Hi everyone,

I just cleared out some tiger barbs from my 29 gallon tropical tank so I think I have some room to get 1 or 2 more fish. Currently, I have 2 gouramies (2 in long now), 1 rainbow shark, and 1 pleco. Should I stop here?

Can I put in 1 or 2 more fish? If so, what are your suggestions?

My pH is about 7.8 - 8.2, alkalinity: 120-180 KH, Hardness ~75, nitrate is kept at 10 ppm.

Hey, sorry to break it to you, but you do not have room for new fish, and you should actually get a bigger tank for the fish you have right now. I did a little research and the majority of the websites recomend at least a 50 gallon tank for the rainbow shark. What kind of gouramis and pleco do you have? These fish typically get very large and need huge tanks too, but it depends on the species.

Kissy is right Tuan.

If you have a common pleco they need a 55 gallon alone.

Thanks for the replies.

I probably can't afford to get a larger tank than this since I'm a student, and live in an apt. I also move around (maybe once every few years).

The gouramies are gold and 3-spot. The gold one is more aggressive and is the one that picks the fight most of the time. But the 3-spot has been holding its territory fine lately (I've been feeding it more favorably to get its size up equal to the gold. It works. Took me 2 months though.)

The pleco is a common pleco. How fast do you think it will outgrow this tank? What should I do? I have it for about 5 months now and it doesn't seem to grow that fast. I'm feeding it blanched zuchini but I'm not sure it gets any of that since the gouramies are constantly hungry. Do you guys know of a sure way to feed it? It's very shy.

About the rainbow shark, I read it could grow to 5-in max. That's why I bought it. Can it grow even larger? It's also growing very slowly since it's a picky eater. About territorial behavior, I don't think it will have a problem with the gouramies since they stay up in mid-level, and the shark has its own cave at the bottom.

Here are 2 links with a little bit of info for you:
http://www.liveaquaria.com/product/prod_Di...cfm?pCatId=1081
http://www.fishprofiles.com/files/profiles/281.htm

I hope that helps you out a little. A larger tank will definatly be needed for the fish, and it may become aggressive towards your other fish

ur right, red finned sharks usually only grow to 5", but ideally they need about 3' of straight out swimming room, which is where they're getting the 50 gallon minimum. it's good that you only have one though, as they're very aggressive towards their own kind, especially if there isn't a lot of room and hiding places to set up territory.

how big is your pleco now? i've heard of some growing really fast, and others that don't seem to grow much at all. it just depends sometimes (food, water quality, tank size, etc).

Thanks for the webpages. I looked at those before, or similar to them.

balashark,

My pleco is less than 2 in right now. It has always been that long, as far as I can tell (I've had it around 5 months now). I guess the main problem is that it's not getting enough food. I used to have another 5 tiger barbs in the tank and they pretty eat up everything I leave in for the pleco. Recently, I tried putting in blanched zuchini slices and they are eaten. But I saw the 3-spot gourami taking some bites out of that before so I don't know how much the pleco has.

My rainbow shark is a picky eater as well. And I have to hand feed it (which takes a while to train). I read that it requires a mainly vegetative diet, but this one wouldn't eat anything but brine shrimp. I think for that reason, it's also growing very slowly, if at all. It's always been about 1.5 in.

Currently, I'm trying to leave the light on for 16 hrs a day hoping that it will encourage some algae growth. Other than that, I really don't know what I could do to stimulate these guys appetite, esp the shark.

Do you (or anyone) have any suggestion that I can try? Thanks.

i wouldn't think that your fish will grow to full size in a 29 gallon tank (at least i hope not )

w/ the pleco, sunlight would make algae grow faster than the light that comes standard in your hood, if that's an option. or get a new bulb that more closely replicates sunlight.

w/ the shark, you could try a few live or frozen foods, shrimp, blackworms, bloodworms, see if he likes any of those. they are omnivorous, so they need both vegies and protein. and w/ his mouth shape, you should be able to tell that he'll also eat algae if you can get some growing, phyto and zoo plankton, etc. you could also try veggie flakes, algae discs, sinking pellets, spirulina, daphnia, and leafy veggies like lettuce, kale, or spinnach (which you can get from the dining hall salad bar like i did )

good luck, and as everyone else said, keep your eyes open for an affordable upgrade to your current tank, long before you look into more fish.

One trick I used to do was take a bucket of water and leave some rocks in it outdoors in the sunshine, then "harvest" the algae covered rocks and place one or two a night in the tank for the pleco. I would just keep circulating the rocks out. Its a good way to get nice natural food for them!

oh hey, i like that idea. i wouldn't have thought of that. unfortunately my pleco isn't doing so hot w/ the algae that does grow in my tank. i think i've spoiled him. when i first put him in he was cleaning and cleaning, my tank glass was spotless. but now he's gotten used to the algae wafers, the fresh veggies, i've even seen him snacking on the sinking pellets, so there's a good bit of algae growing again on the front of my tank.