Matt's 30 gallon Malawi Tank

[gusgus]

Hi,
Here is a pic of my tank along with closeups of some of the inhabitants. Comments are welcome.

http://www.ocwaonline.com/images/aceisocolabtank1.jpg

[ticman]

Gus,
Looks great. What type of rocks are those. Nice looking. Also gravel or sand--can't really tell.

Thanks,

Mike

[gusgus]

Update -The Pseudotropheus Socolofi in the middle pic is no longer in the tank. He was a disruptor of peace and was summarily evicted to a friends tank. By the way, my tank no longer looks like the pic either. I had to move 50lbs of rock to catch a 1-1/2 inch fish. Some say it looks better. I will post when I've updated the photos.

[gusgus]

Thanks Mike,

Decoration specs: Lava rock approx. 50lbs and the substrate is 20lbs of a cichlid blend of fine coral sand and tahitian moon sand.

[ticman]

Where did you buy your lava rock. LFS prices are exhorbitant. When Spring comes and the snow is gone, LOL, I hope to try some of the landscaping places. Maybe you have some better ideas.

Mike

[gusgus]

I got it from my LFS at 1.49 per lb. I thought that was pretty reasonable compared to saltwater live rock which easily goes for 3.50 and up per lb. I thought about tuffa rock which is also good for maintaing high PH. It was only .99 per lb. But that stuff is dense! In my situation the lava rock was the only way to go. I actually like the way some people build slate rock mountains in their tanks. The slate goes for 1.99 per lb at my LFS and they don't usually have a lot of it. Take care.
-Matt

[salty]

Really nice setup. I can't believe that's a 30 gallon. looks really good . Keep it up.-salty.

[gusgus]

Thanks Salty,

Its a 30 long (36") which gives me the length of a standard 40, but not the depth. It's in my office at work so this is as big as I could probably go without raising eyebrows.

Of course since I've removed a 1.5" P. Socolofi since this picture, the rockscape has changed considerably. Fortunately, I 've been told, the new look is better. I'll take and post new picts soon and you can decide for yourself.

-Matt

[2petuniasmom]

Matt,
Very nice :ok: I look forward to seeing your remodling photos.
Julie

[jennigypsy]

wow! great tank!!! please post new pics when you can! you know, not everyone can fix their tank so nicely...you've got a good eye!

[gusgus]

Garsh, folks. You're making me blush! Seriously, thank you so much for the compliments. As I 've stated in other posts, its mostly for my benefit, the fish would just as soon swim through PVC pipe I suppose. I've got a couple of fish I'd like to remove for the sake of tank harmony. I hope it won't require another renovation. Pics are coming soon. Thanks again.

[SGypsyMermaid]

gorgeous!:D

[gusgus]

Thanks SG,

The more I see this old picture the more I kind of wish it still looked that way. Oh well, life goes on.

Have a good weekend
-Matt