Discus Project

[3ndl3r]

Helloo all,

Well within the next few months, i am planning to change my current rather boring goldfish tank into a south american biotope.

The tank is 4ft(l) x 1ft(w) x 18"(h).

It is currently as i said home to a small group of goldfish which are beginning to look a little but cramped, so i will be rehoming them in the very near future.

My ideal plan was the following

Heavily planted with tall plants etc...
Stocking would consist of no more than 6 Discus and a small group of rummy's or Cardinals.

I have a fair amount of fishkeeping experience, but i have never kept discus.
I have been and will continue to do a ton and a half of research, but first hand accounts are always the best.
The main things i need to know are
Water preferences etc.
Food
Other maintenance

So ANY advice anyone can give e on these magnificent fish would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks In Advance

James

 

[rabbut]

What size were you planning to buy them at, and are you wanting to avoid stunting wherever possible?

Personally, I now prefur Rummynose Tetras to Cardinals, but that's your choice.

Mine get plain Leeds tap water and do fine in it. They have a theoretical turn-over through the filters of 8 times an hour, and I firmly believe that overfiltering is a must, along with redundant systems. In other words, run two filters that can handle the tank alone and you should be fine I presume you have canisters on already with goldfish? If not, I'd recomend getting some

Discus require a mature tank that's been going 6+ months and they also want it warmer than most. Mine are kept at 30c, though anywhere between 28 and 32 should be fine

You need a minimum group of 5 fish with Discus, and I personally would stick to just 5, since that's the smallest tank you can get away with keeping Discus in

Where do you plan to source your Discus from?

Juvinile fish need at least twice weekly 50% waterchanges, though daily or every other day would be best. If the fish are under 4" long, they will need daily waterchanges as a must. Adult fish should skip along nicely with 50% weekly

For food, keep it varied. I feed Vipakraft Discusin as the dry staple, with Tropical Quintette frozen food offered along side. 4 feeds a day is minimum for Juvi's, 5 is better, and adults need 3 feeds. I try to give two dried and two frozen a day, with veg like de-shelled peas offered when cooked for the family

All the best
Rabbut

 

[3ndl3r]

Hi rabbut.

Thanks for the speedy reply
I am in Bingley, so not far from leeds at all

If i set up the tank, and run it with just the tetras in for 6 months, will that mature the tank enough?

I was planning to buy either a fluval or eheim canister, i have good experiences with both.

I will be sourcing the fish fro QSS in Bradford, they have recently started buying from Nura discus. I think they are juveniles 3-4" and no, i definately do not want to stunt them.

James

 

[DiscusKeeper403]

Tanks only 45 gallons so no 6 Discus, especially you being new to them.

If you chose to go planted you will need 5 adult fish, as juvenile will probably get stunted in anything but a bare bottom. 5 adult Discus in a 45 gallon might be a little cramped and you could see quite a bit of aggression, so just keep an eye out.

 

[rabbut]

^^ agree. Keep it bare bottomed if you are buying juvis and then plant it once they have finished growing QSS has very good quality Discus stock, but you will want to fluke them upon getting them home, they have always brought some skin parasites along with them for me Any Flubendazole based med will do

Out of Eheim and Fluval, I'd get the Eheim (not and Ecco or one with a built in heater though) as Fluvals have been nothing but trouble to me, though again, the final choice is yours. Tetratec and Rena are worth a look also

The Tetras will be fine for maturing out the tank

All the best
Rabbut

 

[3ndl3r]

hello again,

so could i buy stock that are above 4"? without stunting them?

Maybe a silly question, but could i ask why they are stunted in a planted tank?

James

 

[rabbut]

Discus tend to stunt in a planted tank, as you can't keep it clean enough The only way to avoid stunting Discus in a planted tank is to add them as adults, or wait for them to grow to adults before adding the substrate and planting up...

All the best
rabbut

 

[3ndl3r]

hmmm strange, i just read on a website that younger discus prefer planted tanks.

Unfortunately this tank is going to be a room centerpiece so it has to look good.

If I were just to add the substrate (sand) and some of the rocks i intend to use and maybe just a couple of small plants. Would this work?

If not i will have to buy older Discus

James

 

[veil92]

I think that you should just keep the tank bare for now just to be safe. What the others are trying to say is that not only would substrate and such take away from the dimensions of your tank, but also make it harder to keep the tank clean which is essential to juvenille Discus's growth.

 

[3ndl3r]

I can see where you are coming from, but as much as i would keep it bare for the benefit of the fish, i doubt i will be able to as it is a display tank and a center piece in the Kitchen/Dining room.

Ill run it past my mum, she is the interior design expert, if I explain the situation, and that it will be better for the fish. I will probably be able to keep it bare.

Surely i will need some form of cover, bare tanks will stress the fish out surely? Remember i will be maturing with a group of Tetras.

James

 

[Nick16]

rabbut is talking absolute sense here, dont plant up straight away. otherwise you will have problems. Tetratec filters are pretty good now, get a couple of 1200's on your tank and that will be a start. they are about £63 each. with free delivery.


btw, rabbut, what size is your discus tank (out of curiosity)

 

[rabbut]

You can get away with sand, it doesn't collect the rubbish as badly as gravel IME, and rocks should be OK provided they don't block the flow and create dead-zones Plants are realy good at gunging up the tank and reducing flow, allowing dirt to build up. IME, plants will do better in sand anyway....

The more cover you give a fish the more bold it will become, as it will feel more secure

Nick, mines 4ft long, 20" front to back and 28" tall, with 24" water deapth after allowance for the rim and substrate, about 83.2g

All the best
Rabbut

 

[Nick16]

wow thats a good size. i have a 240L tank 63USG and i thought about discus but i guessed i would need a bigger tank if i was going to have 5.

 

[rabbut]

Realy depends on the dimentions. 3ndl3r's planned tank would be the absolute minimum for everything, from length, to height to wideth...

 

[DiscusKeeper403]

Surely i will need some form of cover, bare tanks will stress the fish out surely?

Mine are completely happy in a bare bottom, very active, they meet me at the glass always.



If you can't keep it bare bottom just buy some bigger fish. Might cost a little extra but definitely worth a having a healthy fish.


I have been having a lot of people ask if Discus do better in a planted tank, and honestly, I don't see much of a difference in a regular,planted or bare bottom tank. Some people may believe that with more cover the Discus may feel more secure, but I have had both tanks and the fish seem fine in either way.