Hi Erika,
Just a few helpful points I'd like to make concerning your situation and recent acquisitions. While you probably could add a few more fish, if your present ones are full grown now, but otherwise you always need to leave room for their eventual potential growth. Besides, it's always better to maintain fewer fish than your tank can hold, rather than cramming it to capacity; the fish will always do better when having even more room per fish than whay is generally recommended. When counting fish also, to figure your tanks bioload as compared to its capacity, you need to figure your 5 baby Platies as full grown fish (as eventually they will be), rather than just as the babies they are now.
Please know, that Harlequin Rasboras are just THAT -- Rasboras! They are not Tetras -- although their requirements are similar. As for having them in groups, Rasboras have the same need, and as for numbers in a group, it is generally recommended to have an odd number of fish in a group -- with a minimum of FIVE fish. So, there should be absolutely no problem with the amount you bought. I don't know where you read of groups needing 6 fish (which is erroneous), but Rasboras, Tetras and Barbs, etc., do fine with five individuals although if you have the room, seven is even better for a several reasons especially when maintaining more aggressive species such as Tiger Barbs -- they tend to stay closer knit with each other, keeping themselves occupied rather than harrassing other fish.
As far as your water changes go, I'd advise your getting a master test kit to keep up on your water parameters and your resultant needs of tank maintanance (along with what your test results will show) with these partial water changes (PWC's). You may find that instead of your present 10% weekly PWC's, that you may need to do 20% or 25% PWC's (as is the norm).
Ray
--- In tropicalfishclub@yahoogroups.com, "Erika" <effervescentbirdsong@...> wrote:
>
> Hello fellow fish friends.
> Yesterday, I went to our fish store and bought another moss ball and five Harlequin Razboras.
> With the five Platy babies and Mom and Dad. And last but not least one algae eater that brings my total of fish to thirteen fish.I have a thirty-five gallon aquarium.On the up side my aquarium is an old style and is longer in length then the new models.
> I love the number thirteen and I think it is good luck not bad. lol.
> What I liked about the Razboras was besides the fact that they looked healthy, there are pretty and another bonus is that they are nice and small too.
> I didn't want anything to big. I only have a thirty-five gallon and I don't want to over load the tank.I have approximately,about thirteen inches of fish. The babies are smaller then the tetras but I figured them to be half an inch each plus the other fishes. The algae eater and Ocean Dusk Platy(three inches a least)is a big Momma and the male platy is about two inches.So, Approximately, thirteen. Can I have more or is this the safe limit for a thirty-five gallon? Does anyone know? Thanks for answering my questions.
> I had meant to get seven but for some reason there was only five. Which is likely better for the start anyway. All the other info about tetras said tetras should be in groups of six or more. Unfortunately,now I only have five. Does anyone know if this will be a problem?
> My fish store just recently got a new shark in. The man, my sister and I talked to said he had just fed the shark for the first time that day.They just got him in the day before.Having given their other shark to another store. He said in a couple of months the shark would be interesting to watch but not so much know.
> I know what that feels like but the feeling must be ten fold for something as cool as a shark.
> I will be feeding my Razboras for the first time today. I hope they do well in my tank. I read that tetras are particularly sensitive to ammonia and nitrites.
> So I will be doing weekly ten percent water changes. So far so good. My new fish all look healthy and happy.
> Big Al's the one close to my place is in exquisite condition the fish all look great.
> The Big Al's at my sister's doesn't look as good. One it is an old building surrounded by restaurants and it was being sprayed for Cockroaches.
> A lot of the tanks had dead or dying fish and they were dirty looking and they did not even have some plastic plants in the tanks to make them look nice.
> Or so my sister said anyway. It is not all the store's fault because it is old building and the location is too close to restaurants. The cockroaches like fish food too apparently.
> lol.
> Thanks for reading.
> Erika
>
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