'm meant to be adding to the tank...just minerals? Man do I feel stupid :/
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[ladayen]

I've never heard of "cichlid salt". Sounds like a scam product.

Some people use Aquarium salt to help with diseases and parasites. Many will keep salt in the tank all the time as a preventative measure. I dont agree with this as I could see the bacteria/parasites adapting and becoming immune to it.

 

[rrcoolj]

Aquarium salt as mentioned does not need to be added to the aquarium on any kind of regular basis. It should only be used when dealing with illness or injury.etc. Those "cichlid salts" are either buffers to help raise pH and GH or they are minerals to stimulate the lake. The latter is probably a scam.

 

[DrivingMissFishy]

It's an API product I saw at the lfs. There was cichlid salt and cichlid buffer. I think it was just the minerals to 'recreate the lake'. I just saw the word salt and immediately thought salt like sea salt. Even though no salinity was ever mentioned. Doofus!
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[Byron]

You should all read my article on hardness and pH in the freshwater aquarium. Briefly, water is "hard" due to the level of dissolved mineral salts in the water. "Salt" as we use it commonly refers to sodium that you use in cooking, and related saltwater as in the ocean is this type of salt. But calcium and magnesium salts along with some other mineral salts make water hard according to the level of mineral salts in the water.

The rift lake salts are mineral salts. They will work for rift lake cidhlids if you have soft water, but there are less expensive ways to harden water. Dolomite is the easiest as it is calcium and magnesium, the two prime minerals for hard water.

"Epsom salts" is strictly speaking Magnesium sulfate, which is simply a mix of magnesium and sulphur salts. I add this to my tanks to give me a tad of mineral, plus it is excellent plant food. But you have to be careful, too much causes other problems like iron deficiency. This is still strictly freshwater, no sodium is being added.

Byron.

 

[DrivingMissFishy]

Just an update, the tank has been about 1/4 full for a week now with substrate and rocks in, I've just been stirring up the sand so the 'dust' could filter out. It's all pretty much one now which is great! Going to start to cycle in the next few days. Am thinking of doing a fishless cycle using prawns/food coz I can't seem to find any ammonia.
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[Christople]

good luck

 

[DrivingMissFishy]

Just wanted some opinions, I've been modifying my water parameters and want some advice on what everyone thinks are the best values. My tap water is neutral ph about 7.0 and is very soft as in gh and kh are 1(the colour changed on the first drop) so I've added some buffers and now the kh is 11 and gh is 12. Ph is 8.2. Do I need to raise these values further? I have aragonite as substrate. Thanks!
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[rrcoolj]

Nope that's just fine for africans. Just make sure it is consistent through water changes etc.

 

[DrivingMissFishy]

So my tank is almost cycled now so I'm starting to think about what stock to get! In terms of peacocks (I'm planning an all male mostly peacock tank) is it best to just get 1 individual of each type? For example 1 albino/1 dragonblood/1 benga rather than say 2 or 3 of each kind? I can get them at about 5cm with enough colour to distinguish males (well mostly!) as previously mentioned I'm also thinking of some C.moori and yellow labs. There are many others I like maybe I'll write a list and u guys can help me decide which to choose
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[ladayen]

Peacocks if i recall can get quite large. How big is your tank?

 

[DrivingMissFishy]

It's a 4ft, 100 gallon
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[rrcoolj]

moori and labs should work assuming you will get one male of each. No more than one male of each species or you will have aggression problems. I should say even more aggression problems. Fish don't always get along perfectly so you might run into some problems depending on the species and personality of the fish.

By the way most peacocks top out at around 5-6" so not that big.

 

[brokenrules69]

this post has been really helpful

i been thinking about setting up a cichlid 55g

 

[DrivingMissFishy]

Do u have any experience with dither fish? Since the cichlids will mostly stay at the bottom (won't they?) I was thinking about possibly getting a group of fish for the upper water column. I've heard that rainbow fish are good for this?
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[ladayen]

Malawi Cichlids will go as high as the decorations allow them to feel safe. I have a bunch of fake plant all the way up one side of my tank and the fish will go right to the top on that side, but only halfway up the other side.

 

[Byron]

Do u have any experience with dither fish? Since the cichlids will mostly stay at the bottom (won't they?) I was thinking about possibly getting a group of fish for the upper water column. I've heard that rainbow fish are good for this?
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You do not need dither fish with rift lake cichlids. There is the water parameter issue, and the aggressiveness of the cichlids. As ladayen said, arrange the decor up the back of the tank and the fish will spread out.