Linsay Posted April 17, 2008 Report Share Posted April 17, 2008 Hi, My husband and I got a 30g and a Sciaenochromis fryeri for my son as a pet, but it turned out my husband caught the aquarium bug more than anyone. Almost two months later we have 5 more tanks :shock: 70g cycling (planning on rays) 45g 2 Sciaenochromis fryeri (m+f), Nimbochromis Livinstonii, Neolamprologus tretocephalus, Labidochromis caeruleus, and what i beleive is a Pseudotropheus saulosi (got him out of a 'mixed cichlid' tank) 30g (planning on baby cichlids - probably electric yellows and p. saulosi) 20g 3 common plecos we got for free with the tanks we bought. I know it's cramped in there, we're just waiting for the other tanks to finish cycling. 20g cycling -will be quarantine 15g cycling -will be hospital I know these fish get big and we do plan on getting much bigger tanks. :smokey: This is one of the best places to get info on the whole internet, and it's local to boot! woot woot!! Thanks for all the great info :thumbs: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
African_Fever Posted April 17, 2008 Report Share Posted April 17, 2008 Welcome to the forum! Cichlids are a great fish to get into when starting out. If you're s90erious about rays, you'll be needing a much larger tank than a 70 gallon in about 6 months - they grow fast and need space. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CORVETTE Posted April 17, 2008 Report Share Posted April 17, 2008 Glad to see new people here, i must agree Rays grow really fast and take a lot to look after. I presently have 3 in a 220 gallon and they are quickly out growing it. Retics or tea cup rays are smaller around 15-16" grown most others reach 25" or larger in time. I must also recomend doing alot of research on them, they are not the easiest to keep. So far a 70 gal hey just wait till he see's his first 400 gallon then there will be trouble least there was for me.... If you have any questions about rays just ask... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JORG Posted April 17, 2008 Report Share Posted April 17, 2008 :welcome: to the forum it's good to have more Cichlid fans ---- there's lots of Cichlids for sale on the CLF aution in the livestock section right now Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sam Chicklets Posted April 17, 2008 Report Share Posted April 17, 2008 :welcome: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slough Shark Posted April 17, 2008 Report Share Posted April 17, 2008 :welcome: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Linsay Posted April 17, 2008 Author Report Share Posted April 17, 2008 Glad to see new people here, i must agree Rays grow really fast and take a lot to look after. I presently have 3 in a 220 gallon and they are quickly out growing it. Retics or tea cup rays are smaller around 15-16" grown most others reach 25" or larger in time. I must also recomend doing alot of research on them, they are not the easiest to keep. So far a 70 gal hey just wait till he see's his first 400 gallon then there will be trouble least there was for me.... If you have any questions about rays just ask... I've done some homework on rays and everyone seems to agree they need pristine water conditions. What kind of filtration do you recomend? I have two AC70's on there right now but i have a gut feeling that's not going to be enough. It so happens I have a perfect place for a sump (or canister) under the tank but I know very little about how to set up a sump. I did some googling, but it got me more confused than anything. I suppose a few of my main questions are 1. what is the best filter material to use in a sump? 2. can you just stick 2 hoses into the tank - one to suck the water into the sump and the other to return? 3. What is a refugium and is it necessary for rays? Also- on the note of water conditions. That 70g tank is cycling very weirdly (is that a word?) any way... here's the story: I bought the tank used - it held a big peacock and two oscars (which i sold), it was really grimy so i washed it out with the hose and a tooth brush. The filters came with the tank, but were really grimy too so i also washed those out with tap water (both the filter material and the filter itself). The sand is brand new regular sand (not aquarium grade, but the dude at Pisces said that's what they use in thier ray tanks). I currently have 12 danios in there to help it along with the ammonia (i know, i know, i'm the devil for letting the poor little fish suffer) Here's the weird part - i tested the water the very next day after i filled it and it appeared cycled ???!!! 0 NH3, 0 NO2, 20 NO3! I expected to find 0 for everything. (pH - 8.1, temp - 80C) It's stayed the same for the last week or so. I'm thinking that a small amount of bacteria must've survived my cleaning frenzy and are able to keep up with the danio's. (??? Do you agree? Any other ideas???) If that's the case I'm worried that there isn't enough bacteria in the tank to take care of a spike in the ammonia when bigger fish are added (hopefully rays). Any suggestions? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Northranger Posted April 19, 2008 Report Share Posted April 19, 2008 :welcome: You'll find a ton of very helpful people here. It should take several weeks to properly cycle your tank using the normal methods. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Terrie Lee Posted April 19, 2008 Report Share Posted April 19, 2008 Welcome to the forum! I hope you find all of the information you need. Be careful, Multiple Tank Syndrome can sometimes get out of hand. LOL Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bottomdweller_fan Posted April 23, 2008 Report Share Posted April 23, 2008 :welcome: Welcome to Alberta Aquatica! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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