# New to Cichlids



## Aquaman55g (Oct 5, 2010)

I am new to Cichlids of any kind and am looking for recommendations for colorful and size appropriate species that can live together in my 55 gallon tank. I like most of the fish I have seen in African Cichlid tanks as far as color and variety of species but will they grow too large for a 55 gallon tank? Will I be limited to non - African Cichlids? I would prefer to have more colorful fish rather than a few large fish. Once I have finished combining my 55 gallon and 40 gallon planted tanks into a 125 gallon planted aquarium, I want my first cichlid tank to be simple and natural looking. I plan to only have a universal rocks 3D background, with the filter piping and heater covered by the same 3D background material, a sufficient number of cichlid stones and perhaps a few plastic plants. I will be running an AquaClear 110 power filter along with a Cascade 1000 canister filter on this 55 gallon aquarium, which I believe should be more than sufficient for filtration as well as water flow. I will also be using a cichlid substrate but have not decided on whether to use sand or gravel sized substrate – again recommendations needed – does it depend on the species I choose?
Lastly, it has been quite a while since I had a fish only aquarium, I also have some questions regarding the number of fish to add, filter media, light requirements and water changes: How many fish should I introduce into the aquarium initially after cycling as I have heard if cichlids grow together they will get along? Do I need to add activated carbon or similar chemical filter media to my filters? Do I need to run my lights (hopefully I will get LEDs) on a timer to simulate day time and night time conditions? I have been doing 50% water changes weekly on my planted aquariums what is the percentage and frequency of water changes for cichlid aquariums? Thanks in advance to all responding members - :fish10:


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## dalfed (Apr 8, 2012)

You could go with two groups of dwarf mbuna, can't beat the look of demasonis with electric yellows, Tanganykin tank of multis leilupi and dwarf leptosomas, lots of different African cichlids will fit fine in a 55. Once you have narrowed it down post what your thinking on here for a stocklist and the crew here will help you out.


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