Rainbow Fish For 50G

[ChilliPepper]

Thinking of getting some Rainbow fish for my 50g, to go with 4 Khuli loaches, 1 Keyhole, 1 Bolivian Ram and a Para Pleco.

I especially like the smaller Rainbows like the Praecox.

Do Rainbow fish school with other Rainbows, or do they stick to their own groups?

How about a school of 6 Praecox?

However I also like the Bosemani, which get larger I realise, but have nice colours as they get older. I like a lot of them really, but just thinking of availability really.

Could I have: 6 Praecox and 3 Bosemani/another larger Rainbow along with my other fish?

The tank has an Aquis external filter and I'll probably be adding the Fluval mini internal filter that I have in my Betta's tank, as well. So would be overfiltered technically.

Basically I want a nice peaceful tank with some hardy schooling fish. I've had Tetras before and not found them very hardy, so a little reluctant to get anymore.

Any ideas welcome

ETA: My pH is around 7.5/8 I think (will get exact, got to test it since we've moved) hard water anyway, and temperature is 26c.

 

[drobbyb]

If you want a peaceful tank, don't get rainbows! They are rather aggressive towards each other To answer your question, no different species of rainbows don't shoal together. Rainbows don't shoal at all, but they sort of stick together very loosely.

What are your tank dimensions? For the larger rainbows you really need a tank that is at least 4 feet long. Praecox though do not as they are much smaller.

 

[ChilliPepper]

If you want a peaceful tank, don't get rainbows! They are rather aggressive towards each other To answer your question, no different species of rainbows don't shoal together. Rainbows don't shoal at all, but they sort of stick together very loosely.

What are your tank dimensions? For the larger rainbows you really need a tank that is at least 4 feet long. Praecox though do not as they are much smaller.

Thanks, it's a 3ft long tank.

Are the Praecox peaceful?

Can you recommend any other schooling fish that is both colourful and peaceful?

 

[drobbyb]

Yeah, 3 foot is way too small for boesemani's or other large rainbows. Rainbows are usually peaceable to other fish, just not other rainbows They have to establish a pecking order, and if there are females present, they will definitely squabble amongst themselves.

Colorful and peaceful schooling fish....tetras come to mind as well as some of the barbs, but you don't like tetras. Harlequin rasboras? Congo tetras maybe?

 

[ChilliPepper]

Yeah, 3 foot is way too small for boesemani's or other large rainbows. Rainbows are usually peaceable to other fish, just not other rainbows They have to establish a pecking order, and if there are females present, they will definitely squabble amongst themselves.

Colorful and peaceful schooling fish....tetras come to mind as well as some of the barbs, but you don't like tetras. Harlequin rasboras? Congo tetras maybe?

I do like Tetras, but have been a little put off from past experience.

Would Praecox be OK in the 3ft? They only get to 2" don't they, so a school of 6 should be fine in my tank?

I have another large tank that the Bosemani's would look good in, however I don't know if they'd get big enough to not become food for my Oscar - any ideas?

 

[ChilliPepper]

Just looking at a mail order company's catalogue and there are loads of Rainbow fish to choose from! A lot would like my water as well, they say Rainbows prefer hard water rather than Barbs and Tetras who prefer soft water.

If I got a group of 8 Praecox/small Rainbow and try and get a mix of sexes, would that work? 3 males, 5 females or something like that? Or 4 males, 4 females?

 

[drobbyb]

Preacox would be fine in your tank. Do you know how to care for rainbows?

As for the hard water thing, I have really soft water and I breed and sell them, so honestly for most species, hardness is not a factor.

 

[ChilliPepper]

Preacox would be fine in your tank. Do you know how to care for rainbows?

As for the hard water thing, I have really soft water and I breed and sell them, so honestly for most species, hardness is not a factor.

What different care do they require to other tropical fish? I have read that their diet should be 50% plant/veg matter and 50% other foods. I have also researched on some specialist Rainbow fish websites and it seems my current inhabitants are very much recommended. My temperature and pH is fine.

How many Praecox would you recommend? Are they are fast swimming fish and/or skittish?

 

[drobbyb]

Yeah, they need lots of vegetables in their diet. Also, rainbows are more sensitive than your average tropical fish, so they need large frequent water changes, 50% weekly at least. They also like their water cooler than some tropical fish. You don't want to keep them warmer than 77F or 25C.

They are very fast fish, and can be skittish until they settle in.

For some real in depth rainbow information try here.

 

[N0body Of The Goat]

Forktail Blue-Eye and Threadfin Rainbows could work in a 3ft with your Neon Dwarfs.

I suspect the slightly bigger Celebes may just be very borderline, but "drobbyb" can confirm that, I believe he/she is one of the Rainbow gurus with actual experience

 

[ChilliPepper]

Yeah, they need lots of vegetables in their diet. Also, rainbows are more sensitive than your average tropical fish, so they need large frequent water changes, 50% weekly at least. They also like their water cooler than some tropical fish. You don't want to keep them warmer than 77F or 25C.

They are very fast fish, and can be skittish until they settle in.

For some real in depth rainbow information try here.

Thanks. OK, I can drop my temperature back to 24c. It was 24c for a while, but upped it to 26c to see if it helped calm my Dwarfs.

I have seen some cute blue-eye Rainbows. Would they be OK with Praecox for example?

 

[ChilliPepper]

I like the Melanotaenia lacustris as well, do they get too big? And the Australian ones, which are an emerald green.

Would like two kinds of Rainbow ideally, would be nice to have one with reds, like the Praecox and one with blues or greens.

Would any Rainbows be OK in with an Oscar, or would that never work? The Bosemani's seem to get quite big, but I'm not sure. Could always grow them on in the 3ft.

 

[drobbyb]

M. lacustris are my favorites, but they get too big. You will need to stick with the blue eyes or dwarf species in the 3 footer.

If you are able to get full grown specimens, then they might have a chance with a full grown oscar, but the downfall to this is full grown specimens are rather rare to find for sale, and if you do you are looking at $35 to $50 for one. I really wouldn't recommend mixing rainbows with oscars.

You can mix the blue eyes with other similar sized rainbows like threadfins. It has been done many times with success. Do your research though if you decide to get threadfins as they can be a real pain to feed since their mouth is so small. You can't just throw in flakes for them.

 

[ChilliPepper]

Thanks, what would you recommend to go with the Praecox and how many could I have of each?

 

[drobbyb]

Honestly, I would just buy more praecox. Some people are fans of many species of rainbows in the same tank, but personally I like larger numbers of the same species. Mixed tanks can look great. Single species tanks can be breathtaking.