11 replies to this topic

[mremants]

This year will be my last year at school and i'm planning on having my own tank.

And i'm going to go Malawi.

The thing is I know virtually nothing in the area of Malawi cichlids, as I only keep South Americans at the moment.

So if anyone has some time to burn and some experience to lend then please post.

Here's an outline for you:

Budget: $600 - $900
materials: any prefer metal stand (suggest a tank size to suite fish.)
Room: Well lighted from 3 sides (non-direct)
Style: Display tank/ Prominent room feature (pref some colourful fish)

Any advice welcome

This page will be used for future reference.

For those whom don't know me my name is Tom and I brought the sick fish in last meeting (Jan '04)

[eX024]

I don't want to turn this into an anti-malawi thread or anything but I agree with sajica and would urge you to carefully think about it and make sure you want malawis before you set it up. I find them to be beautiful fish but many don't seem to have much of a personality and just swim up and down the tank like gold fish. They are great looking though and excellent for setting up a nice community with.

Oh yeh and I don't really know what I'm talking about

[hlokk]

Apparently tangs are more interesting to watch than malawians though (e.g. sand dwellers or some julies moving like subs).

That said, i have a malawi setup and i love it. Never having fish i find them interesting to watch and some are damn gorgeous.

I would talk to your fish shop though, they should be helpful in picking out what u want. I would go with a 2nd hand setup with a nice cabinet myself, you can get them under $600 with little to add in the quokka (prolly 5'-6' with very basic cabinet or metal stand). You wont have to buy too much more and u end up with a huge tank.

I probably cant help heaps equiptment wise, but i can help you with the fish though. I should be able to help u pick some nice species or answer some qs. I could possibly help on msn too if u want as well.

[Mazimbwe]

Keep the Central and South Americans

Yeah...and while you are at it get a really big tank that you can only keep 2-4 fish in and then have them protect one area of that tank and rip the other fishes fins apart. Should be very entertaining

You wanna have a go at Malawi's? You will not regret it!

My advice is to get hold of some of Ad Konings early books that go thru what, and where, to do in order to have a successful Malawi set-up.
If you take your time and source stuff correctly, you should be able to set up a "Kick-ar$e" Malawi Tank with 1 group of Mbuna and one of Peacock or small Hap. This should be do-able within your budget.

At the moment you question is too broard and needs to be refined a little...do some more reading and formulate a theory/plan and then get back to us. Help should be a little easier to give when your questions are a little more specific.

HTH

[Barca888]

I strongly disagree with your branding of malawis. I have a few malawis mixed with some american tank busters and i find that the malawis interest me as much as the other cichlids. Perhaps you may have called them boring but comparing them with goldfish is just silly. I hate goldfish, when i pass their section in the lfs i utter in disgust. Nothing has a bigger personality than my female venustus. Nothing is more funny seeing her chase my electric blue around the tank when she's on heat.

[mrgreen]

HOW DARE U !!!!!!!!!!
thats such a bad comment to make in here !!!!!!
i have a few tanks and i can tell u this much malawi"s kick arse!!!!!!!!
but puttin together a good tank is the real question here and i can only suggest goin for a complete set up ie tank, stand ,filter, light ,gravel, rocks etc etc
some good ones have come up regularly in this forum so post a WTB add or look thru the old for sale ads , u mite get lucky , i know i used the help of this forum ta buy my display tank whick included a wooden stand and hood , two lights a cannister filter, two heaters, sand , rocks i got the old "just add water" set up for $500 bucks and the tank is the focal point of my rather large office at work and its a 6x18x18 so uve got the budget ta make it all happen and then it becomes choosing the fish
mbuna are a great place ta start , as my tank is for diplay purposes i have tried to get a range on contrastin colours of my fish so ill give ya an idea of wat i put in there and i rekon its looks absolutely fantastic!!!!!
(and a pleasure to watch)
aciie _ black fish with yellow end to fin
electric yellows _ bright yellow
elecrtic blues _ bright blue
dimi' compressors' _ silver fish with black line
venustus _ few colours and that lovely camoflague look
hongi _ blue barred fish with orange fins
syno' eruptus _ two groovy catfish with cool markings
boylei _ red n bluey fish
and a pleco
all these colours work great and not one person ( even those who dont even like fish) has been in my office without commenting on how nice it looks
so get ta work sunshine!!!!!!
AND DO US ALL PROUD
malawi's FOR EVER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[hlokk]

Malawians are incredibly beautiful fish and much better to watch than any crappy goldfish. I think the general consenus is that some fish like tangs might have more interesting behaviour. This doesnt mean malawis are boring, i think it just means theres more complex behaviour.

But i went malawi and it kicks ass like mrgreen said. Also, i would agree with mrgreens fish suggestions (though if compresiceps, venustus or borleyi, make sure the tank is big enough). The only other ones i suggest are the protomelas species (red empress, taiwan reef, annectens, etc). Aulonocara are lovely too, but u have to watch not to put them with too rough fish.

(oh, and i've had several ppl go 'oh, wow!' when seeing my fish, particularily ngara flametail and fryeri)

[eX024]

I didn't mean to be that harsh on the poor malawis, I was just pointing out the fact that many of them are so hyperactive. So I withdraw my comment comparing them to goldfish.

I have a malawi setup and I love it, they are all beautiful and do have personalitys, I just find the tangs behavoir to be a little more interesting.

[Mazimbwe]

Quote:

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So I withdraw my comment comparing them to goldfish

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...hmmm, OK then. I will have the "Contract" lifted.

That is why Cichlids are so cool...every taste is catered for really.

[chuckmeister]

Hey mremants, After all the waisted money I've spent in the past, if I could do it from scratch again I would by the biggest tank I could afford including the filters etc and then slowly fill the tank with the fish. You've got plenty of time to bye the fish, thats the easy part. As far as fish are concerned, that is up to you. While I have tangs I find them boring or not exciteing anyway. Haps or open water Malawi fish are more active and more colourful, I think and Americans are full of personality (so I hear). And Goldfish.... aren't they what you feed Americans

[eX024]

yeh, I'd definatly fill the tank slowly, cause once I finish filling a tank I get bored and want to start a new setup, buying new fish is best part of it, so if I want the fun to last I need to add fish to a tank slowly