# Malawi cichlids



## Bear. (May 20, 2010)

Hi we are really interested in settling up a Malawi tank. Can these be kept well in a corner tank or is a long tank better also is a 200 litre tank big enough? 
Thanks


----------



## hayley13 (May 27, 2010)

you could keep them in a corner tank if it was big enough but personally i think long tanks look better,you would be able to use a 200 litre tank and have a few in it as long as you picked ones that didnt grow to big as there are some cichlids that can grow really big.

you need to make sure you have lots of rocks and cave like areas as they love to hide and go in and out of them,plus sand is a good substrate as they like to dig and play with it and it looks better i think.


----------



## Bear. (May 20, 2010)

What size tank would you recomond as we need to buy one any way and would like to make it a big feature if u know what I mean?


----------



## _simon_ (Nov 27, 2007)

Go for the biggest you can fit in / afford. The bigger the tank the more choice you have and the better it will look!

Don't spend a fortune on small shop sold aquariums though.

Check out: http://www.ndaquatics.co.uk/?pg=pricelist and for 2nd hand ones here http://www.aquarist-classifieds.co.uk/

A lot of the price on a new tank is made up of the cabinet. Myself and many other owners use breeze blocks. (I have the blocks on the floor, then a sheet of MDF across them, then a thick sheet of poly and then the tank on top. The poly is hidden by a wooden fascia I added) You can either leave them on show or build a cupboard around them. As they take the weight you only need a lightweight frame with some doors on.


----------



## hayley13 (May 27, 2010)

yeah id go for as big as you can afford and like, especially if you want it as a feature, as like simon said you can fit more in and have more of a choice of what to get and you can make it look really natural with more space.


----------



## Triangulum (Apr 30, 2006)

I would not go lower then a 4ft/250l. It's all well and good having a huge tank, but you have to think about filtration. I've always reccomended two Externals. On my last systems I used Juwel Vision 260's (4ft Bow Fronted). With that I used two External Filters that ran over 600 litres per hour each, resulting in a turn over of 1200 litres. Some say that is overkill, but Malawi's are mucky fish.

Here's a few pictures of my set-ups;

http://www.reptileforums.co.uk/forums/aquatics-classifieds/416418-vision-260-beach-fluval-fx5.html

http://www.reptileforums.co.uk/foru...978-vision-260-complete-malawis-cichlids.html

Anything else, feel free to pm me.

Scott


----------



## jonodrama (May 7, 2009)

when i had my Malawi set up its was a fluval 1200 deep, running to externals(fluval 304? and a cheap one)

Really shop around and look at the second hand stuff.

post some pics when your done


----------



## HABU (Mar 21, 2007)

you want as much floor space as possible... plenty of room for territories, caves and structure...

i always used lace rock for mine... lots of it... crowd them... plenty of water changes and great biological filtration... a 75 gallon works very well...


----------



## Triangulum (Apr 30, 2006)

HABU said:


> you want as much floor space as possible... plenty of room for territories, caves and structure...
> 
> i always used lace rock for mine... lots of it... crowd them... plenty of water changes and great biological filtration... a 75 gallon works very well...


Strictly true, however the Malawi's tend to get broken down into two/three groups. The most common, aggressive and colourful are the Mbuna. Where as the other group(s) are the Haps and Peacocks, where the males are the only colourful interms of Mbuna.

Mbuna do need what Habu said, Lots of space, Lots of Rocks/Caves. Mbuna basicly means rock dwelling, which are highly territorial. The best thing to do with Mbuna is to OVER stock, to spread out the aggresion.

Haps and Peacocks prefer an open tank, with not so much rocks/caves. The majority of Haps and Peacocks get a hell of alot bigger then Mbuna, some reaching 12"+.

Interms of rockwork, I'd reccomend Ocean rock or Limestone. Ocean rock buffers the water naturally, making it more suitable for Malawi Cichlids. Aiming for an 8.0-8.2 Ph. Coral sand will also buffer the water too, although a playsand mix would be more suitable for Haps and Peacocks as some species feed through filtering the sand/gravel.

Scott


----------



## HABU (Mar 21, 2007)

Triangulum said:


> Strictly true, however the Malawi's tend to get broken down into two/three groups. The most common, aggressive and colourful are the Mbuna. Where as the other group(s) are the Haps and Peacocks, where the males are the only colourful interms of Mbuna.
> 
> Mbuna do need what Habu said, Lots of space, Lots of Rocks/Caves. Mbuna basicly means rock dwelling, which are highly territorial. The best thing to do with Mbuna is to OVER stock, to spread out the aggresion.
> 
> ...


 
my bad... i was meaning mbuna when i speak of malawis...

they are the best, most entertaining... the mooches that they are!:lol2:


lace rock...


----------



## Triangulum (Apr 30, 2006)

HABU said:


> my bad... i was meaning mbuna when i speak of malawis...
> 
> they are the best, most entertaining... the mooches that they are!
> lace rock...
> ...


The lace rock does look brilliant once the algae has taken over (which inturn the Mbuna graze on).

Here's some of my ex rock work.

Limestone;


















Lace/Ocean Rock;


















Scott


----------



## juansheet (Jul 25, 2010)

Triangulum said:


> Strictly true, however the Malawi's tend to get broken down into two/three groups. The most common, aggressive and colourful are the Mbuna. Where as the other group(s) are the Haps and Peacocks, where the males are the only colourful interms of Mbuna.
> 
> Mbuna do need what Habu said, Lots of space, Lots of Rocks/Caves. Mbuna basicly means rock dwelling, which are highly territorial. The best thing to do with Mbuna is to OVER stock, to spread out the aggresion.
> 
> ...


 Ocean rock etc is not good fro mbuna as they graze algae etc from the rocks therefore smooth rounded bolders/large pebbles are best and look naturalThats whats actually in the lakes, 
How much do you want to spend on filtration? with Mbuna you have to overstock therefore you need excess filtration if you keep haps then you dont overstock and dont need to get extra filtartion, but haps in general are more expensiv than mbuna so overall the cost will be the same. if this is your first cichlid tank then id suggest haps and peacocks its not as complicated to work out what species to keep together, find a good supplier of fish and go see what they have in,
where do you live? i may be able to advise you on a supplier


----------



## XBexs123 (Jun 13, 2010)

bigger the tanks the better, also think straight tanks look better than corner ones.


----------



## Alon93 (Jul 5, 2010)

I use a 230 liter tank and at one time I had more then 40 different malawi cichlids in it with no problems, however I do have a strong filtration and the tank is filled with hiding places.


----------



## pingu1985 (Apr 14, 2010)

ive a 240 ltr tank with about 15 cichlids in, and a couple of synodontis.


----------

