GloFish ?s

[Darkwynd]

So I was in Wally World this weekend buying dog food and decided to browse by the fish aisle since the kiddies weren't with me. I saw these little flourescent suckers (aka GloFish) darting around and thought they looked pretty cool. Since the tank I want to make is on hold until the "economic turndown" reverses (or at least until my employer lifts the pay freeze and/or reinstitutes our overtime), I'm now thinking of making a smaller GloFish tank for now. My questions are:

- how many GloFish/zebra danios is a good number? (I was thinking around 6)
- I've read they are a good "cycle fish" to establish an aquarium. Is this true/what are everyone's opinions on that?
- would it be a good idea to get a bristle nose or something to take care of algae?
- would a 20 gal be big enough for about 6 GloFish + a bristle nose, or do I need to go bigger? If I just get the GloFish, how big should I go?

Thanks in advance.

[Oscarcrazy]

They are same fish as zebra danios. In a well filtered and maybe planeted 20 gal you could toss in about a dozen. You'd also want something that will swim around the lower levels of the tank as well, so maybe some cory cats or something of that nature. Zebra danios will usually just hang out near the top layers. Never kept these glo versions, but have seen them under a black light and they look pretty neat. I'd rather just get a bunch of neon tetras though. More vibrant color, cheaper, no "hand of god" activity involved in creating them.

[Somefishguy]

They make a good community fish. You could defiantly add 6 of those and some other community fish in with them. Live bearers or tetras would be good


You can also be on the look out for other type of danios(longfin, leopard, blue, flame)

[gotticgs]

how do they get them like that

[Mzungu]

I think a 10g would be a great tank for 6-10 GloFish. If you want to go planted, that would be cool. If so, I would suggest cycling the tank without fish, maybe using AquaSoil for a couple weeks. Put a double fluorescent fixture over the tank with an actinic light (because they look REALLY neat under this kind of light) and a plant light, then add your GloFish and maybe a couple of otos, since a 10g would be kinda small for a full grown bristlenose. But a 10g is small enough that the danios would pretty much be all over the tank, and not just at the top half. :)

[Mzungu]

how do they get them like that

Here's a good site for info:

http://lmgtfy.com/?q=Glofish+FAQ

)

Sorry, I've been waiting for an opportunity to do that. I figured Chris could take it.

[Darkwynd]

If I can get away with a 10 gal, that'd be great; the smaller it is, the easier it will be to talk my wife into it. Or to beg forgiveness later.

I'm not really interested in doing a planted tank at the moment, at least not with real plants. Would otos do okay with a "fake planted" tank, or would I be better off with corys?

Any dissenting opinions on putting 6 GloFish + 3 otos or corys in a 10 gal?

[Fire_chair]

. Or to beg forgiveness later.

If you have to beg for forgiveness you might as well go bigger and make it worth the trouble. It's easier to get forgiveness than it is permission.

[Mzungu]

It's easier to get forgiveness than it is permission.

That's funny.

I don't see any problem with 6 GloFish in a 10g. I'm not sure, however, how the otos would do. I don't think I've ever seen them outside of a planted tank! I know they tend to be sensitive, though, and might just really need a planted tank for its low nitrates.

If you decide to get cories, they're a great fish. I would try to get more than three if you can, for they really seem better off in larger numbers. Just know that they won't eat algae like a pleco or oto. But if you're not doing a planted tank, you don't necessarily need an algae eater. Maybe you could try a few nerite snails for errant algae, but water changes and using a magnet or something similar on the glass should be sufficient.

[Mzungu]

Oh, and also, for the bulb over the tank, try either an actinic or a 50/50 bulb. I'd go with the 50/50, since it combines actinic and 10K. But the actinic spectrum will really make the GloFish colors pop. :)

[Darbex]

My wife has a group of these and she loves them not sure why. But I can say that at least in my tank they all stay at the top and only come down to get food that sank below them.

[Mzungu]

Darbex - what size tank are they in? Who are their tankmates?

[Darkwynd]

Since I don't want a planted tank, I think I'll go with corys instead of otos then; probably bump up to a 15 gallon since they're a little bigger. So this weekend I need to go see how much I need to set aside for a 15 gal with all the trimmin's, 6-8 GloFish, and 3-4 corys.

Thanks again for all the help!