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hi guys,

im starting off a small zeb tank with an eye on breeding them in the future once they get fully mature (im getting 2 one year olds to start & then once iv managed to sex them il then get the opposite sex i need to breed) my question is what do i need to set up.

my tank is 3 foot

i think i will use some play sand a substrate

i know i need caves for them so i will follow the instructions on this forum & make some

what would you guys recommend for filtration & water movement?

i know i need a good quality heater with a guard on it

would you suggest putting some bog wood & plants in to keep the water quality & range good? if so which ones?

iv got a digital ph meter that i use for my cichlid tank & a water test kit so i will use these for my zeb tank to keep everything ship shape.

is there anything iv forgot?

thanks for all your help, as i say iv never kept zebs before so il need all your help to get it right, and as i set my tank up il post pics for you guys to check over to make sure im doing everything right. iv got plenty time as iv reserved my zebs and wont be getting them for 5-6 weeks at least.

cheers - andy

1, i would say stay away from sand substrate, i lost 4 zebs when i used it, all good now tho.
2, the young zebs wont use the caves until they get older and a little more frisky.
3, if your gonna pay top whack for you fish then use the best filter (eheim thermo) i use a backup heater also.
4, i just use bogwood, i have my breeder tank at eye level next to my favourite chair and i've seen countless fights ending up with injured zebs because of edges of the slate.
5, if you planning getting a few then get a tank with a big floor area, they like a bit of space.

but that's just my opinion....

thanks for your advice hamish, how does a back up heater work?

hamish99 wrote:1, i would say stay away from sand substrate, i lost 4 zebs when i used it, all good now tho.

How can you be sure the sand caused their demise? Did they injest it? H2S build-up?

i used to usegravel then i changed to the sand, soon after i lost 4 in a matter of week so i changed back to fine gravel and have had no probs since, i did have snails working the sand too.

I prefer fine gravel myself, lots of bog wood, some rocks (not tufa!), java ferns and good (oversize) external filter (although I have heard some conflicting reports on thermo filters!).

I mix my sand and gravel together. Works great! As far as the backup heater works , its just placed in the tank and probably set at a degree or 2 below your Eheim just in case it goes crazy!

Or just use an external themostat; I'm currently using a Ranco controller and it works flawlessly.

Hamish, what kind of sand did you use?