# Yay! I'm finally getting some Dwarf Cichlid. Help me acclimate them please?



## Revernance (Aug 20, 2007)

I can finally add these little guys to my planted tank! 
Still deciding on whether I should get African Butterfly Cichlid (Anomalochromis thomasi), Apistrogramma agassizii, Krib (Pelviachromis pulcher), or Bolvian ram. 

I'm leaning more toward the Bolivian Ram or the African Butterfly cichlid. If you can change my mind, feel free to do so because I'm very indecisive! 

Anyway, my question is, should I Drip Acclimate these little guys, or should I just do the normal acclimation known to fishkeepers? 
I'm very worried about losing these fishes because the bigger the fish, the worse I feel about their deaths.  
Thanks very much!


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## gotcheaprice (Sep 4, 2007)

Whats the "normal"? What I normally do it float it, and slowly pour in tank water, and pour the bag water into the sink.
I think drip is better though.


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## Mud Pie Mama (Jul 30, 2006)

I very much prefer to use the drip method for every fish I purchase. The only thing I vary is how much time I spend on the process; ie., very slow drips vs., faster interval of drips. I use slower drips and longer time when introducing fish into my tank w/ CO2 injection, or with known finicky fish.

To give any advice on which fish it would help to know your tank specs. Size, Gh & Kh, other tank mates?


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## JanS (Apr 14, 2004)

Are these fish from a local store or being shipped?

I personally don't use the drip method because it seems the faster you can get them out of the bag water and into a tank, the less stress they have, and that's more true if they've been shipped.

I just float the bag in the tank to get the temp equalized, then gently pour them into a net over a bucket and release them from the net into the tank. It's also a good idea to turn the tank lights off for a few hours after they've been released into the tank to reduce stress.


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## Diana K (Dec 20, 2007)

Test the water in the bag for pH, KH, GH and TDS. Add a few drops of Amquel plus to the bag to neutralize the ammonia. 
Set up your Q-tank to match pH, KH, GH and TDS. 
Drip them, then release them but do not add the bag water to the tank. 
Over the month or so that they are in quarantine change the water slowly to match your display tank.


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## Homer_Simpson (Apr 2, 2007)

I have a Bolivian Ram in my 10 gallon and 2 Kribensis cichlids in my 40 gallon. They are all alive, active, and healthy and have been for a year. I drip acclimitized. This is the the drip acclimitization setup that I used. I drip acclimitized them over a 2 hour period with the tubing set to one drop per second of tank water.
http://www.aquaticplantcentral.com/...cts/45608-my-drip-acclimitization-set-up.html

Besides drip acclimitizing them, I think you should be fine as long as you purchase healthy ones from a reputable seller. Ask the seller how long the fish have been in the tank. Generally speaking, the longer the fish have been in the tank the healthier and more hardy they are likely to be. The weak and diseased ones will be the first to go, usually with a few weeks to a month of being in the seller's tank. And don't buy any fish from a tank where you see even one dead fish in the tank. A dead fish in a tank is never a good sign and if that fish died of a parasitic infection and has been laying in the tank for days or even hours you can be guaranteed that the parasite may be water borne and may have likely infected other fish, especially so if you see other fish feeding of the dead fishe's diseased carcass.

For reasons mentioned in this article
http://www.bestfish.com/tips/050798.html and based on my own experience of losing more fish in general to the bag float method vs drip acclimitization, I tend to use the drip method.


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## Brilliant (Jun 25, 2006)

JanS said:


> I personally don't use the drip method because it seems the faster you can get them out of the bag water and into a tank, the less stress they have, and that's more true if they've been shipped.
> 
> I just float the bag in the tank to get the temp equalized, then gently pour them into a net over a bucket and release them from the net into the tank. It's also a good idea to turn the tank lights off for a few hours after they've been released into the tank to reduce stress.


Ditto...I got the same intructions from the best breeders.


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## BryceM (Nov 6, 2005)

I don't drip acclimate, but I am careful when putting new species in a tank with high CO2 levels. If possible I like to turn the CO2 off for several hours prior to adding new species. I usually dump off most of the shipping water and gradually add cupfulls of tank water over 30 or 50 mintues. After that, the newbies are netted out and thrown in their new home. I do it the same way every time and have had mixed results over the past year.

I've added 24 otos, 30 wild-caught rummies, and 20 wild-caught cardinals at different times with zero losses. That surprised me!!! Other times virtually 100% of the rummies died within 2 days. Another time 10 new harlequins died within a week. As long as you don't just dump them right in, they usually do fine. I'm not sure the drip method will do much to help fish that were already sick, stressed, or on their way out. Those are the ones that always give me issues. Healthy fish are pretty tough.


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