Forum lurker made manifest

[az]

Hey folks,

I have been lurking on this forum for quite a while. I have kept Mbuna, shelldwellers, lethrinops, and other freshwater fish, but never Tropheus. I always have been fascinated by them, but never quite took the plunge. I bought a house a while back and have been slowly working on setting up a tank in my TV room, which I haven't decided for sure if it is going to be Tropheus or saltwater (or maybe one of a hundred other options). Hoping to get some good feedback here to help me decide if tropheus will be a good choice for my setup.

Thanks in advance for the good feedback I figure I will get,
AZ

[mikevxr]

Welcome - this site is a good source of information and ideas. Problem with Tropheus is that they can become addictive leading to "multiple tank syndrome" !

[az]

I think MTS (multiple tank syndrome) is better than NTS (no tank syndrome) which I am currently afflicted with.

Well, I do have a tank, but it is quite empty. I am nearly finished painting the stand, and have the bulkheads, diamond hole saw, and hole saw jig for drilling the overflow. It is going to be a slow methodical process of assembling the tank, I figure it may not be wet until spring. But I do enjoy the planning and setup process, so I think I will make it, despite my NTS.

[tankoftangs]

Welcome to the Forum!  

In my unbiased opinion you should get the tropheus.    

In all seriousness, if you have researched tropheus and never tried them I say go for it.  Colors, while not as good as salt water, can be incredible.  The reason I like them so much is behavior and personality.  Tropheus are rarely still.  There is always something going on in the tank.  When I walk accross the room they school and follow me.  When I clean the tank they are nibbling on my arm and looking to see what I have stirred up on the bottom of the tank.  No other fish that I have kept are so inquisitive.  Salt water tanks are beautiful - no doubt.  The bright and bold colors of the fish and coral are amazing and I enjoyed my salt water tank when I had it.  However, at the end of the day it was a great expense and I spent a lot more time working on it (cleaning coraline off of the glass, running the RO unit, testing water) than I did enjoying it.  I occasionally think about setting up a salt water tank again but it is mostly just a brief thought.  If I had another tank to stock there is a 90% chance it would just house more tropheus.  Just one person's opinion.  

[mikevxr]

I have all my Tropheus tanks in a fishroom but will post a couple of pictures of my colony's later - my tanks are fairly sparse (a few rocks and sand) to make my life easier but the colours and activity of a Tropheus colony make up for it - my next plan is to try a 3d rock background in one of my tank once funds allow

[mikevxr]

Sept 10, 2018 8:50:28 GMT -5 mikevxr said:

I have all my Tropheus tanks in a fishroom but will post a couple of pictures of my colony's later - my tanks are fairly sparse (a few rocks and sand) to make my life easier but the colours and activity of a Tropheus colony make up for it - my next plan is to try a 3d rock background in one of my tank once funds allow

Attachments:

[Mastiffman/ Duramax7Man7]

Welcome to the forum and glad to have your participation.

yes, tropheus are the way to go if you like color, activity and are okay with a little aggression. As long as you get plenty of fry when they are young, they typically arestable as a group for life if cared for properly. You may have top remove a few males when the group reaches spawning size whcih around 2.75"+ dependong on their growth.

Feel free to check out my youtube.com channel (Andrew Crocker) to see some of the varaints that I have and have had over the year.

[pseuro]

Welcome!

[az]

Thank you for the welcome, all. Andrew, you are at the top of my list for who to talk to when I am ready for fry. I have everything I need to plumb the tank, but I still need to get some glass for baffles in the sump, and I need to build the hood. I also want to paint my basement before the tank is plumbed through the wall. If everything goes really well, maybe I will have the tank plumbed, cycled, and stable by spring, at which point you will likely be hearing from me. Assuming I can decide on a species/variant...