I Am Going To Break The Rules

[lordtrini]

Mature media does contain benifical bacteria, but only enough to support the current stocking. Your filter would have bacteria, but not enough to process the increase in ammonia/nitrite. This would result in a mini cycle.

When you "clone" a tank with mature media. You first need media out of a heavily stocked tank(LFS work good for this). You also need enough mature media to handle they waste of the fish you add. There is really no rule to this, it all depends on the stocking in the tank you get the mature media from, and what you are trying to stock your tank with. Also you have to add the media and the new fish at the SAME time. You can't add mature media and go out and get fish 2 days later. All the bacteria you added would probably of starved off in that time. Currently as your tank stands, it will mini cycle if you add the discus.

You got pressurized CO2? I seriously hope you do. If not I wish you luck trying to run 192 watts (4wpg) without it. BTW what type of lights are you using?

1. it a DIY CO2... the yeast and nutrafin ladder combo...
2. the light is a Coralife Deluxe Series Aqualight Double Linear Strip Fixture (so the least light it can output is 96 watts)

And you know you guys give me very good idea...
I have an extra tetra ex 45 running on a heavy stocked tank along with the canister filter. i think when i am ready to add fish to the new 46 gallon tank i will just move the entire filter over and leave it there for a month or 2... this will give the eheim time to build up a bacteria population capable of handling the new load but the EX 45 will have it bacterial population die back to the low level of ammonia it is getting...

In theory this should work right???

 

[Truck]

dont put discus in it!

 

[hollanda88]

but the ehiem would only be populised to half the ammount of bacs needed to do the tank?

 

[jaycat]

Tank's too small for Discus.

 

[lordtrini]

You guys made me shed a tear... if not discus or angels what...
The sad thing is... I have a 55 gallon that has 9 x 1.5 inch angels 18 or so neons and 3 corys...

I was planning to let these angel grow up together and then try to breed a pair... (and if they all survive take 3 back to the store for credits)

But what i think i might do is move the Angels to the 46 gallon tank and then use the 55 Gallon for the 6 Discus and leave the neons in with them...

You guys are something else.... but u problable saved me at of heart ache and money in the long run...

 

[Mikaila31]

Running that light a 192 watts with DIY co2 is going to grow you a lot of algae.

 

[lordtrini]

Running that light a 192 watts with DIY co2 is going to grow you a lot of algae.

and hope fully alot of plants too... lol...
But i will only run it at max lighting for 2 hrs a day... the reast of the i will run it at 96 watts...

 

[hollanda88]

Running that light a 192 watts with DIY co2 is going to grow you a lot of algae.

and hope fully alot of plants too... lol...
But i will only run it at max lighting for 2 hrs a day... the reast of the i will run it at 96 watts...

Running lights like that will just mean that you will have to does litres of fertaliser a day, as the amount of ferts needed goes up with the ammount of lighting. You will have insane amount of growth and will just have to do so much unnessesary maintaninace on the plants

andrew

 

[wolfwolf]

Please reread aaronnorth's post. You do not need that much light and your DIY setup is insufficient. AAronnorth gives good advice on plants. He saved me.

 

[tenohfive]

I'm glad you've abandoned the idea of discus (if I read that right.)

Angels are an option in that tank, just not straight away. Personally I'd add mature media at the same time as some active, hardy fish - some flavour of danio are a) active, b) hardy and c) reasonably messy. Maybe 10 or so of them, monitor ammonia/nitrite/nitrate levels then see about adding some other fish in a month or two.

Most people on here prefer the slow and safe approach, and I'm one of them myself.

 

[lordtrini]

Please reread aaronnorth's post. You do not need that much light and your DIY setup is insufficient. AAronnorth gives good advice on plants. He saved me.

Man it is hard to have equipment and not use it... to the max... i will cut back on my lighting further...
lets say 6 hours for the first month... but and lots of ferts...

I was even toying with the idea of taking the fish out and using miracle grow plant food but that is a stupid idea...

the thing is guys i dont mind the hard work...

I want to give plants away to the fishy converts that i make

But u guys have convinced me for the better... thanks...

 

[tenohfive]

I'm sure your carbon footprint will benefit from cutting back on the unnecessary lighting. Though from your attitude above I suspect you're american - which means you probably don't care

No offence intended. I try to treat people from all backgrounds with equal contempt

 

[lordtrini]

I'm glad you've abandoned the idea of discus (if I read that right.)

Angels are an option in that tank, just not straight away. Personally I'd add mature media at the same time as some active, hardy fish - some flavour of danio are a) active, b) hardy and c) reasonably messy. Maybe 10 or so of them, monitor ammonia/nitrite/nitrate levels then see about adding some other fish in a month or two.

Most people on here prefer the slow and safe approach, and I'm one of them myself.

yeah... you guys have... i will move my 6 or 8 perfect angels to this tank in 3 months or so and take the rest back to the store for credits...
I will get 10 danios and add them to this tank with the mature filter soon enough... and let the tank mature for a month to 6 weeks....

I will get my 6 discus at that time and i will put them right into the 55 gallon angel tank (and move the angels) as that tank is so mature it had menopause....

 

[lordtrini]

I'm sure your carbon footprint will benefit from cutting back on the unnecessary lighting. Though from your attitude above I suspect you're american - which means you probably don't care

No offense intended. I try to treat people from all backgrounds with equal contempt

I moved to the USA 7 years ago... lol... and i am not offended... its funny...

i was actually going to say... that i was like the US Army... i cant have an army and not use it... but i did not want to offend anyone... lol

 

[tenohfive]

I'm glad you've abandoned the idea of discus (if I read that right.)

Angels are an option in that tank, just not straight away. Personally I'd add mature media at the same time as some active, hardy fish - some flavour of danio are a) active, b) hardy and c) reasonably messy. Maybe 10 or so of them, monitor ammonia/nitrite/nitrate levels then see about adding some other fish in a month or two.

Most people on here prefer the slow and safe approach, and I'm one of them myself.

yeah... you guys have... i will move my 6 or 8 perfect angels to this tank in 3 months or so and take the rest back to the store for credits...
I will get 10 danios and add them to this tank with the mature filter soon enough... and let the tank mature for a month to 6 weeks....

I will get my 6 discus at that time and i will put them right into the 55 gallon angel tank (and move the angels) as that tank is so mature it had menopause....

Abandon the discus idea full stop mate - its a bad one. 55g isn't much bigger than 48g, and the amount of water changes you were talking about means you'll end up with at best stunted, at worst dead discus.

Keeping pre-adult discus should be left to breeders and people who have the time to do big water changes on a very regular basis. 25% weekly for immature discus is very, very stupid.