Hellfrich Firefish

[Xler8n]

I am about to get, probobly (2) helfrichis from my LFS store as they have them for a VERY good price.. Ive seen them online for as much as $250 each!!! The store i am getting them from is selling them for $100 a piece but the owner said he'd sell me (2) for around $150. Thats a STEAL if you ask me. Ive been observing them for about a week and half now and theres possibly a pair cuz theres 3 but two of them are always very close to eachother and one is smaller than the other. I was just wondering if anyone has had ANY experience with these fish. Ive never had any firefish but i know they are all similar to care for. I know they are JUMPERS also. Therefore i am gonna seal the top of my reef tank up REAL TIGHT until their in there for some time. I have in my 75gallon tank now a Yellow Tang (about 2in.), a fang blenny, and a coral beauty(thats been in the tank for about a year). The only fish im possibly worried about messing with these Helfrichis is the coral beauty. Should i be conserned about anything?? Any advice?? Also i heard that once these fish are settled in i wont have to worry about them jumping.. Is that true??

[ScruffyRubicon]

I had one for about 2 weeks. I had a lid. He managed to get in the pump section and went through the pump

[crvz]

You shouldnt have any issue with the fish you have in there, just make sure you cover the tank as you have planned.

[aquawolf]

Cover the overflow with something as well so that only the teeth of it are accessible. I am not sure about them not jumping once they settle in though. I believe they have the potential to jump at anytime as they dart away from things that might startle them for some reason.

That is a very good price on a pair of them. Best of luck!

[Xler8n]

My tank is Reef Ready so i have a built in overflow. When i got my lights i had a glass top and heard that glass absorbs light.. therefore at work i cut out some pieces of 1/4" plexi to cover the whole top section of the tank. I only have the back of the right side open 2" because of my bak-pak skimmer. I will try to cut out some cardboard pieces to fit inside the gaps. When i HAD my snowflake moray eel he was a real jumper and found him at least twice on the floor and once in the sump. He was an escape artist i swear. I had to tape garbage bags on the back openings to keep him in. Eventually i had to move and couldnt have a tank at the time where i am living now so i gave him to my LFS. Trust me i had to do ALOT of convincing to my grandmother to let me have the tank setup as it is now. Thanks for the info guys.

[aquawolf]

As long as the top fits tightly over the built-in overflow you should be okay. I actually found my 4" yellow canary wrasse in my built-in overflow a couple of weeks ago and had to spend an hour trying to fish it back out.

[Xler8n]

I got em!! These were my valentines day present to myslef cuz my girl had to go outta town with her parents and im by myslef... Oh well.. I get to look at these beauties while shes gone. That was the $$ for her dinner. Hehe





Male (I think)


Female (I think)

[Xler8n]

I love these things.. Their SOOO awesome looking.. I have my fang blenny in a betta cage in the tank cuz i noticed him chasing these prized fish.. I didnt go for that so i put him in fish jail. Im debating on whether or not im gonna let him out

[nemmy]

Looking great.
A friend has a group of six of these in a 6ft reef tank.They do tend to get picked on by other fish, so peaceful tank mates only.They never stop jumping as they are easily spooked especially by fish such as your fang blenny taking an interest in them.
They are sadly one of the more delicate firefish and will go off their food and fall to illness if the water quality drops or they get stressed by fish chasing them.They also seem intolerant of nitrates greater than 10ppm over an extended period.

[aquawolf]

They are gorgeous and I wish you the best with them. That was a very nice present to yourself, and nice dinners are way overrated anyway.

[Xler8n]

Im having a slight problem with heat now since i sealed up the top completely. There is a clip on fan on the back of my tank that used to blow under the tops to reduce heat but now it just blowing inbetween the lights and not touching the water.. It might be becuase i have a pump in there not really for an aquarium but more for a pond to have some more flow.... I shouldnt need a chiller with a Sunpod 150 X 2 in a 75 gallon tank. Anyone know what i can do???

[mitchmac]

Originally Posted by Xler8n

Im having a slight problem with heat now since i sealed up the top completely. There is a clip on fan on the back of my tank that used to blow under the tops to reduce heat but now it just blowing inbetween the lights and not touching the water.. It might be becuase i have a pump in there not really for an aquarium but more for a pond to have some more flow.... I shouldnt need a chiller with a Sunpod 150 X 2 in a 75 gallon tank. Anyone know what i can do???

if its a clip on you can adjust its position correct sort of like a snake head??? open a small opening in one end and blow the fan through it and open a small vent on the other to let the air flow out...about the only thing you can do to get the heat out without a chiller or oppening it completely...

[Xler8n]

What do you mean opening the top a bit?? I dont think it will be a good idea cuz i dont want my precious fish going carpet surfing

[tangmang23]

i made a frame out of thin strips of oak and staple mesh screen to the frame. Takes a bit of wood work but rather easy to do, just measure, fit, adjust if needed, glue together and your good. the frame i made was a temp used so i didnt worry to much about the wood being wet for long periods. The mesh i used was a different grade then you would find on a screen door or window, as it had much larger openings, but smaller then most fish, thus i didnt have to worry about a big loss of light. just an idea

[luvmylo]

those are beautiful. I love these guys a lot. The only reason I don't have any is the fact that every fire fish I attempt ends up going where I don't want it too. In the pump, overflow, carpet, etc.....