rainbowfish question

[frog girl]

I have a 75 gallon 6 sided tank which I only fill to about 60 gallons.
Since the tank is so tall do I need to be careful about getting rainbow fish? I have quite a few plants & everywhere I've read it says they need swimming space. Will I still be OK with 6 or do I need to go lower.
I am only considering fish that stay under 3".

Oh & I know they are supposed to be jumpers. If I have a bunch of space between the water & top of the tank do I still need to worry about that. I don't have a regular hood (so no top on the tank)

 

[TankGirl]

I think you will be fine with six - what kind of rainbows?

They definitely dart and zoom quite a bit but I have glass tops on my tanks so I don't have a good idea of how likely they are to actually get out. I have never heard them "thunk" on the glass top though, lol.

There is nothing covering the tank at all? Do you have suspended lighting? Is it because of hte rainbows that you are not filling it up all the way? So many questions, sorry!

 

[madasafish]

I also think you'll be fine with 6. What are the measurements of the tank?

Rainbows love swimming space--side-to-side. So, the longer the tank, the better. I'm thinking of putting 6 in my 30 gallon cube, so I think you're fine with your dimensions.

BTW, I just finally cracked and bought the rainbowfish I've yearned after for a long time. I won the auction for 12 3" specimens on Aquabid.com. My girlfriend will take 6; I'll take 6. She'll be getting 5 males and 1 female; I'll be getting 4 males and 2 females. Got them from Rarefishatlax. Sweet deal--not cheap, but impossible to find (really rare), and bred by a breeder, so not environmentally depletive. Check it: http://www.aquabid.com/cgi-bin/auction/auction.cgi?fwrainbows&1108343175

Read the blurb. These fish sound pretty darn cool. They are different from Glossolepis incisus in that they don't have the gold flakes on the scales that make G. incisus look (IMO) kinda shabby a lot of the time.

Very psyched!!!!

 

[TankGirl]

Gorgeous! Very nice purchase - I have not seen them "in the flesh" before, and I am glad to see them being bred, since they are on the Red List.

 

[Mazdaman]

Love em. Great color. I want some for my new tank when it's time. Maybe they'll be available locally at that time. Wait and hope I guess. Thanks for sharing the pic.

 

[webmoose]

You will have to let us know how the rainbows turn out for you. And madasafish Full report when you get yours!!!

 

[frog girl]

Tankgirl - it is because of my improvised lighting that I don't fill my tank completely. It is basically just track lighting with multiple fixtures & daylight bulbs. It seems to work really well for the plants and I can adjust where the light shines to highlight something or give it more light. I don't have a lot of $$ to spend so I may be making reflectors out of aluminum cans this weekend. I even had luck with swords. When I want to upgrade I just add another fixture (only $16 for bulb & fixture).

I am doing major renovations right now but like to plan well in advance for my fish. I will be several months before I can get the rainbows. I am thinking of M. parva & M. cathrinae or maybe just the neon haven't decided yet. Mostly it will depend on which will do best in my unheated tank that is usually around 70 degrees.

Oh Madasafish I am green with envy (humphh!! no emot face for that). Is that a bozemanii in your avatar. Thats the one I really love the look of but I am really getting them for their personalities & peaceful nature more than anything else. I watch a lot of fish TV (i.e. stare into the tank & watch them interact) & my barbs are just too potentially agressive. They did spawn the other day though with all the construction & water changes at least they are happy.

This all started cause I wanted Kuhli loaches & I knew the barbs would really bug them. I think I am getting the sickness.

 

[frog girl]

P.S. I think I saw the Millenium Rainbow at thatfishplace.com but I still haven't figured out whether they do all farm bred stuff or not. Nice looking fish though.

 

[BASSNMAN]

You can have glass cut to fit the top of your tank if you are worried about jumpers. It also cuts down on evaporation and holds the heat in.