Mitchell15687 Posted October 12, 2004 Share Posted October 12, 2004 Hey guys, Im relativley new to cichlids. Just thought i would post up a pic if my Neolamprologus Multifasciatus tank. However this is what it looked like 2-3 months ago, when i first set it up. They are destructive little buggers, and it isnt the prettiest tank know And after the civil war, They got there own way in the end.... Is it worth cleaning of that algea?, I thought the fry would benifit from the micro organisms that come with it,? Well thats that, Thanks People! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BaZ Posted October 12, 2004 Share Posted October 12, 2004 Well done Mitchell It's nice to finally see pics of the tank. It looks good! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xxxx Posted October 12, 2004 Share Posted October 12, 2004 I too am relatively new to keeping cichlids ( only a couple of years ) and it took me quite a while to realise that re-arranging the substrate and fixtures in an attempt to make the tank look appealing to the eye made absolutely no difference to my fish. Immediately following my efforts, the fish would re-arrange the tank to suit themselves................... moral to the story........cichlids know what cichlids like the best...............................cheers xxxx Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ducksta Posted October 12, 2004 Share Posted October 12, 2004 I like to leave the algae, except on the front wall. I left it for a long time, and for a breif period it bothered me (I think because somebody here commented on it) and considered trying ways to remove it permanently, but decided it is probably a good thing, reducing nitrates and phosphates and making the tank look natural Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BaZ Posted October 13, 2004 Share Posted October 13, 2004 Yep, I leave it on the back of all my tanks if it appears. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colfish Posted October 15, 2004 Share Posted October 15, 2004 hi Mitch multies, got to be ONE of my favourites, a lot of other shellies as well, but not as amusing as these guys. i don't overly worry about algae. reduce the amount of light [time or wattage] if it starts to get out of control. i also beleive the fry benefit from it. as you have found out the fish will rearrange things to suit themselves, but i would like to suggest removing most of the substrate, these guys do prefer a hard base and will pile the excess up against the front wall, making it look untidy and dangerously deep. great fish, have fun.---- colfish Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
carlos Posted October 19, 2004 Share Posted October 19, 2004 im thinking of setting up a multi tank aswell! is that pool filter sand your using as substrate? if not what is it and whered u get it from? how high do you recommend the substrate to be Colfish? what do u mean it can get dangerous? also do u know where i can get sum multis, iv kinda struck out looking for them around where i live! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mitchell15687 Posted October 19, 2004 Author Share Posted October 19, 2004 Hi Carlos, I have Crushed Marble in that tank, Its not as fine as the sand. I cant remember what grade this size is though Maybey try to go with 3 inches deep, But they may still dig to the glass. I found it was best to let them do what they want. Thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ducksta Posted October 19, 2004 Share Posted October 19, 2004 3 inches is way too deep!! Heed Colin's advice, remove most of that substrate and leave only 1-2cm in the bottom. This is still plenty for them to do as they please, dig, move about, pile in corners etc. However, it is less likely to have any 'landslide' type effect. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BaZ Posted October 20, 2004 Share Posted October 20, 2004 I did the same with my sand, however before adding the sand I lined the base of the tank with some thin black slate offcuts. Now when they did down and uncover the base of the tank, I get to look at black slate rather than un-natural shiny glass Here is a horrible pic, taken before they really started to dig a lot, but you might get the idea... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
carlos Posted October 21, 2004 Share Posted October 21, 2004 hmmm the crushed marble looks nice, whered u get it from? m thinking of getting some pool filter sand (hopefully doenst need much cleaning!) also what kinda rocks are you using? theyre nice too! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
barramundi Posted October 28, 2004 Share Posted October 28, 2004 how high do you recommend the substrate to be Colfish? what do u mean it can get dangerous? also do u know where i can get sum multis, iv kinda struck out looking for them around where i live! It's dangerous for a couple of reasons, one being the landslide problem, the other I got stuck with. I got home to find my mutli's had taken all the sand in the tank, every darn grain, & stacked it into one corner, the corner with the filter intake! I had the inlet a good 8" off the bottom & had a protective sponge, but the "anti-sand" sponge doesn't work when you bury the darn thing! At least it was only the impeller that got killed. But I siphoned out over 50% of the sand, they still have fun stacking it up but now they can't get into trouble... well... Oh & I use pool filter sand, & I find it great. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mitchell15687 Posted October 28, 2004 Author Share Posted October 28, 2004 Thanks for that guys, sorry colfish i missed your post. I thought it was good to have it relativley deep, But its allright, i will fix it up. What do you mean by lanslide effect? does it slide down and cover all the fish?? and their shells? Thanks for all the advice. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
barramundi Posted October 28, 2004 Share Posted October 28, 2004 What do you mean by lanslide effect? does it slide down and cover all the fish?? and their shells? Yep, usually most fish move too quick to get caught out, but with shell dwellers they can be in their shell at the time & get buried. If it's too deep they can't get out quick enough. Also, in my experience with Multi's they will inevitably dig down to bottom, either glass or rock like BaZ recommended. They seem to like the shells on the bottom. So it's better to plan for it rather than risk a problem, cos they're gonna do it. They're known as the fish equivalent of a D9 bulldozer for a good reason. My reading tells me it's cos Lake Tang is pretty clear & not lots of cover in the sand beds so any fish swimming over the sand is really exposed above the horizon. The multi's create a labrynth of trenches which means they can move freely below the horizon, from above their camo is quite good so predators swim over them without seeing them straight away, giving them time to hide. Plus food washes into the trenches & gets stuck, kind of fishy home delivery. HTH Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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