I have just got to work setting up a new 65 gallon mbuna set up. Monday morroning I built a new shelf and set everything up. I added Seachem Prime and an aquaclear full of bacteria from an established tank to get the ball rolling. Yesterday I added Seachem Stability to start my 7 day cycle. Today I put in some substrate and added another filter from an established tank. This one is a little bigger and gets my gph flow up. Aswell it is full of bacteria. It is do for a media change that I will do once it goes back to its regular tank. This 65 is likely to be filtrated by hydro sponge's. I have not added heat yet, and do not plan to untill around day 5 of the cycle. Thats just to save a little power and I dont find that it effects anything. I've done it with all the tanks I have set up in the last year or so.
I was also thinking about changing the lighting. By that I mean just changing the bulbs. Right now they are just some plane old plant and aquarium specials from crappy tire.

Anyway here is the tank on Sunday.


Here it is today.


I am thinking about adding two groups of Pseudo's to this tank. Pseudotropheus Demasoni Pombo Rocks and Pseudotropheus Elongatus Bee Chirwa. A little under a dozen of each. This is way more fish than I normaly keep in a tank this size, but im thinking things will be alright. I will be taken out some males out as needed as I go to dwindel the groups down to good ratios I will post pics as I go.

looking good jay. can u send me your email? I'll send you over a banner for your web site

Jay what kind of substrate is that?? I like the color. Oh and it's looking nice! Fill that baby up with rocks and fish and show us more pics!

looks like you covered all the bases setting it up. Cant wait to see it stocked Tres Bien!

Well late day today, so no time to do anything with the tank. Might be snow tomorrow so I may have a short day to no day of work. I'll see what happens. Something will be going on atleast by the end of the weekend, thats for sure.

Brad, thanks alot. I sent you me email address.

cturner, The substrate is actually a the same stuff that your regular silica sand comes from. It is just not crushed as fine. Its around 1/8 inch. I have just got a sweet conection for gravels and sands form a distributor. I only payed 7 bucks for what is in that tank (100 pounds). They have a wide range of sands and gravels to garnets and crushed glass.

Dumb question: How long will the old filters maintain their bacteria without fish in the tank to feed the Ammonia-intake end of the cycle?

I'd always assumed I only had a day or so after I hooked up the well-matured filter before I had to have the fish in the tank.

Great looking new aquarium!

Don

Not a dump question at all. Actually quite good. I wish I new the answer. Who does?

Actually, it does no good to use established filter media in a new tank unless you add the fish immediately. blinky

You have to have the food/waste thing going on in the tank in order to maintain the bioload.

Sorry, not what you wanted to hear, I know...

I also don't think too much of Stability, and have encountered all kinds of people having "cycling" issues after using it.

IMO, any claims to "bacteria in a bottle" are kind of iffy... idunno

And, while I'm bursting bubbles, I wouldn't house demasoni and elongatus together in a tank if I planned on distributing fry! They can and will crossbreed, and you can also expect some pretty severe aggression between the two species. Demasoni tend to dislike other blue barred fish!

Kim

ok- you are going to think I am crazy and I am prepared to get blasted but- its an african cichlid tank. Dont worry about the cycle right now. Add fish slowly and dont overstock right away. You will be fine.
The cycling theory is completely over rated on every single board I have ever been on-in relevance to keeping african cichlids- unless you plan to immediately over stock, skip water changes, and have poor filteration and aeration. You cant go wrong if you add slowly and are patient.

If you are keeping gold fish/koi, discus, community tropicals, or salt water- cycling the tank becomes very critical

I agree with you to an extent, Les...

You can add slowly IF you want to monitor the water parameters closely throughout the cycle AND are willing to do water changes - which will interrupt the cycle process and prolong it. IMO, that's making it harder than it has to be...

The ammonia level that goes along with the cycling process can do long term internal damage to the fish that go through the cycle. It can cause organ failure and other long range problems.

I've noticed more and more people tend to be going the fishless cycle route, by using ammonia to force the cycle, or a piece of shrimp or fish. The ones who do add fish usually don't add the fish they plan to keep long term...They use danios or something along that line to cycle the tank.

I've always gotten by with using established water and media from another tank.

Even adding a handful of seeded substrate from another established tank is helpful to jump start a new tank.

Kim

I have found that the biggest advantage of the fishless cycle is
the ability to stock the tank with the amount of fish you intend
to keep from the start!

In other words, if you plan to stock a tank with 30 fish, then you
can add all 30 fish in at once, although I would probably opt for
only placing 20-25 right off the bat and then add if I want to do so.

Another advantage of fishless cycle is for those who are having their
fish shipped mail order!

JMO!

I agree with you both, however I realize that nobody in their right mind will back my opinion. I still think that generally speaking people get a little too nutty about cycling their tanks. Patience is the key for me. I threw all my test kits away. I would check the ammonia over and over and the readings were always nill.

Im not arguing with you guys, just stating my own opinion based on my own experiences. Hope that doesnt sound to offensive Tres Bien!

My test kits are gathering dust! Giggly

I absolutely never use them unless I have a problem or I set up a new tank that I need to use quickly.

Kim

i have the exact same oppinion as les.

My lazy-man's method for cycling:

I only use Fluval 405's as canisters on my larger tanks, which is often overkill on filtration... which I like! I'll also have some kind of HOB or Eclipse-style hood drip filter for "belt and suspenders."

For small tanks I only use Eclipse 6G and 12G's.

If I start a new larger tank I set up the new Fluval 405, but then swap in the canister from an established tank and immediately add fish. The tank that gets the fresh canister already has other bacteria sources.

On the Eclipses I swap the filter pads or biowheels (but not both).

This has worked great for me for fast cycling thus far, since old filter and new fish arrive at the same time. Of course, if I ever come to hate Fluval 405's or Eclipses I'm in trouble!

I, too, only use my test kits if something is wrong and I'm trying to eliminate water quality as the cause.

Mine may have become dust, couldn't tell ya where it is. I have not tested my water in over two years.

As for the fishless cycle. I think, to each there own. Sometimes I go fishless and sometimes I dont. I dont really have a set way of starting my tanks. Mind you, I have only been keeping fish for 4 or so years. Maybe one day I will find something I like and stick with it.

As for the 65. I will be doing something with it tomorrow.

So anyways cycle this and cycle that... Here is what I came up with for the tank today. I dont usally use plastic plants but I figured I would give it a try for this one. I am still kinda unsure of what im going to stock it with. Kim I am aware of the aggression of those mbuna. But thought it might work. Either way that was just a thought now i've been thinking Metriaclima hajomaylandi and Pseudotropheus kingsizei, but I dont know... only time will tell!

Wow Jay I really like your layout with the contrast between the wood and your coral rocks!

I think it looks great, Jay...I love those plants, they look nice!

Kim

Very nice set up, Jay! the Clap

Good luck on whatever pseudo's you decide to keep! Tres Bien!

Jay, the composition on that layout is really nice and thoughtful.

Can't wait to see it with fish!

Don

Thanks everyone. I really didn't put a whole lot of thought into setting this up I just trough in the rocks and driftwood. Where they landed is where they stayed. I may stock it today if my temp is looking good.

Well, you can come throw rocks and driftwood and plants in my tanks anytime!

Kim

The tank looks great Jay! The substrate and rocks work well together.

I have that same plant in my 60 gallon, but it doesn't look quite as nice as yours any more.

So I added fish today. A dozen Metriaclima hajomaylandi. I also took out a bit of the plastic plant. My girlfriend told me that it was a little much. I agreed. The tank will likely be changed come spring when I go rock shopping at all the local landscape centers.

So here is the tank for now.




And the fish.

Looks awesome Jay

It looks great, Jay! Tres Bien!

Have you decided what else you're going to add yet?

Kim

Nope. Im not sure if im even going to be putting anything else in. Well except for some BN plecos once I start to get some algae built up. The only other fish that I dont really have space for right now is 5 of your old kingsizei. I have them up for sale but if the don't go soon they might end up going in this tank. But who knows...

Very nice tank setup Jay Tres Bien!

Heres one of my boys getting comfy in his new tank.

I like it!!!!!!

Nice fish and pics, as usual, Jay!