Fellow Cichlid Enthusiasts

[dankdabe]

Hi all,

My name is David and I'm in the process of setting up a 55 in my basement this past weekend that I plan to house Africans (likely Mbuna) in. It's my first tank in 6 years! I'm from Texas and went to school in Tennessee and currently live and work in DC. I've been out of the game for several years, but used to have many many tanks as a kid and worked for a year at the best fish store in the U.S., Rivers and Reefs Pet Center in Austin, Texas. I ran the system there and am experienced with all types of tanks, but much prefer freshwater and am much more knowledgeable on the subject. I picked up two 55s (glass) and a homemade, tall, badass stand from a buddy's coworker. I'm going to give one a go for a while and then put the time, effort and MONEY into getting the other one up and running. The 55 is up and running with an Emperor 400 (first time besides in the store - used HOT Canisters forever), a single 48in fluorescent light strip, and 100lbs of pool filter sand. Its been up for 2 days and I plan to pick up some pure ammonia today to start a fishless cycle (first time, any tips or tricks would be greatly appreciated). I stumbled upon this group after searching for local stores, etc. If anyone would like to give me the run-down on the best lfs's in the region, best places to buy africans, where to get some good rocks for aquascaping, etc., that would be great. Tried Pristine Aquatics last weekend and will not be returning... Anywho, Happy to find a home here and look forward to interacting with yall. Also, I wasnt able to figure out how to compress a photo of the tank to attach here...

David

 

[jonclark96]

Welcome to the forum! The number of LFS is shrinking every day, but House of Tropicals in Glen Burnie is one of my favorites.

As for cycling, I'm sure you could get some seeded filters from someone on the forum. I'm in Frederick and you bring me a new sponge filter and you can have one of mine from an established tank. Instant cycle.

Good luck.

Jon

 

[dankdabe]

Yeah, I haven't checked out anything but Pristine Aquariums in Alexandria, but it seems like options are slim. I'd love to take the sponge but the trip is a long one to Frederick (From DC) and would have to borrow a car to do so. Maybe Ill convince the girlfriend, but that might be a little too far. Thanks very much though.

 

[Reel Addiction]

Welcome to the forum, glad your getting back into business. There are plenty of sponsors on the site that sell fish if you cant find them local. A benefit to becoming a paid member of CCA is the group buys. Discounts on the fish and usually a split with shipping.

Or you can check out the market place to see who is selling

 

[marge618]

Hi David. Welcome to the CCA forum.

 

[Tony]

Welcome to the forum David. Always nice to meet a fellow African keeper.

Same offer stands with me regarding the sponge filter. I live in Gaithersburg, MD, which is a bit closer than Frederick, but still a decent trek out of DC.

If you wanted to come up, I could show you my setup. I'm into breeding a few haps, peacocks and mbuna, but cleared out most of my juveniles at the ACA, so my fry are pretty small right now. There are a bunch of folks on the forum breeding Africans. You can find most anything you're looking for.

Try to make it up to a meeting some time. I guarantee you'll be glad you did.

Cheers,
Tony

 

[dankdabe]

Tony,

Thanks alot for the offer and the info! Gaithersburg would be more manageable. Unfortunately I'm headed the opposite direction this weekend, to the Northern Neck of Virginia. Either way, I'm going to to have to travel to stock the tank as there are no viable options in the city. I would like to stock with juveniles, and love the idea of snatching some up privately from trusted enthusiasts/breeders rather than at the store. I'll keep you posted on the sponge offer. Thanks again.

 

[dankdabe]

Just noticed that the upcoming meeting is in Silver Spring. I will definitely try to catch that and meet some of yall.

 

[Wblaze]

Welcome. I like the lagoon on Georgia Ave. in Silver Spring. I am not a paid member of this group and had no idea about the group buys. How does that work and how often does the group do them? How much is membership?

 

[jonclark96]

Membership is $20 for the year.

Group buys usually happen once every few months. It really depends on what is going on, but by being a member, you can offer up to start your own group buy to see if others want to get in on it. Join up today!

 

[dankdabe]

Will people be selling fish at the upcoming meeting?

 

[Tony]

Will people be selling fish at the upcoming meeting?

We have an auction at every meeting. Generally 50-75 lots including fish, dry goods, plants, etc.

No one directly selling, but a lot of folks make arrangements prior to the meeting and exchange fish there.

Definitely worth checking out.

 

[FishInMaryland]

Just noticed that the upcoming meeting is in Silver Spring. I will definitely try to catch that and meet some of yall.

The meetings are at a high school about 1-2 milles from the Glenmont Metro station, at the end of the red line. Worst case, if you can't get 100% of a ride to/from the meeting, you could take the sub and somebody could surely pick you up at Glenmont.