A couple questions from a perspective discus keeper

[artgecko]

Hello folks!
I've been lurking around reading the great info on this site for a while and had a couple questions before I decide to take the "plunge' into keeping discus. First I'll fill out the questionnaire and then pose my questions.

1) Please Introduce your self ..
I've been keeping fish on and off for the last 10 years. I've kept many types of FW fish (including catfish, tetras, barbs, dwarf and african cichlids). I have also kept both planted and non-planted tanks. At the height of my MTS (multiple tank syndrome) I was keeping a 46 gl planted community, a 20gl african shell dweller species tank, and 2-10 gl planted community tanks. Due to moving and job issues I have been tank-free for about 3 years at present. I do currently keep some herps (geckos) in a terrarium, but that's it. I'll be moving next year (looking at buying a house) and am planning on setting up a large show tank.

2) If you have no previous experience with keeping discus...
I have never kept discus (although I have lusted after them for years) but I have been doing a large amount of research on them on this site and elsewhere.

3 - 4) Describe your tank...
I will probably be looking at setting up a tank between 75 - 125 gallons... preferably 90 gallon +.. Will depend on what I can find used and what I can get my non-fishgeek husband to agree to. I will also probably acquire a 40gl - 55gal tank for quarantine purposes. I currently have a 20gl tall tank that is dry and might also be used as a QT. QT tanks will be bare. I am planning on doing a heavily planted low-light setup for the show tank. The show tank will probably have an enriched sand bottom (i.e. onyx sand) or flourite. Decor will include driftwood, floating plants, and rooted plants. I am on the fence about potting the plants.


5) Describe your water changes planned..
With my other tanks in the past I've done 1-2 25% - 30% changes a week. With discus... I see myself upping that to 30% 3x a week. I will plan on fishless cycling all of the tanks in question, so the water parameters should be stable before fish are introduced. I don't know how i'll handle the aging water issue.. Have not had to age water in the past.

6) Describe the type of filtration planned/used for the tank.. In the past, I've been a fan of over-filtering. I typically run HOB filters with pre-filter sponges that turn the water over at least 10x per hour. (i.e. 500 gph on my 46gl tank). I plan on splitting this between 2 HOBs on the large tank. For heaters, I will probably go with 2 - 3 on the show tank. Planned temp is 82 - 84f.

7) If the tank is already setup and running, include the water parameters
N/A.. But water here usually tests at 7.2 ph. I haven't tested the other parameters in a while.

8) Describe your current or planned stocking levels..
Depending on the size of tank I acquire I would like to keep a group of 6-9 discus ( I will stay under the 1 per 10gl ratio), a school of compatible dithers (like rummy nose or cardinals), possibly considering some rainbows, and of course a group of cories and some ottos / bristlenose for algae patrol, maybe a pair of bolivian rams.

9) Describe your planned or existing feeding regimen..
Probably high quality flake food (omega), pellets, and clean frozen bloodworms / bs. I don't want to "powerfeed", but will need to do more research on this.

10) What are your goals in this hobby?
My only goal at this point is to have an awesome planted display tank with healthy fish of good quality. I do not plan to breed at this time.

Now that I have been through the questionnaire, here are my three questions / concerns for you discus gurus. :)
1. I understand that I need to start with large fish if I plan on putting them into a display tank with plants. My husband didn't sound too thrilled when I described the grow out process to him, so I am probably looking at purchasing "adults" that would be able to go into the planted tank after QT period is up. How much, in theory, do you think I would need to set aside to purchase my stock from a good breeder? i will probably need to order online as I do not know of anyone in my area that breeds discus. I am not looking to keep anything exotic..probably cobalts, red turqs, and pigeon bloods. Also as a sub-question, do you think it is too risky to pay for near adult sized fish as a newbie discus keeper and / or would it be more cost effective / less risky to purchase 3" fish and grow them out?

2. Do you think my setup / wc schedule will feasibly work (say, 90gl tank, 8 discus, 30% 3x a week)? I honestly can't commit myself to doing more wc's a week (although wc % can be adjusted). I teach during the school year and have little spare time, so the above schedule is all I can do realistically. If this will probably not work, I may want to forgo investing in the discus.

3. Assuming that I acquire good stock from a breeder, and quarantine the fish: What size QT tank would be needed? Is the normal 1 month QT period enough time? And also, is it common with discus to pre-treat with something during QT (i.e. for parasites ,etc.) as a precaution?

Thank you so much for your time and assistance! I appreciate your help and look forward to learning as much as possible on the forums here.
Artgecko

[troysdiiscus]

Hey and welcome to the forum...
Ok there are some variables to your situation...
Grow out juvis will require alot more WC than you are looking for so adults are the way to go..
As far as your WC schedule and I totally understand, I have a 110 gallon high with 9 ranging from 5 to 6.5 inches and I do a 25 to 30% everyday and a 60% one day a week. Thats just me I know that it is overkill (alittle) but thats what I do.
The schedule you have could work but depends on what and how much you feed, now plants could help with this as I too had a heavy planted tank but NOT with discus, some on here do and will tell you that it can work but its more detailed on maintenacne...I have gone with pool sand and lightly low tech plants...
So back to your question....that schedule could work but also would have to be closely watched for changing water parimeters, so if you are willing to tweak it if need be I think you are ok.
There are alot more on here more experienced than myself, so hopefully they will chime in....this is just my opinion....I wish you the best luck and you will not find more helpful people than this forum and PLEASE buy your fish from sponsors on this site, Hans, Kenny, Eric.etc.....you will not be dissapionted and they will always be there for you if you run into a problem....

[discuspaul]

As you've already been advised, you should plan on getting discus of a minimum 4" in size, preferably 5". You normally would not be able to get fish of that size from a hobby breeder, who would normally sell fish of around 2" or so in size. So get your discus from a recognized sponsor/importer of healthy, quality fish from this forum.

You've done your homework, and your plans are just fine, but do try to do 3 X a week wcs of at least 50% quantity.
QT will not be necessary if you first place sponsor-bought discus into a newly set-up, seeded tank, with no other fish.
QT only necessary when you get any dither tankmates you plan to add later.

You may or may not need to age conditioned tap water - test for pH right out of the tap, after it has sat for several hours/a day, and after it has been in your tank for a while. If little variation, no need to age. If more than say .7- 0.8 variance (from out of tap, to sitting in tank for a while), you should age the conditioned tap water in an aerated, heated holding barrel.
Would be good to test tap water for nitrates as well, to ensure there are little, if any.

Best of luck to you.

[artgecko]

Thank you both for your replies.
I am encouraged that my plans are feasible. The next steps I will take are researching the price of good stock to see what funds will be necessary and doing a thorough test of my tap water (I had not even considered the possibility of nitrates in the water and that would be a major obstacle to keeping discus).

One other question for you. If I do go with larger fish (i.e. 5") do you recommend buying the entire group at one time (i.e. all 8 fish) or should I start with a smaller group and then buy the others after I have success with the initial fish?

Thank you again for your advice!
Artgecko

[discuspaul]

Would likely be desirable to get all 8 fish at once, but if you do split the purchase in 2, recommend you get them all from the same source.
Assuming you get your discus from a high quality source, they would undoubtedly be healthy, so you need not concern yourself with ensuring you have success with a smaller group first, before proceeding to getting a second.