It’s common knowledge that Julidochromis species are rock dwellers, but did you know they will also move sand?
Julies will dig in the sand
sand
No substrate, no problem
If you’re not keeping shellies and want to save yourself some time and effort, ditch the sand. In fact, unless you’re keeping species that genuinely make use of the substrate, such as eartheaters or shellies, or you’re keeping plants that need it, go bare bottom. Why?
Does the use of a substrate affect your tank’s water quality?
Lots of hobbyists use aquarium-grade substrate specifically marketed as pH inert or as a substrate that does not influence pH. This could be sand, gravel, or even a mix. But does that mean such a substrate does not affect the tank water quality?
Sand depth for Tanganyikan shell dwellers?
This is a pretty juicy subject. Depending on who you ask, you’ll get several answers. Is there one “right” answer? No. Why? Because that depends on your intent with the question.
Do cichlids play – revisited!
In 2017, I wrote a post about cichlids and play. In that post, I pointed to some research that suggests cichlids do engage in what we, as humans, would describe or characterize as play.
A shellie tank rescape
If you recall my post a few days ago on the excitement of cichlid spawning behavior, it included the above photo of my recently set up 33g long tank. In that tank are six ‘Lamprologus’ ocellatus and three Julidochromis dickfeldi.
Recycling tank sand
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I have posted several times about my tank maintenance set-up. There are multiple advantages to using this process, which you can read at the end of that post.
Two of the advantages are money savings. One, of course, is that I don’t waste any source water in the effort, which is normal for Python-type vacuum systems. The other is that I recycle my sand. Yep, you can reuse the sand that you vacuumed out of the tank during your regular tank cleanings. How? It’s a bit work intensive, but you will save some money in the long run.
Sand substrate for cichlids
If you’re looking for a good all purpose sand for your cichlids, I recommend Mystic White II. This is a pool filter sand that you can pick up at your local pool supply store. You can also purchase it at Walmart and several online stores. My pool supply store sells this for WAY less than I can get it online or even at Walmart. Nonetheless, what makes this sand so good?
My tank vacuum and water change process
I have posted a few times about how I do water changes. All of my cichlid tanks, except my quarantine and hospital tanks, contain sand substrates. As a result, I use a system I created using Python water changers that easily minimizes loss of source water, cichlid fry, and sand. My process utilizes two Python brand water changing hoses and a few other components.
Removing sand from a tank containing fish
How do you remove a sand substrate from a tank, which contains fish, without stirring things up? One of the simplest ways is to use a gravity siphon.