Discus Water

[Fadi]

Since the forum is pretty slow today, I though I might ask a question i Have been wanting to ask for a while..

What are the ideal water conditions for DISCUS

pH - 6.0-6.6

ammonia - 0

nitrite - 0

nitrate - ???

GH - ???

KH - ???

Anyothers that I missed as well...

 

[Fadi]

anyone???

 

[Sp00ky]

Sorry to ask this but how long have you been keeping fish?

Ammonia nitrite and nitrate should ALWAYS be kept at the minimum level possible. Which is A 0 Ni 0 and Nitrate as low as possible.

As for GH and KH, i personally do not test them as i know that there is no real way to control them IMO.

as for anything else you wish to know in a general sense, why not use the info on this forum

http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?showtopic=42070

 

[annka5]

Nitrate - as low as possible. gH and kH, depends ont he age - the older they are, the softer the water should be (but you need to avoid pH crashes as a result). You hear of people succesfully keeping discus in water with far higher pH than in the wild; so i reckon the best advice is the same water chemistry as the breeder uses then GRADUALLY adjust it if necessary. By gradually, thats weeks or months, not days or hours.
Temp around 28C; fairly still water (no overly-enthusiastic filter flow).

 

[kev_kb]

As for GH and KH, i personally do not test them as i know that there is no real way to control them IMO.

That is untrue, the hardness of your water can be adjusted by the use of RO water. You can either mix it with tap water which is what I do, or buy chemicals such as Kent RO Right so you don't need to mix in tap water. Opinions vary over the two methods.

You need to find a good quality Discus breeder/stockist and match the water parameters that they use, as this is what the Discus will be used to. Basically you'll be looking at a neutral to acidc pH, say 6-7 (ish) with a soft to medium hardness. Your job as fish keeper is to keep the water parameters stable, this is the most important thing with Discus, and remember that the hardness of tapwater can vary slightly over time.

 

[Sp00ky]

As for GH and KH, i personally do not test them as i know that there is no real way to control them IMO.

That is untrue, the hardness of your water can be adjusted by the use of RO water. You can either mix it with tap water which is what I do, or buy chemicals such as Kent RO Right so you don't need to mix in tap water. Opinions vary over the two methods.

You need to find a good quality Discus breeder/stockist and match the water parameters that they use, as this is what the Discus will be used to. Basically you'll be looking at a neutral to acidc pH, say 6-7 (ish) with a soft to medium hardness. Your job as fish keeper is to keep the water parameters stable, this is the most important thing with Discus, and remember that the hardness of tapwater can vary slightly over time.

mmmm yeah... so like i said.. i have no way or controling them so i dont bother with them. If i had an RO unit then i would have stated otherwise. so in reallity.. its true for me and i stated IMO

 

[kev_kb]

mmmm yeah... so like i said.. i have no way or controling them so i dont bother with them. If i had an RO unit then i would have stated otherwise. so in reallity.. its true for me and i stated IMO

That's not what you said, but I see what you mean. I would look into the hardness of your water, I'm sure you want your Discus to live happy and healthy lives for the next 10 years or so.

 

[Sp00ky]

mmmm yeah... so like i said.. i have no way or controling them so i dont bother with them. If i had an RO unit then i would have stated otherwise. so in reallity.. its true for me and i stated IMO

That's not what you said, but I see what you mean. I would look into the hardness of your water, I'm sure you want your Discus to live happy and healthy lives for the next 10 years or so.

how is that not what i said LOL. I said i had no way of controlling them, which i dont.

indeed i do wish for them to live a long and full and happy life.. but i know for me personally i dont have to check my water for KH or GH otherwise i would have done. I know this as the chap that i buy all my discus from lives 2 mintues walk from my house and he keeps all his juvnille discus in tap water. His breading pairs are in RO water.

 

[kev_kb]

how is that not what i said LOL. I said i had no way of controlling them, which i dont.

indeed i do wish for them to live a long and full and happy life.. but i know for me personally i dont have to check my water for KH or GH otherwise i would have done. I know this as the chap that i buy all my discus from lives 2 mintues walk from my house and he keeps all his juvnille discus in tap water. His breading pairs are in RO water.

No, you said in your opinion there was no real way of controlling the hardness of water, not that you had no way of controlling the hardness. There's a difference, but lets not get into an English lesson...

When I keep fish I want to provide the 100% best conditions for them, this usually means that they will breed successfully, hence my use of RO to try and achieve this, same as your breeders.

 

[Sp00ky]

When I keep fish I want to provide the 100% best conditions for them, this usually means that they will breed successfully, hence my use of RO to try and achieve this, same as your breeders.

yeah, but thats for your adults. And my breeder keeps his juvis in normal water and rears them in the same type. He also keeps his adults in non-RO very succesfully. They are only transfered to RO when they are to be used for breeding. Same with his angels

 

[AmberC]

You can adjust your GH and KH by use of salts as this is what I am doing to make my tank good for my africans. I add epsom and aquarium salts to harden and add trace elements and baking soda to raise my pH.

Water conditions for discus.

Well as with any fish.. discus can adapt to live in most water conditions. I know people who keep and breed theirs in 8.0ppm with no problems.

Typically discus like soft water with a pH of 6.0-7.0ppm

Ammonia is extremely toxic and discus are VERY sensitive to it. More so than most fish as they are discus lol. So ammonia and nitrites should be 0 and nitrates should be kept under 10ppm.

Otherwise.. dont baby your discus. They are hardier than most think and will adapt if its done properly. If you want a link to back up what I am saying.. pm me as I'm not going to post it.

Amber