Cichlid substrate?

[it4lian]

What would be a good substrate that would help raise the PH of a tank for african cichlids? I"ve heard like sand with argonite in it or crushed coral work, but I've also heard they can be a pain in the ass to clean and it can get in the filter and stuff too. That true? All helps appreciated. So what would be a good substrate?

[JustOneMore20]

Depending on what your pH and KH are, the best thing would probably be to put some crushed coral in a media bag and stick it in your filter. Aragonite sand is pretty messy and so is crushed coral when you use it as a substrate. If you want to dish out money for Eco Complete Cichlid sand, that is good stuff.

If you have a pH of around 7.2 and up, that would be fine for most Africans. Just remember that when you do water changes if your tap pH is alot lower, that could stress the fish out more than living in water that is not ideal.

[it4lian]

Oh, then I could just use regular gravel? My tap water here has a PH of 7.6, I'm also putting a piece of driftwood though, does that raise or lower the PH at all? I ended up buying some Aragonite reef sand, its like really gritty and not really sand. Looks more like small pieces of oatmeal. Should I take it back, and just get some easier to care for stuff?

[emc7]

Driftwood can lower pH (sometimes it doesn't).

7.6 is fine for anything from lakes Victoria or Malawi. Just check it in a week to make sure it stays up. Or check the gH and kH. If you have "hard water" most likely you don't need anything at all. If you don't, putting crushed coral in a bag or media container in a filter is most likely enough to keep the pH up.

I think reef sand would work, but its more expensive than you need. Crushed coral starts out ok (after you rinse all the dust out), but it slowly dissolves in soft water and eventually you have smaller pieces that can get in your impellers. However, before mine gets to the that point, I cover my filter intakes because snail shells are getting in my impellers. I haven't used sand. Its another impeller destroyer, but you can put a sponge on the intake. Sand is more 'natural' and some of the prettiest tank pics I've seen have sand. Most cichlids don't seem to have any trouble moving even large gravel about. If you get "earth-eaters", its cool to watch them throw sand out their gills.

[it4lian]

So the reef sand I got would work, without clogging up my filter a whole lot? I have 30 lbs of it and am thinking of getting another one, but it didn't seem a whole lot to me, was only about $50 for em. Also how do I test the hardness and alkalinty of my water? My test kit only does, PH, High-level PH, nitrates, nitrites, and ammonia. Should I just find a kit that has those included in it?

[Gourami Swami]

Most cichlids are tanks, you don need to worry about alk, KH, GH, etc., as long as your tank is cycled. They thrive in high pH but a stable one is more important.

[JustOneMore20]

Agreed. I'm keeping Multies (Tanganykans who prefer 8+ pH) in a pH of 7.6. My water has moderate hardness too, so its not necessarily ideal, but the pH is stable, tank is cycled and they are thriving.


If you want to test GH and KH, then you'll need a test kit for it. They sell the tests together. Just look for a GH/KH test.


If you use the reef sand, turn your filter off when you put it in and then let it settle before starting the filter up. An alternative would be Pool filter sand. Its heavy enough not to suspend in the water and sinks immediately. You can also gravel vac over it (hover) and it won't get sucked up. I have it in my Multi tank.

[it4lian]

I planned on getting the sand and stuff in and settled for a few days before I ptu the filter in. Would that work? Can you gravel vac reef sand aswell? If not I'll just take it back and go buy like 40 pounds of pool filter sand.

[Cichlidsinoh]

I use reg. play sand with prefilters on tanks with HOB's. This works great, I also have well water that is 8.2 when mixed with the Limestone based sand. My breeders are every 3-5 weeks and all fish are very healthy.

www.cichlidsinoh.com

[mr-cichlid]

I have to agree with everyone else. Crushed coral is a little tougher to work with, but it's actually not all that bad. Just focus on keeping that environment stable.

[Obsidian]

One option if your PH is not where you want it would be to put crushed coral in a clean stocking in your filter. That can add a boost. It should really not matter though, as others have pointed out, as long as it is stable your fish will be fine.

[Good Wolf]

I'm using the pool filter sand in two tanks. It did cloud the water for two days but it is not crystal clear. My Cories love the sand and it gives the tank a more natural look that gravel.

I will be vac'ing them for the first time this weekend. It is my understanding that you just hold the vac above the sand and it shouldn't cloud the water very much.

As far as pH goes all the fish I have like low pH and soft water. I have high pH at around 7.6-8 and very hard water and all are doing great. Like Kristen said, it is more important to have consistancy than exact numbers.