aweitzelleishman
12-01-2016, 05:28 PM
I did a lot of research before diving into discus, and much of that was spent on this forum. I guess I would just like someone to tell me whether it's paid off or not!
My System
125 Gallon BB, 3 200W heaters, 1 Canister filter + 1 HOB (Aquaclear 110). I have a prefilter sponge on the HOB right now, but I'm going out to grab another soon.
I have a 55 Gallon water barrel in the basement, drilled a hole in the upstairs floor (the wife loves me..) and fed two hoses through. One is attached to a clear water pump, with one end in our sump pit (which then gets pumped into our sewage) and the other end attached to a vac, so I can clear uneaten food and feces.
The other hose is connected to a submersible pump within the barrel (which has an airstone and heater) which then gets fed straight into the tank.
I have a remote control which turns these pumps on and off with the press of a button. A 50 Gallon WC would take me less than 10 minutes.
Fish
9 Juvies (2.5") bought from Hans last weekend. While i'm talking about Hans I just wanted to give a quick review for anyone thinking of purchasing from him. I know he's on this forum, and many of his friends are, but this is a unbiased review from someone who has met him only once.
______________________
BUY FROM HIM! Enough Said.
His fish room is a beautiful thing. I've never seen so many discus. I'm lucky enough to live about 90 minutes away, so picking up a bunch of discus and driving them back saves me in shipping costs - so I can't comment on that part of his service. If my LFS sold his discus, I probably would have still driven down, due to my trust in his system (he probably doesn't want that ha). My LFS is That fish place in Lancaster PA. They're very large and have a huge selection of fish - but i'm dubious as to the quality of the discus they stock. I actually mentioned to them about Hans but i doubt the guy said anything to the buyer.
Hans is a charismatic man who will tell you anything you need to know about the hobby. He openly tells you about his process, his recipes and how the Stendker discus thrive. (For those of you not a member of this forum, and don't know - he does not breed. He imports his fish from a very well known and respected hatchery in Germany). I let him choose our fish, because i'm not particularly confident in my ability to spot good shapes, and he explained why he was picking certain ones.
His customer service is above par - contacting us after we got home, laughing and joking about anything, making sure we had the correct set-up and recommended a feeding schedule.
I purchased 9 simply because of cost. I understand that I could have much more, but I want to make sure the water quality is stable - these are my first discus!
Anyway, i'm very happy with my experience with him, and I love my fish! But I digress.
______________________
Maintenance
This is where I would like feedback. I feed 3-4 times a day, 3 times is Hans' beefheart mix, and once is the cobalt flakes. They eat like wolves, always at the front of the tank, always hungry.
15 minutes after each feeding, I vaccum the uneaten food and clean the prefilter sponge. This takes down my water level a significant amount, due to how much of a mess the food makes. I actually end up changing 50-55 gallons of water (total) simply from this process 3 times a day. Is that enough? I've seen conflicting opinions on large daily WC's vs multiple smaller ones. I work 3rd shift, and due to short of a time it takes me, I have no issue doing it 3 times.
I guess i'm going to get the response of 'just monitor water levels' but I guess I want confirmation that someone has successfully grown Discus using this method. I test the ammonia, nitrites and nitrates daily. My ammonia and nitrites are 0, my nitrates are barely above it.
Sorry for the essay, but thanks for anyone who replies! I'm glad to be finally on the forum.
Adam
104692104693104694
My System
125 Gallon BB, 3 200W heaters, 1 Canister filter + 1 HOB (Aquaclear 110). I have a prefilter sponge on the HOB right now, but I'm going out to grab another soon.
I have a 55 Gallon water barrel in the basement, drilled a hole in the upstairs floor (the wife loves me..) and fed two hoses through. One is attached to a clear water pump, with one end in our sump pit (which then gets pumped into our sewage) and the other end attached to a vac, so I can clear uneaten food and feces.
The other hose is connected to a submersible pump within the barrel (which has an airstone and heater) which then gets fed straight into the tank.
I have a remote control which turns these pumps on and off with the press of a button. A 50 Gallon WC would take me less than 10 minutes.
Fish
9 Juvies (2.5") bought from Hans last weekend. While i'm talking about Hans I just wanted to give a quick review for anyone thinking of purchasing from him. I know he's on this forum, and many of his friends are, but this is a unbiased review from someone who has met him only once.
______________________
BUY FROM HIM! Enough Said.
His fish room is a beautiful thing. I've never seen so many discus. I'm lucky enough to live about 90 minutes away, so picking up a bunch of discus and driving them back saves me in shipping costs - so I can't comment on that part of his service. If my LFS sold his discus, I probably would have still driven down, due to my trust in his system (he probably doesn't want that ha). My LFS is That fish place in Lancaster PA. They're very large and have a huge selection of fish - but i'm dubious as to the quality of the discus they stock. I actually mentioned to them about Hans but i doubt the guy said anything to the buyer.
Hans is a charismatic man who will tell you anything you need to know about the hobby. He openly tells you about his process, his recipes and how the Stendker discus thrive. (For those of you not a member of this forum, and don't know - he does not breed. He imports his fish from a very well known and respected hatchery in Germany). I let him choose our fish, because i'm not particularly confident in my ability to spot good shapes, and he explained why he was picking certain ones.
His customer service is above par - contacting us after we got home, laughing and joking about anything, making sure we had the correct set-up and recommended a feeding schedule.
I purchased 9 simply because of cost. I understand that I could have much more, but I want to make sure the water quality is stable - these are my first discus!
Anyway, i'm very happy with my experience with him, and I love my fish! But I digress.
______________________
Maintenance
This is where I would like feedback. I feed 3-4 times a day, 3 times is Hans' beefheart mix, and once is the cobalt flakes. They eat like wolves, always at the front of the tank, always hungry.
15 minutes after each feeding, I vaccum the uneaten food and clean the prefilter sponge. This takes down my water level a significant amount, due to how much of a mess the food makes. I actually end up changing 50-55 gallons of water (total) simply from this process 3 times a day. Is that enough? I've seen conflicting opinions on large daily WC's vs multiple smaller ones. I work 3rd shift, and due to short of a time it takes me, I have no issue doing it 3 times.
I guess i'm going to get the response of 'just monitor water levels' but I guess I want confirmation that someone has successfully grown Discus using this method. I test the ammonia, nitrites and nitrates daily. My ammonia and nitrites are 0, my nitrates are barely above it.
Sorry for the essay, but thanks for anyone who replies! I'm glad to be finally on the forum.
Adam
104692104693104694