Opinions wanted! :)

[MrsSouthern]

Hello, I am currently cycling my tank. Only into it about a week now. Let me start by saying this, my husband bought me this tank two years ago, knowing how badly I eventually wanted to get into discus. He's a disabled vet that has had major problems in the last year and I homeschool my daughter on top of starting up a new business so the tank has just sat there empty until last week, sadly. I bought everything I have with the intention of doing discus, then decided I might not have the time and then started setting up for Cichlids, which I've previously kept before. But now, I'm thinking, why not? Go for these beautiful fish, you've got most of what you need, GO FOR IT!

It's 225 gals. 6 feet wide, about 2 1/2 tall and 2ft in depth. I've attached a picture of it.
I have 2 Fluval FX6 Canister filters (naww... not overkill or anything.. LOL.. but again, I did that with Discus in mind in hopes of not having to do water changes quite as often) These filter up to 450 gal tanks EACH. I have Seachem Purigen and Matrix as well as sponges for filtration inside them.
I have Quartz Sand in the bottom (admittedly now too much for Discus so I'd have to remove some)
I have two Eheim 300 W heaters
I actually just purchased several plants online (beofre I considered Discus again), some of which may have to be sacrificed if I do end up deciding on Discus. lol, I bought Ludwigia ovalis, Java Fern (Microsorum pteropus), and Italian Val. (Vallisneria spiralis).
You can see the custom made the 3d background I purchased along with a couple of rock pieces that match it, along with a few other random pieces that I'm not even sure I'm keeping in there.
I also have the Current USA Satellite Freshwater LED Plus Light

So I guess I'm wondering what would you do differently with what I have right now to set up for Discus? I do know bare bottom and no plants are optimum, but I can't lie, I just don't want that. I can remove some sand to make it minimal and do minimal greenery, but I won't go completely bare. My feeling is, if I don't have the time to keep it clean in combination with how I want it to look, then I just don't have the time and I need to wait.

Is there something I have that I should get rid of or something else you'd add? I have read a lot on here and watched the video. But I also know there are several different opinions on SOME area of keeping discus and I'd just appreciate a few opinions is all. :) I appreciate your time! Thanks guys!

112187

[MrsSouthern]

Oh and by the way, if I were to go with Discus, I am wanting to buy about 6 large adults and I have NO intention of trying to breed. We already breed German Shepherd on top of everything else, I don't need to delve into that arena too! LOL

[White Worm]

Opinion - 12 Adult discus..... Looks good. Nothing wrong with sand and plants if you have adults. By the way, you will still have to change the water but again, not as much if you have adults. I would toss in a school of 20 rasbora or rummy nose, 4 sterbais and a BN pleco. If you have plants, ottos are a nice addition.

[MrsSouthern]

Thank you for the advice! Yes I'd eventually love that many discus! Don't have the funds to get them all at once however. Lol I had just been reading on the idea of those additions so I'll definitely be doing that as well!

[White Worm]

You could get 12 juveniles and still go with a thin layer of sand but additional water changes. Check out the sponsor section here. There are some quality importers that have a proven track record selling quality discus. Some of the fun in this hobby is watching your group grow and transform.

[Phillydubs]

I think the first real question is... How much time do you have? I feel like your post eludes to the fact that you either don't have a ton of spare time or don't want to spend it all on the tank and discus, which I totally get and respect...

Can you do 1 wc a week, 2? How will you do said changes in such a large tank? Do you have a system...

I think you should go for it. I can tell your heart is set and anything else will be old hat or not what you truly want...

You have a big gorgeous tank that Im sure you sunk good $ and effort into, that background is killer by the way!

If you go lightly stocked and get adult discus, I don't see why you can have a gorgeous successful tank. You could do a few plants, or pot the plants for easier clean up, or go with low maintenance plants on pieces of wood...

You have a lot of options but I say do it, right, from the jump and dont look back

[Phillydubs]

You could get 12 juveniles and still go with a thin layer of sand but additional water changes. Check out the sponsor section here. There are some quality importers that have a proven track record selling quality discus. Some of the fun in this hobby is watching your group grow and transform.

I will await your time flexibility for a comment here, but based on the feeling I get from your post, juvies aren't in the cards... way too big a tank and way too much time and water changes needed to be successful there.

[White Worm]

Oh yeah, I'd get 20 juveniles, grow them in that awesome tank and then thin the heard down to my favorite 12 adults......:D Of course, that is if I had the tank, time and money which I don't.:(

[Phillydubs]

Oh yeah, I'd get 20 juveniles, grow them in that awesome tank and then thin the heard down to my favorite 12 adults......:D Of course, that is if I had the tank, time and money which I don't.:(

Those are big IF'S mr worm... Lets let the OP come to her own conclusions but I have a feeling time isn't on her side, hence why that juvie plan should be nixed.

[MrsSouthern]

Great questions and information/ideas! Honestly, I was planning on one water change a week, which I've surmised, with the filtration I have, should be sufficient for adults. (PLEASE correct me if I'm wrong there!) Though I can imagine the joy in watching them grow! Could I do two a week if I had to, of course, and if I saw problems, of course, I would. Life is getting a LITTLE better for me. My business is a paint party business so I'm not even working every day. Although I do homeschool my daughter, my son just started high school, I have two beautiful german shepherds and I also have to help my husband quite a bit. So I really do feel that with adults, though more pricy by far, I can have the beauty and "flexibility" (for lack of a better term) in a learning curve with discus until I get it down to a better system and more knowledge through experience to go with juveniles in the future.

[Phillydubs]

I was going to recommend starting with 2 a week if possible. Do you know if your water is ok from the tap or if you need to age water? This is another big question, given the size of your tank...

I have a way overstocked 72 bow with 29g sump so a 100 gallon system and I do twice a week. Your system is bigger and will/should have less of a bioload. You can prob scale back to 1 a week if your feeding small amounts and keeping an eye.

I would start with 2 and rely on a good test kit. Let the water tell you where it is and when it needs to be changed. Only time will tell...

[MrsSouthern]

I think the first real question is... How much time do you have? I feel like your post eludes to the fact that you either don't have a ton of spare time or don't want to spend it all on the tank and discus, which I totally get and respect...

Can you do 1 wc a week, 2? How will you do said changes in such a large tank? Do you have a system...

I think you should go for it. I can tell your heart is set and anything else will be old hat or not what you truly want...

You have a big gorgeous tank that Im sure you sunk good $ and effort into, that background is killer by the way!

If you go lightly stocked and get adult discus, I don't see why you can have a gorgeous successful tank. You could do a few plants, or pot the plants for easier clean up, or go with low maintenance plants on pieces of wood...

You have a lot of options but I say do it, right, from the jump and dont look back

You're absolutely correct. I previously didn't have enough time for ANY fish, which was part of why it sat for so long. The first year I was buying what I wanted for it a little bit at a time. Those canisters and that background were a pretty penny for our budget. lol And being that I have had other tanks, I knew I wanted to get this one set up the way I really wanted it (at least for now.. ahaha) before even adding anything because it's just easier when it's empty lol. The past year though, was extremely hectic and exhausted and I had nothing left to give even a beautiful fish... so another year went by.

But yes, now my husband has made some improvements and time is a little more gracious to me so I'd really like to get this going. I do LOVE discus. Again, he bought this with the idea in mind that they are my dream fish. But I wouldn't HATE it, if I didn't get them right now. I LOVE water and fish of almost any kind. It's soothing, therapeutic... and just plain gorgeous. So I do want to make sure I'm doing the right thing for them and me. I WANT them... but not at the expense of not doing them justice. :) Mostly, I want to make sure (because I never have had them) that there's not something I'm missing in my initial set up. I know every set up is different and it is about the learning along the way. I just love them so much, I'm a little intimidated by them. lol

Thank you for asking great questions, I appreciate making me think!

[White Worm]

I was kidding. Your plan to ease into it sounds good. No need to stress over a lot of water changes. Go with adults for ease of care and add to them later as time and finances allow OR just leave it and enjoy. That's what it's all about.

[MrsSouthern]

Oh yeah, I'd get 20 juveniles, grow them in that awesome tank and then thin the heard down to my favorite 12 adults......:D Of course, that is if I had the tank, time and money which I don't.:(

Ahahaha... all I can picture is these 20 little beauties staring at me through my tank all day.. MOM! WE'RE HUNGRY! rofl

[Ryan925]

Wish you the best. The key to discus is understanding their needs and commiting to it. Do lots of planning ahead and of course do what your budget allows. Keep in mind filtration never takes place of water changes. If it were that simple we would all run massive sumps and never change water.

Significantly understocking your tank and going with adults should balance the time you have for fewer water changes.

If it turns out you aren't doing enough your fish will let you know.

Best of luck

[Kyla]

When I started keeping discus I had a hard time accepting they would need multiple water changes per week. I had kept aquariums for over 20 years and had never done so many wc with any fish. It seemed a bit absurd. I had to learn the hard way that discus demand clean water. I lost a lot of discus needlessly before I grudgingly accepted this husbandry requirement. Now that I do the work of wc, my discus are happy and healthy. I have a BB tank, lots of filtration (fx5) and am fairly lightly stocked with only 11 discus in 180gal... when I tried 1 wc per week the discus were not happy with it. I'm currently selling off discus and lowering my stocking even further... but I bet I'll still need 2 wc per week even with just 6 or 7 adults in the tank.

[Kyla]

I love the look of your tank, pure and simple, but i wanted to throw my vote in for swapping out the rock for spidery branches. I had rock and other large decor in my tank but i found that debris collected under/around it too easily. If u end up experiencing this, spider wood/manzanita etc might be another option which maintains the minimalistic look while making maintenance easier.

[MrsSouthern]

Thank you! Both for the compliment AND the advice! I think what you're saying is wise. I put those in when I was thinking I would just be doing cichlids. I just told my husband the other day that I was going to do exactly what you just mentioned. 😊

[NJDiscusGuy]

Nice looking tank! If it were mine I would put a nice piece of driftwood in the middle and maybe a few plants. Other than that you are good to go! Make sure to post some pictures if and when you have the discus in there!
Rob

[MrsSouthern]

Nice looking tank! If it were mine I would put a nice piece of driftwood in the middle and maybe a few plants. Other than that you are good to go! Make sure to post some pictures if and when you have the discus in there!
Rob

Thank you so much! My thoughts exactly! I've been looking to locate a nice piece or set of pieces.