How Hardy Are Discus?

[the_evil_duboisi]

When I was a little bitty boy, I read in a book that discus are totally hard to keep, requiring presice soft water, extremely clean water, subdued lightning, rich food, wood, frequent water changes and heat. Also, some books tapped into RO.

And when I went to fish stores, the owners would say they're very expensive.

But now I look at it, something seems to be amiss.

I've seen tons of bare tanks with PH 8 water and breeding, but abeit washed-out discus.

And lots of people keep them in tanks with PH 8.0+ water.

As for clean water.....In my LFS, a group of young discus live in a low(30x15x4) tank with a simple hang-on filter. And they thrive!

Diets all seem to be Tetrabits...The ones for discus(No bad in that though)

It seems to me(I may be wrong of course) that the only thing used in common was heat. Not a single one of these tanks were under 28'C, but the conditions were all different. But they also all had frequent water changes in common.

So my concluding question is: Are discus hardier than the credits give them except for warmth and water changes? I mean, except for those two, are they acually hardy?

 

[funkyhoney]

When I was a little bitty boy, I read in a book that discus are totally hard to keep, requiring presice soft water, extremely clean water, subdued lightning, rich food, wood, frequent water changes and heat. Also, some books tapped into RO.

And when I went to fish stores, the owners would say they're very expensive.

But now I look at it, something seems to be amiss.

I've seen tons of bare tanks with PH 8 water and breeding, but abeit washed-out discus.

And lots of people keep them in tanks with PH 8.0+ water.

As for clean water.....In my LFS, a group of young discus live in a low(30x15x4) tank with a simple hang-on filter. And they thrive!

Diets all seem to be Tetrabits...The ones for discus(No bad in that though)

It seems to me(I may be wrong of course) that the only thing used in common was heat. Not a single one of these tanks were under 28'C, but the conditions were all different. But they also all had frequent water changes in common.

So my concluding question is: Are discus hardier than the credits give them except for warmth and water changes? I mean, except for those two, are they acually hardy?

Discus that are bred under alkaline conditions will be a lot more used to it, but they are not the hardiest of fish in general.

Basically, the more acidic the water, the better, slow currents, lots of plants and some decent food is really all you need to have them survive. But to thrive, they need quite a bit of care, especially when breeding.

 

[kev_kb]

If you can keep water you can keep Discus, but make any mistakes and you'll regret them quickly.

IMO Discus should not be kept in water with a ph of 8 or more, aiming for around 7 is much better and a little lower than that ideal. They should be kept at 28C minimum and I prefer to keep mine closer to 30C. Discus do not breed in hard water, they can be raised in it, but I would avoid it.

Another thing to think about is that they are easily stunted. When you become very familiar with Discus you will be able to tell easily by looking at them. Stunted discus are not round in shape, and some will have eyes that are out of proportion to the body. Its hard to describe but look at lots of Discus and eventually you'll see what I mean.

 

[the_evil_duboisi]

I see...

 

[angelmouse]

LOL i think i read the same book when i was younger, it put me off keeping them for years but the picture of the big bril turk discus in my book haunted me and i just had to have them one day. I am glad i went for it in the end. I think wild discus weren't as hardy, but now with the increase of more domestic, tank bred fish they have got hardier and easier to keep with modern technology. I done alot of research before i got mine and they are easier to keep than you can be led to believe, just more timely due to maintainence and water upkeep.
I really agree with Kev-kb's statement...... you keep the water and you can keep the fish. The perfect water paremeters is the best way to sucess with discus
Regards Angel

 

[Don Trinko]

They require more freqent Water Changes than most fish, a slightly higher temperature, and slightly bigger than the tipical 10/20 gallon tank. ( more work but it isn't rocket science)
Reserch is the key. Do a lot of reading and prepairing before you buy. There are specific web sites for discus. I would suggest finding one and reading a lot. One of the better ones is "Simply Discus" Don T.