Help with fish

[Nostromo]

Now that my fishless cycle is working, nitrites continue to rise day 19 they are up to 1pmm. Now my thoughts have turned to what fish that I want in my tank. Tank as follows its a 55 gallon 4 feet long, just over 12 inches wide and just over 21 inches in height, it has a dark brown gravel substrate, artificial plants, some flat rock, a artificial log with holes in it, I put a background on it , has a air curtain under the gravel, I will be turning it off when cycle is finished, one aqueon 75 filter , plus my aqua clear 70 filter will be coming next week it will be going on to the tank as well. I have the usual water heater and temp gauge. I have 2 lids on with led lights. I want a community tank, I want something that will be interesting and colorful, I like rainbows I was thinking of getting a shoal of 6 boesemani rainbow fish, I know they need a minimum length of 4 feet which I have my ph is 7.5 so my ph is good for them, if adding these to the tank how many should I put in at a time , I don't want to overload the bacteria. What could I put with them?, I was thinking bolvinia rams, not sure on numbers I was thinking 2, would these 8 fish be okay for my size of tank, I not into livebearers, plecos and catfish. The other fish has to be able to do well in my ph of 7,5, Any advice greatly appreciated

 

[V227]

Stock your rainbows 2 or 3 at a time. Might think about a school of Cory Cats. Bolivian Rams are a good choce. One male to three females .

 

[Nostromo]

So 6 boesemani rainbow fish in my 55 gallon tank is okay, I just want to make sure that there is enough room for everyone, is it okay to have 6 males together or 6 females together , the fish that I put in I don't want all of sudden to have loads of baby fish , I am not into breeding, The Bolivian rams can I keep 3 females together? So if I go for these fish that is 9, so will that be okay for my tank, will I have enough room?

 

[V227]

Its okay to keep 6 male Rainbows together or 6 females. The females are very bland compared to the males and the males won't show their best colors without a female to display to. Regarding Rainbow fish, It's best to at least keep 2 females for every 1 male.
It's not likely that any Rainbow breeding will result in a population explosion. The eggs or fry usually get consumed.
As for Bolivian Rams, they will breed and protect their young, but that too usually ends with tankmates eating the fry. Bolivian males are more colorful than females. It's okay to keep 3 female Rams together, but not 3 males. They will form a pecking order and fight until only 1 remains.

 

[Nostromo]

So which order should I put these fish in I heard that you put the smaller fish in , so should I put in the rams in first and do the rainbows last? Also say if my local fish store don't have the fish I want in stock, do you know who the best is to order online from? many thanks

 

[V227]

It won't make any difference which of those species is introduced first. Rams tend to roam the bottom level of the tank. Rainbows, mid to top level. I doubt there would be any true aggression problems between Rainbows and dwarf rams.
For expert info regarding dwarf rams, might contact members, Coral Bandit or Brookster.