African Cichlids and Black lava rock caves

[CichlidZ67]

I found few stores that sell larger rocks by searching landscaping supplies on Google maps.
Then clicked on one of the results and then click on the company website and viola

I did try that. Mostly small lava and round river rock here. Slate was an option, but heavy. I'll make the lava work, but for 60 lbs, $90 wasn't cheap. It looks much blacker when wet as well. I do notice a little bit of brown in places from sitting in the rain and sun. Not too concerned. Lava rock has some trace iron in it. Didn't bleach just rinsed thoroughly in a plastic kiddy pool!

 

[aae0130]

This is carved red lava rock I bought from Fish Hut in NJ. It’s 10 pcs and was about $160. (Ouch) My tank is not a monster size by any means. It’s a 46 gallon acrylic bowfront. (36 inches long) Before this I had some large plastic pieces from PetSmart. Since getting the lava rock my fish actually sleep at night in the rocks. There is a lot less stress and aggression. I was tempted to buy Texas holey rock but I thought the holes were too small to be useful for the larger fish and I prefer the scape on the darker side. I think the red coloring goes better with the ash black colored substrate and the hideous blue background of the acrylic.
The carved lava from lfs’s is expensive and if you are dealing with tangks in the 100’s of gallons it could be quite expensive to do rock piles.

 

[RD.]

One of my earlier Malawi set ups. Granite boulders from the local landscaping supply yard (cost $20 or so), and natural sand from Home Depot. (cost maybe $20 total?)

 

[RD.]

Jump forward a few yrs. Approx 180 pounds of granite boulders, just like in the lake, with natural sand, just like in the lake. Those rocks were smooth bottomed, and placed directly on the glass, with sand added after. I never had a rock shift using this method. The look of common LFS rock (lava, rainbow, etc) never appealed to me, anymore than brightly colored gravel did.

 

[RD.]

 

[aae0130]

RD.......That makes plenty of sense. In my case I spent more on rocks than I spent on the fish. However, l don’t have a lot of time on my hands and while at the lfs, I had opportunity. So you know what they say.....bird in hand.

 

[CrazyKoiCracker]

You guys are making me want to set up an African cichlid tank. No worries about balancing light and co2 and ferts and SO much easier to clean a tank when you don’t have to siphon around clumps of s.repens or worry about uprooting your dwarf swords.
Rocks and colorful fish.
Sounds blissful.
Yeah think I’m gonna do it with the acrylic 90 I’m picking up next week.

 

[RD.]

RD.......That makes plenty of sense. In my case I spent more on rocks than I spent on the fish. However, l don’t have a lot of time on my hands and while at the lfs, I had opportunity. So you know what they say.....bird in hand.

Wife, kid, shift work, I didn't have a lot of time on my hands back then either, at 60 yrs of age I still don't today. lol
But, when one considers the many years of enjoyment an aesthetically pleasing set up can give a person, or family, I think taking a bit of extra time to get it right is worth it. In my case I had to wait until the spring thaw before I could even start buying the rocks, and planning my scape. Most of those rocks are still being used, in other tanks that I set up many years later. And best of all, bought in bulk from a landscaping yard they were dirt cheap.

 

[CichlidZ67]

Jump forward a few yrs. Approx 180 pounds of granite boulders, just like in the lake, with natural sand, just like in the lake. Those rocks were smooth bottomed, and placed directly on the glass, with sand added after. I never had a rock shift using this method. The look of common LFS rock (lava, rainbow, etc) never appealed to me, anymore than brightly colored gravel did.

View attachment 1366848

Beautiful all male African set up! That's my goal. Simple rocks, a couple plastic plants for color and some nice fish. 100 gallon?

 

[RD.]

125 gallon, thanks.