Discus-Is it worth the hastle?

[Jae1525]

I'm looking at discus fish thinking "they are mighty pretty" but I hear that you have to buy all sorts of equipment like RO units and so on so they dont die on you!

Is it worth it? What do they do thats special? I mean my cory cats are pretty amazin to watch while they dig out food from the substrait but I'm wondering what does a discus do besides look good?

Please help!

 

[ramesses]

Discus.....What is so special about them besides beauty.Well,they are stunning as you might know by now.There are a lot of hybrids showing not only coloration and patterens but also different shapes.
Discus are obviously not for everybody.They aren't as dificult to keep as once thought,though.Yes they are very delicate and you MUST have knowledge of water parameters and how to deal with it,if not,your discus are doomed.
Are they worth the whole hastlle,sure.Just ask any owners and they will tell you.
But....before you start thinking about having them,concider a few things.
You must have plenty of space.
H2O must be of the best quality and regularly changed.
Be prepared to deal with them,don't panic if your CD's wont eat for the first few days,they need to get used to the new environment and all.
Yes,there is plenty more,but my best advise to you is...read a lot and know what you are getting into.Discus are not for everybody,but the ones that keep them more often than not concider these beauties as "royals among fresh water fish"

 

[AmberC]

I agree but I just wanted to say that you dont HAVE to do RO water and all that crap. I dont do anything special for my Discus EXCEPT for two water changes a week. And thats because I feed them about 3 times a day due to their needing that to grow. This makes the water quality go down fast tho. I guess I can take the 'not doing anything special' back. I do keep the correct pH, but I do that for the rams too so I dont really count it. I LOVE my discus. They are AWESOME to watch. Not only are they beautiful, but they are so graceful! They remind me of sailboats cutting thru the water. Definitely 'The King of the Tank'.

But remember they are EXTREMELY expensive as well so gather all information possible before buying. You dont want to kill a 50 dollar fish due to a silly error

 

[Dragonscales]

Personally I don't really see the fuss in discus. There are alot nicer and more interesting fish out there which are easier to care for.

 

[Jae1525]

I see the fact that they may seem regal in some way but are they entertaining?
My dwarf gourami amuse me for ages with their nest building antics! Not to mention their little fights in the middle of the tank at feeding time. They take food from my hand 2! One of them is in love with the thermometer but the therm isn't interested!

I guess if it came to it, so far discus just seem like expensive fish.
I'd much prefer an ugly yet entertaining fish that is hard to keep than a pretty fish that does nothing interesting and is hard to keep.

Feel free to change my mind if you have any more info tho.

 

[parker313]

Sounds like you pretty much have your mind made up

Yes they are beautiful fish and for many, the attraction is the fact that they are hard to keep, in addition to being beautiful. At some point, a lot of people get tired of fish that don't need any special attention and discus are a step up, challenge-wise.

People have all sorts of fish for all sorts of different reasons If you're just looking for entertaining and attractive, then your gouramis seem like a good fit for you!

 

[Doggfather]

I do beleive they are worth the hassle, but if you don't plan to commit to the fish, don't keep them.

 

[ryan]

They are worth the hassle. If you local water is resonable then you don't need any extra equipment from your normal tropical tank set-up. Ofcourse if it is quite hard etc then an RO Unit may be a good idea. IMO it just takes and experienced fish keeper, they aren't as hard as they are made out to be and once you know what you are doing it is possible.

 

[Jae1525]

Thanks for all your help.

My local water is so soft its unbelivable. It bearly registers!!!

 

[kevin007]

i think that whoever doesn't keep discus, should not place any oppinions (including me)

but i think that keeping discus means u are a experience fish keeper, it shows how good u are at fish keeping imo

 

[parker313]

i think that whoever doesn't keep discus, should not place any oppinions (including me)

I respectfully disagree. While I may not keep discus, that doesn't mean that I haven't learned a lot about them while posting here and that I can't offer objective insight as to whether someone may or may not want to consider getting some themselves.......

 

[Cheese Specialist]

My discus haven't been a hassle. I don't use RO water and don't do millions of water changes either.

I think it a lot of it comes down to your local water. The local water can make it a lot of hard work.

 

[K-Holed]

My local water is so soft its unbelivable. It bearly registers!!!

Hehe living just down the road from you, I can sympathise with this. Having really soft water that's nearly neautral in Ph is always a good start, especially as I love SA fish

 

[Jae1525]

Yeah.

Our water is so soft.
No wonder our water rates are so high!

My readings are:

PH 7
NO2 0
NO3 0
GH <3d
KH <3d

 

[goldnugget]

This is my second post on the board and I thoroughly enjoy all the remarks I am seeing. Long ago and far away (20 years and 2500 miles to the south) I wholesaled Tropical Fish, reptiles and some rather strange looking insects. A lot has changed in the industry, but the basics are still in place.

Discus were in the infancy of being mass marketed out of Asia. There were not the colors you see today in the stores, but maintaining them is still the same. My personal opinion will cost you nothing, but your Discus will. Discus are a very hardy fish, they can stand some extremes in the wild that most fish can't if place in the same environment. I never kept Discus in my own tanks, but I did hold, doctor and resell them. They do not normally just croak over and die, specially the tank reared coming out of Asia. They will slowly wither away if water conditions are not within their requirements. As with all fish your source for water and the quality coming from the source should be the determining factor in the type of fish you keep (if you would like to keep your time and cost at a minimum).

Check your water quality coming from the tap or wherever you get the water...if it will be to hard for you to convert to S. American Black Water then get another type of fish better suited to your water that will provide you with enjoyment and not headaches. Here is a link to some requirements of Discus:

http/www.clcdiscus.com/Diskus-Breeder.html

Read about them and decide what you will need to do to keep your Discus healthy...we all want healthy livestock. Discus are like people, they like to show themselves to you and each other. If you do your required upkeep to the tank, your Discus will be the attention getters of the tank and room.

I am in the process of cycling my only tank after being in storage for 18 months. I will be adding to an empty tank: #6 Checkerboard Discus, #3 L018 Gold Nuggets and 2 dozen Cardinals. I have a 58 gallon tank...this will be all I keep in the tank. I hope this helped you make a wise decision about Discus.