Do african cichlids need a heater in winter ???

[BLUE NEMANSI 0]

Hi all, I'm new to the world of African cichlids & have allways been told that africans need a water temp of around 25-27 degrees. I went to a fellow fish lovers home ( I won't mention his name ) who said that he does'nt run heaters in his African Cichlids tanks because they are robust enough to handle the water in winter, he only runs heaters in his fry tanks at 23 degrees just to take the chill out of the water. i saw how many tanks he had without heaters & i was amazed, the fish all seemed to look fine. look forward to comments from more knowledgeable people then myself, Jeff w !!!

[dave 3]

Depending on where you live most african cichlids appreciate their water at arond 25 degrees celcius.

In winter most people apart from those in the tropics run some sort of heater in their tanks.

Dave

[whiteknight 0]

hey mate heaters are really a good thing to use in winter as they keep the tank from too much change in temp , eg during the day the tank may be at 27 degs then may drop to 22 deg at nite if cold enough doing that every day and nite will cause problems , africans are robust but if the temp changes too much constantly u will have problems, stressing the fish ect

Terry

[BLUE NEMANSI 0]

thanks guys, not an expert on cichlids but I sort of figured that, just needed some expert opinions, thanks guys . regards Jeff !!!

[surfingfish 0]

i have 2 4ft tanks with one 300watt heater in each an its set to 27 i leave them on all year round never have any problems....

have a friend who doesnt use a heater with some cichlids an i belive he does have problems mainly in winter.... he dont use a heater cause he has natives in with a couple of cichlids...????

[raycam01_au 658]

i think its one of those 6 of one half a dozen of the other...

you may well get through with no heaters, and be lucky, or u may have some aggression and bickering and a stressed out fish thats freezing his little ass off is not good, thats when u will start to have dramas.

like grabbing an eskimo, setting him up in the desert, he might like it for awhile, but will get real pissed off, when he realises he aint gunna catch no fish from them sand pits

also in winter it can get real real cold,, so not good for them fellas, maybe Knit them a scarf or shit

[fireball 0]

hi guys, just another small comment, i think it also may depend on your house as well, some houses can be cooler in winter where others may be a little warmer which may stabilise the overall temperature a bit more. My fish room has a thick curtain over the doorway to keep the warm air inside as much as possible because its a highset house and not enclosed underneath which doesnt hold heat well.

cheers david

[HereFishieFishie 51]

I was going to say the same as David, can depend on the temp stability of the room or house.

Frenchy :sheep:

[Rainbowman 0]

As Dave and Frenchy said, just be sure to check them regularly if you do you heaters though, I have heard of many heaters becoming the end of fish due to a faulty thermostat causing the heater to remain on instead of regulating with temp fluctuations.