29 gallon Malawi stocking?

3 maybe 4 tops and that still may be pushing it. I like to overstock a little to keep aggression down. Just make sure you keep up with your water changes. 29 gallons is a little small for Malawi Cichlids as they can grow to be fairly large.

 

I don't think I would even try Malawi Cichlids in a 29

Rick

 

I wouldn't put any in a 29 gallon tank either.

 

Yeah it's not even worth it with Malawi cichlids. You would need a bigger tank in a few months. You could do like a colony of tang shell dwellers with maybe 1 or 2 Malawi.

 

You will love the cichlids. Definitely make sure you get a bigger tank soon. They grow quick!

 

imo...if your wanting to keep/start off with that many, spend a little more and get at least a 75 gal, you'll have more options for aquascaping and room for addition of a few more fish. i have 9 africans & 1 pleco in a 55 and imo they've outgrown it, 1 is allready at 6in (1/2 the depth of the tank), 1 @ 5in, 2 @ 4 1/2in, 5 @ 3in (1 of these - venustus - will get approx 10in), pleco is approx 7in. we're in the process of getting a larger tank so our current stock can thrive more and we can then get a few more, they are great fish.

 

I think 6-8 cichlids, even small ones, in a 29 gallon tank is not a good idea. Depending on what type you get they get aggressive really quickly and in a small tank it will cause a lot of problems.

 

The Red Zebra, Labeotropheus Fuelleborni and Kenyi are all very aggressive fish.

 

when you go to add new fish here is something that'll help out on the introductiion of the new fish (i do this with mine and it helps..imo), just before the new fish are ready to go into the tank, change up the decor a bit put the fish in turn off lights and cover up the tank and make it as dark as you can and leave it like this say over night. with this "confusion" your older fish may not be as aggressive towards the new one(s). i just figured i would just pass this bit of info to you. i think you'll really like these fish, they have a very unique attitude & personality for a fish of their size, i think that's why i like them as much as i do.

 

i have 10 Red Zebras albino strain in a 55 and they need a bigger tank. Way bigger IMO. 75 is what im shooting for but looking for a 100. I did have a female hold and now she is holding again so its not like its a warzone in there. whenever i do water changes i redo the rock work to open up more caves for the females to hide in.

in a 29gallon with 4 cichlids will be a 29 with one cichlid IMO. If your getting a bigger tank try to get a 75 gallon min.

 

if you get two that are male then there might be a great deal of aggression, with some of these, males of the same spieces don't get along. if the one you've got all ready is a female and you don't want to breed then i would go for 2 more females.

 

i don't know if this will hlep much but here is what i got in my 55 tank:
yellow lab
Hemichromis bimaculatus
Pseudotropheus socolofi
Pseudotropheus crabro
Metriaclima estherae
Nimbochromis venutus
Iodotropheus sprengerae
2 i haven't got positive id's yet
1 - 6 inch pleco

 

if the end of the dorsal fin is more of a point then it's a male, female dorsal fins are more rounded.

 

You won't know the sex of them when they're small even looking at their dorsal fin. You're also asking for a lot of problems with this tank. In such a small tank rearranging the rocks will not help much at all!