Jeramy Posted December 29, 2015 Share Posted December 29, 2015 Hey I know we have some fresh water guys on here. Just wanted to reach out and see if there are any Mbuna keepers on here. I am setting up a 40breeder to do a species tank. Also trying to find some local breeders around salem. I know wet spot in Portland is a great source for cichlids but who else? Thanks Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 using Tapatalk 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bevo5 Posted December 29, 2015 Share Posted December 29, 2015 Oh man. Finally a topic I can help out in. I kept Africans for 20yrs before I moved out here and switched to salt. I don't have any info on breeders but I have a ton of stuff if you're still looking for the set up. What are you thinking about keeping? Depending on the fish, and my guess you want something more rare for a species tank, your best bet is to order. Southeast cichlids was my personal favorite as they got great fish and we're always packed and shipped safely. You probably won't find what you're looking for locally and if you did then you would have no where to unload your fry since the fish would be available already. Let me know what your set up is. I've got tons of aragonite and Texas holey Rock if you like that look. But a good wall of river stones is always a great look for mbuna. I've got a 180 nobody wants so I'm toying with setting it up as a frontosa tank in a few months. It's hard to not have any African tanks at all. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeramy Posted December 29, 2015 Author Share Posted December 29, 2015 I am planning on doing Pseudotropheus Saulosi. I collected some rock from the Santiam. And have just about everything I think I will need more filtration though thinking about adding a aqua clear or a small canister to go with the emperor 400. Was also thinking about some t5s to really highlight the fish. Right now I have a small t8 and a couple of led stunner strips but it does not cover very well. Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 using Tapatalk 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bevo5 Posted December 29, 2015 Share Posted December 29, 2015 Yeah man - that will be fun. You'll be overloaded with fry in no time! I've got an EHEIM 2217 laying around if you want to turn that thing into whirlpool of filtration. Also - and I'm sure you're knowledgeable so sorry if I'm telling you things you already know - but you can mix up your own cichlid salt super easily. Just use pure epsom (no fragrance added) and baking soda. It will make your water nice and hard and keep the PH up. Much cheaper than using seachem or something like that. Since we never get to talk cichlids on this site (makes sense). Here are some shots of my old tanks. This was 240 frontosa/tricoti set up. And this was the beginnings of my peacok/hap 180. I ended up with 45 fish in there - was awesome. I was super bummed when I had to sell all of those guys when we moved out here.... 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeramy Posted December 29, 2015 Author Share Posted December 29, 2015 I was actually going to experiment with using Kent reef salt and buffering with some Kalkwasser water sense I have a container collecting dust on a shelf and no shortage of reef salt handy. I would most definitely be interested in the canister filter. I will also check out southeast cichlids. Your tanks looked great. I was also going to hit up wetspot over in Portland on Hancock. Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bevo5 Posted December 29, 2015 Share Posted December 29, 2015 Man. I dunno if I would use a salt mix. It's obviously a very different mix. Cichlids don't mind a little salt in the water but it would start getting pretty salty if you want to buffer with it. But hey - maybe it'll work. I've just never tried it. You can get 5 pounds of Epsom and baking soda for $5. That would last you forever. Might be better as its a no risk set up. Vs trying out different salt mixes. I would put like 5 tablespoons of aquarium salt in my 180 just to help with slime coat. I dunno about going with higher concentrations. Shoot me a note if you want the filter. You should also bring s few buckets over and get the aragonite I have. That'll be free. It's ideal for buffering. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bicyclebill Posted December 29, 2015 Share Posted December 29, 2015 (edited) Dang, sweet tanks up there Bevo5! I kept africans for about 5 years before going to salt. It got a little overwhelming though, and I had four tanks going by the time i got out because they kept breeding so much! Became nearly self sustaining though as much as I was selling peacock babies for. Cayes in SE used to be a decent spot. Seems to me World of Wet Pets in Beaverton had a decent selection too. Internet wasn't around back when I was doing it, so never looked. I still keep thinking about setting up a Tanganyika specific tank; I really like theTropheus genus. Shoot, I'd have to relearn freshwater filtration! Good luck Jeramy and have fun with it! Edited December 29, 2015 by Bicyclebill 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeramy Posted December 29, 2015 Author Share Posted December 29, 2015 The salt was just going to be in very small doses more for the trace elements than anything else the buffering will come from another source. I have large bag of live rock rubble that I was going to use as biological filter media. I will also shoot you a PM =) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bevo5 Posted December 30, 2015 Share Posted December 30, 2015 Dang, sweet tanks up there Bevo5! I kept africans for about 5 years before going to salt. It got a little overwhelming though, and I had four tanks going by the time i got out because they kept breeding so much! Became nearly self sustaining though as much as I was selling peacock babies for. Cayes in SE used to be a decent spot. Seems to me World of Wet Pets in Beaverton had a decent selection too. Internet wasn't around back when I was doing it, so never looked. I still keep thinking about setting up a Tanganyika specific tank; I really like theTropheus genus. Shoot, I'd have to relearn freshwater filtration! Good luck Jeramy and have fun with it! Man, freshwater filtration is the easiest thing in the world. Canister + some bio media...a few layers of sponge. That's all you need. Plus, it's all a closed system so you're not going to flood your living room. Well, I guess a seal can always break... My favorite tank is a Frontosa tank but it's hard to beat peacocks/haps when you want something showy. Everyone thinks a Malawi tank is saltwater with all of the colors etc. The only problem with malawi is that 95% of the fish are the exact same shape. Tangs come in various shapes and sizes so it's more interesting. NOthing beats saltwater for that though... We should probably stop talking about this....it'll make me fill up the 180 in my garage and I for sure do not need that going. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bicyclebill Posted December 30, 2015 Share Posted December 30, 2015 My daughter is sitting here telling me that we don't need a cichlid tank 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lexinverts Posted December 30, 2015 Share Posted December 30, 2015 My daughter is sitting here telling me that we don't need a cichlid tank Come on, Bill! There's room right next to your new Ball python tank. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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