# Can I keep cichlids is a 30g tank?



## 35angels (Aug 7, 2012)

I have had community fish for about 5 years now and am wanting to change it into a cichlid tank. Is a 30g tank too small? If not, any suggestions on how to go about changing over the tank, which cichlids go well together etc?


----------



## Foxtail (Mar 14, 2012)

You can, but a 30 gallon is a tad small. I have a breeding pair of jewels in a 36 gallon bowfront. you are going to want to finds some smaller ones, or some south american dwarfs. I had 2 bumblebees in with the jewels but it proved to be too much.

Sent from my SGH-T959D using Tapatalk 2


----------



## AWW (Apr 22, 2010)

Any dwarf cichlids will be fine. Can probably get away with some other larger ones too. Convicts, rainbow cichlids, a small colony of africans, etc.


----------



## jbyoung00008 (May 16, 2011)

30g will be okay when they are small but once they grow it will be too small depending on which species you pick. Many species do grow to a decent size. I suggest a 55g. They are long which gives lots of room for the cichlids to set up territories and not be so close together. They are also reasonably priced used and common. 

I have had lots of different cichlids over the years. The ones I have enjoyed the most are Africans. Lots of research needed though if you plan on having an african tank. 
Black or Pink Convicts are probably the easiest to keep and breed like crazy. Jewel Cichlids as mentioned above are nice.


----------



## macframalama (Apr 17, 2012)

you should get some of those juve hybrids off of somebody on here they were in the classifieds not too long ago mini parrots or ping pongs, elle and djamm swear by them , or some rams, firemouths, convicts? i wouldnt do cons unless your trying to have a population crisis


----------



## Elle (Oct 25, 2010)

Laurie (The Guy) does mini dwarf parrot cichlids. Super cute, very friendly, and you could have a bunch in a 30g. They're less nasty than a lot of other cichlids.


----------



## macframalama (Apr 17, 2012)

there ya go, i knew, i knew what i was talking about


im gonna do a firemouth tank one day when im done with a few projects i think they are very undrated really nice colour, dont get gigantic, not too nasty and you hardly ever see a stunning adult pair


----------



## Vman (Jan 20, 2011)

You can do Shellie's or Calvus and comps.


----------



## Ebonbolt (Aug 12, 2011)

Apistos, Dwarf acaras, Rams, and Kribensis are also great, and colourful, choices for a 30g.


----------



## Momobobo (Sep 28, 2010)

For a 30 gallon like everyone says I would stick with dwarves. Rams, Apistos, Convicts (species tank), Kribs, etc would all be good choices.


----------



## 35angels (Aug 7, 2012)

Thanks for all the great advice. I love the look of rams, but I have heard they are very sensitive to water changes. I love the look of Apistos and kribs. What ratio would I have to get....


----------



## macframalama (Apr 17, 2012)

Google Image Result for http://www.cichlids.com/uploads/tx_usercichlids/user_pics/9086/dsc_03_31a0dd55d3.jpg

firemouths lol, just look at that guy, everyone and there dog does rams and apistos,and kribs these guys get overlooked by everyone,


----------



## 35angels (Aug 7, 2012)

wow firemouths are beautiful! Dont know where I would find them though....dont think i have ever seen them before.


----------



## amphilophuschris (Jun 20, 2012)

firemouths are everywhere try petsmart for 5 bucks lol


----------



## macframalama (Apr 17, 2012)

yeah , lame ole petsmart , thats a male but the females are very pretty too, just not as flashy.. dont support petsmart though see if somewhere else has some , chances are they will be healthier and also a better quality <my opinion> i just have a personal hatred for petsmart

and THEY CAN HYBRIDIZE with cons for sure , so could be a neat lil mini hybrid tank, 1 male firemouth, 1 female con,1 mini parrot ping pong thing,1 something else and just wait and see what you get lol


----------



## Ebonbolt (Aug 12, 2011)

Honestly, i find that rams are a lot like discus; everyone says they're crazy sensitive, but I find that it's mostly hype. I mean sure, they won't react very well to ammonia or nitrites, but they're not going to go belly up the moment you make a mistake. They'll make sure to show you they're not happy, and no they're not as tollerant as something like a tetra, but still you don't need to be so careful that it borders on OCD to keep them healthy and happy. As long as you have a decent amount of experience, and meet a few basic needs, you'll find that rams are not as difficult as some people may lead you to think. Of course, finding a good, reputable supplier will drastically increase your chances of success.


----------



## amphilophuschris (Jun 20, 2012)

jesus christ shawn all you do is rip on me and for what man im just trying to help out. all my fish are healthy, and most of them were 5 bucks each. not 25 bucks like ipu would try to pull.


----------



## macframalama (Apr 17, 2012)

ugh... no not ripping on you im saying petsmart sucks , there aquarium systems suck, there staff 85% of the time suck and there seagrest farms fish suck, not once did i say you were wrong for recomending them to buy fish from but in my opinion petsmart is crap... CRAP I dont like there product and i do everything in my power to avoid them even if they are cheaper... 

cheaper isnt always better 

so to clarify you can get them from petsmart for $5 bucks but they will be 1.5 inches at best or.... you could go to a different place and pay $12 bucks lets say and get something larger and most likely a better over all kept product

if you wanna buy your fish there because there cheaper giver liver but I wont..


----------



## macframalama (Apr 17, 2012)

and that is good info i have avoided fish like discus and a few other simply because people have sort of hyped up the care for them as difficult its good to know its not as drastic as it is often made out to be


BelieveInBlue said:


> Honestly, i find that rams are a lot like discus; everyone says they're crazy sensitive, but I find that it's mostly hype. I mean sure, they won't react very well to ammonia or nitrites, but they're not going to go belly up the moment you make a mistake. They'll make sure to show you they're not happy, and no they're not as tollerant as something like a tetra, but still you don't need to be so careful that it borders on OCD to keep them healthy and happy. As long as you have a decent amount of experience, and meet a few basic needs, you'll find that rams are not as difficult as some people may lead you to think. Of course, finding a good, reputable supplier will drastically increase your chances of success.


----------



## 35angels (Aug 7, 2012)

Ok, I really like the looks of Demasoni Cichlids and Yellow labido Cichlids. Could I have 3 each a ratio of 2f/1m? Assuming of course I could even find Demasoni and labido cichlids?


----------



## macframalama (Apr 17, 2012)

yeah should be ok just remember they will hit 6 inches so watch your numbers and also remember those are africans and you can use different substrate to get there prefered higher ph, 

labido ciclids are super common and easy to get demosani are very pretty, check out the auratus and the johanni ciclids they are like a colour combo of the 2 and then it would be easier to have less numbers, also auratus and johanni and demosani can hybridize with each other so who knows what you will get


----------



## gsneufeld (Jan 28, 2012)

*double post*


----------



## gsneufeld (Jan 28, 2012)

Well. I am a bit biased here. because my Keyhole is my all-time favourite fish since I got one, (just look at him!!!
View attachment 10805


I think you should do a Keyhole tank! A pair, or even a small group. They are known as one of the only cichlids that can breed in a community tank. Very subtle beauty, but when coloured up in "threat" display (such as when eating and trying to keep the angels away) the beauty takes my breath away!! they max out at about 4.5 inches so a tad bigger than Apisto or Rams but I think you could fit a pair and a nice school of dither fish in there. .. I use gold and lemon tetras.


----------



## amphilophuschris (Jun 20, 2012)

demasoni and yellow labidochromis are found at petsmart for 5 bucks but i'll get ripped on for telling ya.


----------



## Foxtail (Mar 14, 2012)

There is a member just posted a breeding pair of jewels... With fry for $30... I am bias to these guys look at mine...









Sent from my SGH-T959D using Tapatalk 2


----------



## 35angels (Aug 7, 2012)

I don't care much for petsmart either, but I purchased 6 zebra danios, to cycle my tank, It was taking forever using the fishless cycles, fish were buy 1 get 1, so I wouldn't be out too much money. Those 6 fish are still alive 2 years later. lol My lfs has assorted cichlids for $5.99 each. Some look like labs and some are blue and look like demosani. so I think that's what I will go with. now I just have to find a 10g tank stand to put my 10g tank on, so I can transfer my zebra danios and cherry barbs. Assuming they wouldn't get a long with those cichlids. I am also going to go through the journal section here, and see how to set up a cichlid tank. I know my ph is 6, and it needs to be higher. Not sure how to get it higher.....any advise?


----------



## macframalama (Apr 17, 2012)

yup go back to your lfs and look for some caribsea argonite substrate , Google Image Result for http://www.fmueller.com/aquaristic/125G/aragonite.jpg , you can also use old dead dried out and cleaned live rock to put your ph at the desired 8.5


----------



## macframalama (Apr 17, 2012)

snap i forgot to mention dont get te sugar sand stuff , the stuff i sent the link with the picture that is the right stuff, but have 2 buckets on hand to wash it .... it is horribly "dirty" and will cloud out your whole tank , but if you put about an inch in a small bucket and run clean cold water through it while stirring it up , dont put too much or it will take forever FOREVER to clear up, and then once it is clean toss it in a tote or another bucket and start again, 

trust me smaller amounts at a time is key in order to bang through it quickly


----------



## macframalama (Apr 17, 2012)

http://www.bcaquaria.com/forum/freshwater-livestock-25/fs-ft-2-4in-yellow-labs-31016/


----------



## IceBlue (Mar 17, 2011)

I would not recommend demmesoni at the numbers you mention. I am not an expert but have had some in the past and they are extremely aggresive to their cospecifics, male or female. Generally you will want a dozen to start, some people start with 18 - 24, the dominant male will kill or severely harass the other males and will chase the females. This is why you need a large group as the male would chase one or two females to death. Should have 5 or 6 females to dominant male. Chances are you will have some luck breeding and can restock with your fry but bullying can end up being a little distressing. This may settle down as the fish mature and work things out but I never got that far. 

Also along the same lines I believe the auratus will simple get too large for the tank and will kill everything in the tank......everything. The Johani also has a nasty side. These fish are better raised in 75gal minimum tanks, but really they are one of the Mbuma's whichI would probably use a 6 foot tank to give the other fish some place to hide. these fish (auratus, johanni) are not for beginners due to the possible high aggresion you need the proper set up.

Lemon Yellow's, Libideo Dichromis(or something close) are a peacefull cichlid which may fit in a tank that small but personally I think you should be looking at the SA dwarf cichlids previously mentioned.


----------



## Fishman21 (Apr 26, 2010)

Well stated. many of these cichlids mentioned are really aggressive in confined spaces like a 30g where only a few could be housed as juveniles. your best approach would be SA dwarf or Shell dwellers.


----------



## 35angels (Aug 7, 2012)

I think I'm going to go with the smaller dwarf cichlids. I don't have the $$$ right now to change over my whole tank. I like the look of cockatoo cichlids. Could I do maybe 1m/2f with the same of Kribs? or should I just stick to one set of cichlids?


----------



## MEDHBSI (Sep 4, 2011)

+1 for the mini dwarf parrots I have 4 of them and they have such great personality


----------



## Ebonbolt (Aug 12, 2011)

1m 2f is fine, but I wouldn't get any other dwarves beyond that; females need around a square foot of territory each, and a few inches of buffer zone is recommended.


----------

