# New 55 Gallon African cichlid tank



## robcope (Feb 8, 2011)

Am I out of control? I purchased a Marineland 55 Gallon with LED lights. It came with a Marineland 350 Penguin filter. I added an undergravel filter powered by airstones and an aquaclear 50. There are ten very small African Cichlids in the tank and all are doing well. The tank has been up and running for about 6 weeks and I love it. I have noticed the ammonia lvl seems to stay up a bit, highest has been 3.0. I added the aquaclear yesterday and hope this help. I prefer to only use stress coat and stay away from any other chemical. I raised cichlids for years, but had to stop for the last fouteen years because our house was to small. I never used any test kits before now, just kept up a strict maintenance plan. It seems I should go back to that method, as the test kits are just making me paranoid.

Thx, Rob


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## corE3105 (Jan 26, 2011)

i dont think cichlids are typically a "hardy" enough fish to cycle a tank with...you've probably only lasted this long because the tank is so big for just 2 fish...the stress coat should help, but i think thats mainly used to dechlorinate the water during water changes


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## robcope (Feb 8, 2011)

There are ten african cichlids in the tank. The cycling will be slow, but I know it will cycle. I have raised african cichlids in the past with no issues.


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## corE3105 (Jan 26, 2011)

sorry, i misread your first post...but im sure if youre good at maintaining the tank with frequent wc, then it doesnt matter if you have 20 in there...i just havent known any cichlid to be the type of fish recommended for cycling...thats all im saying, you might lose a few


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