I have one blue rainbow in my 10 gallon tank. He is a very picky eater. The only thing he eats without being picky is blood worms. Also rainbowfish are kind of expensive. Each rangeing from $10.00 and up. Rainbow fish are so pretty
I just got my Rainbow Fish not that long ago and they did tell me to buy a school of them. But I did not have enough money so I bought one for now. So I am planning to buy the rest. A good school of Rainbowfishes can cost over $90.00
If your tank is only ten gallons it is too small for a good shoal. You would get away with three M praecox & nothing else. The larger rainbows get much too big for a 10g tank & M praecox would be better in 15g+.
. I also got them very cheap for $5.11 for all 3 of them 
. I bought them because they were so cheap and to keep my lonely Blue rainbow company 
. So hopefully they will school and be able to live a long life 
.
Well my rainbows have began to school and my old blue rainbows colors are much more brighter now. But they are not schooling very often. To ensure them to have better health by the end of this year I am planning to move them to at least a 55 gallon tank or a 90 gallon tank that can house all my fishes in my 10 gallon and more to be added to the new tank. I am planning to spend around $1300.00 for the 90 gallon which is most likely what I will go with. That should about cover all the expenses. I know that their new home which will come soon will make them much more happier.
Well you dont have to be rich to afford that. I am not saying I am going with that setup, but I am trying to find the best equipment at the cheapest prices. That is why I am ordering all of this through Doctors Fosters and Smith. I am planning to have the a Eheim Proffessional 2 Filter 2126 Freshwater w/ 180 watt heater, 9 watt Tubo-Twist UV, alot of great filter media that should cost around $50.00 . Also Sunpod HQI Metal Halide Fixtures with Lunar Lights (48 inch 300 watt with 9 blue and 9 white LED lights), Sedona Series Wood stand and Canopy Set (natural), and Deluxe Fully-Automatic CO2 System. Also alot of variety of foods, vitamin supplents, and a lot of plants.My plans for the fishes to keep are 3 Austrailian Rainbows,3 Praecox Rainbows,1 Blue Rainbow,1 Pigeon Blood Discus,1 Red Turquoise Discus,2 Pearl Gouramies, 1 Blue gouramie,5 True Rummynose Tetras,5 Cardinal Tetras,5 Neon Tetras,4 swordtails,4guppys, and 1 Gold Nugget Pleco. Well some things I can get cheaper somewhere rather than df&s. Well these are my plans if I can get the money by the end of the year. As you said that taking good care of the fishes is what really matters, but having agreat setup would make them even more healthier. I am trying to upgrade from the current 10 gallon which I have spent over $400.00 to make it a very good setup. Well if I dont come up with that money by the end of the year I will most likely just buy a good $500.00 setup. Thanks for the adviceHey, just to help you out here, you don't have to spend so much on a larger tank. I got my 55 gallon tank on ebay. With a nice solid wood cabinet stand, a HOB filter, and some lights which were too used for me to keep so I replaced them. Also included were a couple of scratches on the glass, some driftood, and a useless UGF. But I got it all for a grand total of (drumroll please) $100. And that is here in a higher income area, where everything goes for more, as you'll probably also experience since you live in NYC. But anyways, its not how much you spend that counts, but how well you take care of your fish. Mine don't care about the scratches, and visitors don't notice either because its all so pretty and the fish are full of life.
Anyways, if you're incredibly rich, go for a new one if you'd like. I've seen some very nice 72 gallon bowfront tanks for $550 incl. stand and hood new at the LFS, and you could spend whatever you like on the filter and heater and still be well under $1300.
