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Breeding tank set up?

frankoq

Members
Thinking about breeding Malawi cichlids for the fun of it.
What is the minimum to optimal set up in terms of tanks and other equipment?
is it like a tank rack with the following?
- breeding tank (size?)
- nursing tank (size?)
- Fry tank (10g?)
- grow tank (29g?)

For those already breeding, what is your set up?

Thanks!
 

npbarca

Members
I think 40b are the best size for breeding. Instead of a nursing tank, I just use one of the hang on nets in the tank. 10g for grow out, and then a 20 long or 29, or 40b if you have the space as a dump tank for the the juvies once they grow to 1 inch.

My setup is 4 40b, 4 10g, a 20long, and a 5g quarantine/hospital. I will soon add 2 20 longs.
 

daninmd

Members
+1 on the 40B for breeding tank.

for new fry, I find putting them in a small breeders net in a tank for a few weeks works best. it concentrates the fry and makes feeding them a bit easier. a bunch of newly swimming fry in a 10 gallon tank can be hard to feed. just make sure there are no other fish in the tank as they can suck up the fry thru the net (learned that the hard way). you can also put some sand on the bottom of the breeder net to stop that from happening as well.

And I would go with all 20g tanks for growouts if the species look different. 10g tanks for similar looking fry.
 

verbal

CCA Members
A lot of fish will work in a 40 breeder, but a 75 will give you even more options.

Once you get past 75, the pain of removing the fish outweighs any benefit of the extra size - unless you are dealing with the 10"+ haps.

The breeder nets or external breeder boxes are great options for the new fry. If you have somewhere you can sell fry around the 1" range, then a 10/15 should be fine for grow-out.

However if you will be primarily selling in mini-auctions, etc I would recommending growing out in a larger tank - 29 to 40 and trying to get to the 2/2.5" range. Also that way you can add sub-adults if you need to maintain/expand your breeding group.
 

npbarca

Members
Unless you are trying to breed large haps, then I think a 40b is perfect. It's perfect size for a group of peacocks, and most mbuna.
 

frankoq

Members
If I go for it, it will be for mbuna/peacocks.
How about this:
Breeder = 29 or 40
Fry tank = 20g
grow out tank = 29 or 40
 

frankoq

Members
Thanks for the suggestions.
How are you guys doing filtration? sponges?
how about water changes?
Anyone doing a sump for the whole rack?
 

npbarca

Members
I use a Coralife super luft for my whole rack with sponges in every tank(2 40bs, 1 20, 4 10, and a 5) plus a penguin 200 hob on each 40.
 

npbarca

Members
Coralife is awesome! I could even add more sponge filters if I has to. It is relatively quiet, no more than the sound of te bubbles from the sponge filters.
 

Hannibal

Members
I may be in the minority here but what worked for me was setting up a tank specifically for the fish I want to breed. If you get a good male to female ratio and everyone is happy they will breed. I set up a 55 gallon to breed Taiwan Reefs. I started out with 4 and now have about 15. I do not pull fry, I just give them a pile of rocks to hide in when the mother spits them.

Just lending some friendly advise before you go out and buy 3 or 4 more tanks for breeding purposes.
 

verbal

CCA Members
I may be in the minority here but what worked for me was setting up a tank specifically for the fish I want to breed. If you get a good male to female ratio and everyone is happy they will breed. I set up a 55 gallon to breed Taiwan Reefs. I started out with 4 and now have about 15. I do not pull fry, I just give them a pile of rocks to hide in when the mother spits them.

Just lending some friendly advise before you go out and buy 3 or 4 more tanks for breeding purposes.

One thing you can do that will give you the flexibility to go either way - one tank or "multiples" is to use an HMF filter, since that can also be used as a divider.

I personally haven't had any luck with mouthbrooder fry surviving, but I also generally don't have a ton of decor in my tanks.

I have my Soda Cichlids in a 33 long(basically a short 55). I a long section about 36" and a short section 12" with a HMF in the middle. Since I am mainly using it as a divider I do sponges on each side. I strip females and put the fry in an acrylic breeder box. Then when the fry grow for a few weeks they go on the short side. When the fry are big enough to get food and not get eaten they are added to the long side.
 

frankoq

Members
One thing you can do that will give you the flexibility to go either way - one tank or "multiples" is to use an HMF filter, since that can also be used as a divider.

I personally haven't had any luck with mouthbrooder fry surviving, but I also generally don't have a ton of decor in my tanks.

I have my Soda Cichlids in a 33 long(basically a short 55). I a long section about 36" and a short section 12" with a HMF in the middle. Since I am mainly using it as a divider I do sponges on each side. I strip females and put the fry in an acrylic breeder box. Then when the fry grow for a few weeks they go on the short side. When the fry are big enough to get food and not get eaten they are added to the long side.

very interesting option to minimize tanks. Something to consider.
Thanks to all for the feedback
 
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