Discus

[mattlee]

is it possible to keep discus with my current stock (see sig below)? one of my lfs told me i could possibly keep 6-8 in my new 240L tank, but we all know what they say usually means ££££££££££££££££££££££££££££ for them. everyone says they are difficult to keep, are they?

tank is a 4ft 240L juwel roma with 1 eheim classic 2215 and 1 rena xp3 (when i decide to order it....) will contain 3 large pieces of bogwood and have small gravel and plastic/silk plants. normally do about a 30% water change a week in current tank which keeps my stats very good, ammonia = 0 nitrite = 0 nitrate = 10 pH = 7.8. my tap water is 7.2 but cant figure out why the pH rises, maybe the 2 resin tree roots, gravel, or fluval 3d background but shouldnt be any of these or could it? none of these will be in the new set up..

 

[arobinson1984]

Your best person to talk to is discuslova, he will be able to advise you best.

I believe discus tanks should have no substrate, just a bare glass bottom tank and they require large water changes every day.

I believe discuslova performs a 100% water change daily (dont know how lol)

Andy

 

[mattlee]

sounds a bit too much for me but ill ask him/her thanks arobinson whats your thoughts on a rena xp3 or tetratec 1200 to go with mt eheim 2215 instead of my fluval 305?

 

[Davo86]

The minimum suggested size for 5 Discus is 55G. 240L is about 63G so IMO provided you run the two externals, and are prepared to do multiple weekly water changes (which will be required anyway if you go with juvis) then you should be ok with 5 Discus, the rams, the 6 corys and the shrimp and snails.

The Buenos Airies tetras are definitely not compatible with Discus and i'm not entireley sure on the others but I think the tank wouldn't be big enough to accommodate your existing stock as well as the minimum required number of Discus

 

[Ian H]

Your best person to talk to is discuslova, he will be able to advise you best.

I believe discus tanks should have no substrate, just a bare glass bottom tank and they require large water changes every day.

I believe discuslova performs a 100% water change daily (dont know how lol)

Andy

Thats if your breeding them, they dont need daily water changes normally. You can have the normal sand/gravel with them. Not sure if you use RO water, i think you do though.

 

[mattlee]

wont be breeding just want to keep some..... daily water changes sounds a bit much! ro water is expensive especially daily

The minimum suggested size for 5 Discus is 55G. 240L is about 63G so IMO provided you run the two externals, and are prepared to do multiple weekly water changes (which will be required anyway if you go with juvis) then you should be ok with 5 Discus, the rams, the 6 corys and the shrimp and snails.

The Buenos Airies tetras are definitely not compatible with Discus and i'm not entireley sure on the others but I think the tank wouldn't be big enough to accommodate your existing stock as well as the minimum required number of Discus

the tetra will be going i think anyway to a mates tank.......


are they ok with bogwood? tannings etc

 

[cheesy feet]

wont be breeding just want to keep some..... daily water changes sounds a bit much! ro water is expensive especially daily

The minimum suggested size for 5 Discus is 55G. 240L is about 63G so IMO provided you run the two externals, and are prepared to do multiple weekly water changes (which will be required anyway if you go with juvis) then you should be ok with 5 Discus, the rams, the 6 corys and the shrimp and snails.

The Buenos Airies tetras are definitely not compatible with Discus and i'm not entireley sure on the others but I think the tank wouldn't be big enough to accommodate your existing stock as well as the minimum required number of Discus

the tetra will be going i think anyway to a mates tank.......


are they ok with bogwood? tannings etc

They love bogwood and mopani roots to hide under.The water would naturally be tanned where they come from.
Talked to you on IRC so not much else to say really.

Your best person to talk to is discuslova, he will be able to advise you best.

I believe discus tanks should have no substrate, just a bare glass bottom tank and they require large water changes every day.

I believe discuslova performs a 100% water change daily (dont know how lol)

Andy

Thats if your breeding them, they dont need daily water changes normally. You can have the normal sand/gravel with them. Not sure if you use RO water, i think you do though.

If he gets whatevers out of his tank causing the pH to rise he will be fine.Young discus should really have a bare bottom and water changes everyday until adult if you want them to reach their optimum size.They should also be fed frequently in small amounts, and detritus sucked out daily.With sand and gravel it makes it much harder to do this, although still a possibility.

 

[MBOU]

You could technically keep discus in there but personally i think your PH is too high, they can live in it absolutely fine but do far better and are happier in a lower PH. Never have had a problem with the Tetras and discus but maybe juvie discus could be outcompeted for food.

They will definately eat your smaller shrimp, wouldnt be surprised to see them try for the larger shrimp.

I wouldn't advise keeping discus unless you went over to RO, maybe its just personal experiance but tap water round here varies from week to week, the nitrate on its own can be anywhere between 0 and 0.25, ph varies between 7.5 and 9, i just wouldnt risk it...

 

[cheesy feet]

The minimum suggested size for 5 Discus is 55G. 240L is about 63G so IMO provided you run the two externals, and are prepared to do multiple weekly water changes (which will be required anyway if you go with juvis) then you should be ok with 5 Discus, the rams, the 6 corys and the shrimp and snails.

The Buenos Airies tetras are definitely not compatible with Discus and i'm not entireley sure on the others but I think the tank wouldn't be big enough to accommodate your existing stock as well as the minimum required number of Discus

What's exactly wrong with the tetras?I know they say active fish can stress them out, but this is largely a load of tosh ime, unless the fish are large and boisterous.
Cory's are great little cleaners for them, and I should imagine the loach would be fine.

 

[cheesy feet]

You could technically keep discus in there but personally i think your PH is too high, they can live in it absolutely fine but do far better and are happier in a lower PH. Never have had a problem with the Tetras and discus but maybe juvie discus could be outcompeted for food.

They will definately eat your smaller shrimp, wouldnt be surprised to see them try for the larger shrimp.

I wouldn't advise keeping discus unless you went over to RO, maybe its just personal experiance but tap water round here varies from week to week, the nitrate on its own can be anywhere between 0 and 0.25, ph varies between 7.5 and 9, i just wouldnt risk it...

My discus were fine in pH of 8-8.4, no stress at all.Although to somewhat neglect at the time they became stunted, and I'm thinking the hard water didn't help this.
7.2 pH is perfectly acceptable though, Something, as I said, must be causing it to raise.

 

[DiscusKeeper403]

You could technically keep discus in there but personally i think your PH is too high, they can live in it absolutely fine but do far better and are happier in a lower PH. Never have had a problem with the Tetras and discus but maybe juvie discus could be outcompeted for food.

They will definately eat your smaller shrimp, wouldnt be surprised to see them try for the larger shrimp.

I wouldn't advise keeping discus unless you went over to RO, maybe its just personal experiance but tap water round here varies from week to week, the nitrate on its own can be anywhere between 0 and 0.25, ph varies between 7.5 and 9, i just wouldnt risk it...

My discus were fine in pH of 8-8.4, no stress at all.Although to somewhat neglect at the time they became stunted, and I'm thinking the hard water didn't help this.
7.2 pH is perfectly acceptable though, Something, as I said, must be causing it to raise.

As said, shrimp will probably be eaten. I didn't read the whole thing but I am sure some people of already brought up the problem with some of your fish not being able to handle the temperatures Discus need, if you want Discus you will have to give up some fish. If you cannot do frequent water changes, feedings and keep a tank with no gravel, then you should get adults (which cost quite a bit more.) 3 feedings daily is recommened, a 30-50% water change bi-weekly is perfect for adults, but you should be able to get away with a large weekly water change.

cheesy feet, hard water is actually better to grow juvy Discus in, and most breeders prefer to raise fish in harder water.

 

[DiscusKeeper403]

I believe discuslova performs a 100% water change daily (dont know how lol)

Andy

Bare bottom tank, a holding tank and a python system help a lot

 

[cheesy feet]

You could technically keep discus in there but personally i think your PH is too high, they can live in it absolutely fine but do far better and are happier in a lower PH. Never have had a problem with the Tetras and discus but maybe juvie discus could be outcompeted for food.

They will definately eat your smaller shrimp, wouldnt be surprised to see them try for the larger shrimp.

I wouldn't advise keeping discus unless you went over to RO, maybe its just personal experiance but tap water round here varies from week to week, the nitrate on its own can be anywhere between 0 and 0.25, ph varies between 7.5 and 9, i just wouldnt risk it...

My discus were fine in pH of 8-8.4, no stress at all.Although to somewhat neglect at the time they became stunted, and I'm thinking the hard water didn't help this.
7.2 pH is perfectly acceptable though, Something, as I said, must be causing it to raise.

As said, shrimp will probably be eaten. I didn't read the whole thing but I am sure some people of already brought up the problem with some of your fish not being able to handle the temperatures Discus need, if you want Discus you will have to give up some fish. If you cannot do frequent water changes, feedings and keep a tank with no gravel, then you should get adults (which cost quite a bit more.) 3 feedings daily is recommened, a 30-50% water change bi-weekly is perfect for adults, but you should be able to get away with a large weekly water change.

cheesy feet, hard water is actually better to grow juvy Discus in, and most breeders prefer to raise fish in harder water.

I have heard that they grow faster in harder water, but the effects of raising them in very hard water I'm not so sure of, as naturally it wouldn't be the case.
Then again the majority have been selectively tank bred to become more adaptable to a higher pH...My discus all died around at the 2 - 2 1/2 year mark that I had them, so they were roughly 3 years old.In the first summer (I think) that I had them I slacked on water changes for about 2 months, which although bad leaves me to believe there were other underlying reasons...No discus breeder has said 8-8.4pH is good for them, and I would still think that the 7.2pH of the OP tap water is more ideal than 7.8.
Saved us there on the temperature, didn't even come to my mind!Discus should be kept at no less than 28 C ideally 29-30C.

 

[DiscusKeeper403]

I have heard that they grow faster in harder water, but the effects of raising them in very hard water I'm not so sure of, as naturally it wouldn't be the case.
Then again the majority have been selectively tank bred to become more adaptable to a higher pH...My discus all died around at the 2 - 2 1/2 year mark that I had them, so they were roughly 3 years old.In the first summer (I think) that I had them I slacked on water changes for about 2 months, which although bad leaves me to believe there were other underlying reasons...No discus breeder has said 8-8.4pH is good for them, and I would still think that the 7.2pH of the OP tap water is more ideal than 7.8.
Saved us there on the temperature, didn't even come to my mind!Discus should be kept at no less than 28 C ideally 29-30C.

You are correct. I do not fully know the health risks/benefits of growing Discus out in water that chalked full of minerals (although they probably won't absorb more then they need I would think) I have heard that if you can drink that water then it is fine for a Discus tank

Yes it is odd that they died off at that age, stunting could have had a roll but I would mostly look to diet, as IMO in cases like this, this is a main factor for premature death in Discus. What were you feeding them?

I agree with you though, I would rather keep the Discus in a pH of 7.2 throughout their life.

 

[cheesy feet]

Really the diet was the thing I was sure I always had right.Mix of bloodworm, tetra prima, glassworm, beefheart, and discus flakes...Your right though, that's what I would have imagined it to be primarily caused by.2 however died of a disease which I managed to introduce from another tank (can't remember exactly what it was now), and maybe coincidence but the one which looked the least stunted died a few months after any of the others.The breeder who I bought them from was moving house, and so needed them gone quickly.I got a bargain with loads of foam filters, 6 discus, and he advised us all what to do and feed then...I'm 100% they weren't stunted when I first got them though, as you could tell he loved the hobby and all.
Shame he didn't give me his 9" snakeskins which were from show winner parentage. Best discus I have seen to date in person.