Who Gives A Fish Forums

Sand's a pain, man. I switched to gravel just to avoid that mess. But if you're stuck with it, maybe try a turkey baster for spot cleaning. Sounds dumb, but it works for me when I'm too lazy to siphon.


The turkey baster trick is actually solid for spot cleaning. Another option is to add ...

For sand, use a siphon with a wider opening and higher flow control. You can also hover the siphon just above the sand to pull debris without disturbing it. What filter are you running? A good filter can reduce the need for deep cleaning.

A gentle approach is key. Use a gravel vacuum with a narrow tube to target debris between plants. For Amazon Swords, avoid disturbing the root crown. Crypts are tougher, but still, go slow. How often are you doing water changes?

arixia9 wrote: ↑Tue Apr 22, 2025 8:25 am This particular species tends to keep to itself, avoiding interactions with other fish.

What's the easiest way to sex them?

What type of food would you recommend for it

This particular species tends to keep to itself, avoiding interactions with other fish.

ladster wrote: ↑Sat Apr 05, 2025 10:13 pm I'm assuming your water's on the harder side, given you're keeping Rift Lake cichlids, mid to hardish GH, right?

Yeah I've not checked in a while but I'm gonna test my water levels today

I'm looking to upgrade my tank and I was wondering if there are other fish that can be kept with my cichlids. Some of my smaller ones aren't growing as well as the others, so I'm thinking a bigger tank might help.

What about decorations and plants, are there any that work well in a cichlid tank ...

Just had a great surprise in my tank - my fish has finally released some of her babies. I've counted about 7 so far, but it looks like she's still carrying a few more. Really excited about this as it's my first time experiencing a tank pregnancy. A few weeks ago I found a single fry from another ...

Hi everyone, I recently got some cichlids and I'm trying to figure out what other fish I can keep with them - I've attached some photos of my yellow labs.
They're all different sizes, so I want to make sure I choose something that'll work well together.
Thanks in advance for your help.