Bare is best first, then dress up....

[brewmaster15]

Bare is best first, then dress up.......the tank, that is.

Okay Heres a discus tip for anyone new to the hobby. Bare glass, no substrate, good filtration, mulitiple feedings of a diverse diet... Lots of water changes(dailey!) with clean, aged, stable pH water.

..... equals big healthy discus....


Master this first, then add things to the tank if you want....substrate can wait, plants as well.. The less objects in the tank the better when feeding heavily. It just makes it easier to clean, and the dirt is so obvious that you want to clean it....!!!!! :)

hth,
al

[Carol_Roberts]

Here is one of my favorite analogies. . .

If you want to raise big, brightly colored, healthy discus it's best to raise baby and juvenile discus in a bare bottom tank.

Think of the tank as a glass feeding trough.

For best growth you have to heavily feed a diet of fresh and frozen "meaty" foods such as California Black Worms, frozen blood worms, beef heart, etc. These foods quickly foul the water. Food fragments can hide in gravel and under decorations.

Discus require very clean water. To combat the the dirty water from the "meaty" foods you should siphon the bottom of the tank and change at least 25% of the water everyday - more if you can. Wipe down the inside of the tank at least once a week.

Then, when your discus are done growing, you can put them in a planted tank if you so desire.

Carol :heart1:

A clean tank with healthy foods, make LOTS of Happy Discus!!
You will find out that it is easier to clean and keep clean bare bottom tanks. And enough can not be said about WATER CHANGES!!!!!! The more the better.

Miles :)

[Smokey]

I'll show mine..If you show me your's.

Bare Bottom
Bare bottom
Bare bottom
How many times have I heard this.
Thing is; it is deffienttly the way to go.

Carol, I like your analogy .... glass feeding trough...
you are so RIGHT !!! Discus have no table manners .


Smokey
( time to sloop the hog, ah, I mean Discus ).

[krislewis3]

I have a thin layer of white sand. I guess this is a no no, however, the debri is sooooo visable on the white sand, perhaps more so then bb. What do you think?

[shoveltrash]

Bare is best first, then dress up.......the tank, that is.

Okay Heres a discus tip for anyone new to the hobby. Bare glass, no substrate, good filtration, mulitiple feedings of a diverse diet... Lots of water changes(dailey!) with clean, aged, stable pH water.

..... equals big healthy discus....


Master this first, then add things to the tank if you want....substrate can wait, plants as well.. The less objects in the tank the better when feeding heavily. It just makes it easier to clean, and the dirt is so obvious that you want to clean it....!!!!!

hth,
althis should be pinned up at the top of the SD webpage :D

[Bill63SG]

This should be a "terms of agreement" to be a member.

[mcishaque]

Flashing neon sign that reads "Bare bottom dancing females inside". That's my tip of the day for the sponsors.

[ktm4us6]

Until i had a bare bottom tank, i never realized how much waste was accumulated down there. Now i finally know. Keep the bottom cleannnnnnnnnnn!!!!!!!

[yim11]

this should be pinned up at the top of the SD webpage :D


This should be a "terms of agreement" to be a member.

^ This.

[rubinsteinnyc]

Bare is best first, then dress up.......the tank, that is.

Okay Heres a discus tip for anyone new to the hobby. Bare glass, no substrate, good filtration, mulitiple feedings of a diverse diet... Lots of water changes(dailey!) with clean, aged, stable pH water.

..... equals big healthy discus....


Master this first, then add things to the tank if you want....substrate can wait, plants as well.. The less objects in the tank the better when feeding heavily. It just makes it easier to clean, and the dirt is so obvious that you want to clean it....!!!!! :)

hth,
al

so i want to start with 6 adult discus:
whats the minimum size tank?
What's the BEST filtration you suggest?
lightning?
food (type and frequency)?
what kinda automatic feeder?
how to condition the water?
I think i know the answers to majority of them, (been on this forum reading for a while now plan on getting my feet wet in the next 3-4 months) but maybe for noobs like me such basic list of order would help them excel faster :)

[Orange Crush]

I think i know the answers to majority of them, but maybe for noobs like me such basic list of order would help them excel faster :)
The answers you are looking for are already posted in the beginners section. Read the "stickies" there. :)

[rubinsteinnyc]

mmmkay :)

[discus daddy]

yes agree with it.our earnest endeavour is to make a feel good environment for discus,then we can decorate the tank likewise.but if there is no good set up for them then the whole work will not be appreciated...

[Eward]

Ok, so the general consensus is "bb for babies" ,
but I just set up a 70 gal tank with the intention of putting 6 juvies in it. It has a lite layer of gravel ( about 50 lbs sounds like a lot, but it is a big tank) and several z fake plants as well as some drift wood. I thought it would be good to give them places to feel "safe". I also put a small school of neon tetras, and golden tetras in there since I read somewhere that schools of other fish would help them.( It also helped cycle the tank ). So I have a quandary. Should I start the babies in another tank- one that is bb? The only other tank I have is 20 gal and it has lots of gravel in it. I could pull all the gravel out , but would it be big enough?
Why do discus get stunted in a planted tank? Or is it the size of the tank that stunts them?

[Dogvet06]

lack of water changes and not feeding enough is what stunts them. you should quarantine any new fish before placing them in the 70 gallon anyway for 4-6 weeks then put one of the fish from the 70 in the quarantine for another week and see if anything happens. water changes need to be done daily and in large amounts...this would be hard with those little fish, plants and sand so bb would be a lot easier. u may need to get a larger grow out tank for 6 but i know the others will chime in ;)

[Eddie]

Ok, so the general consensus is "bb for babies" ,
but I just set up a 70 gal tank with the intention of putting 6 juvies in it. It has a lite layer of gravel ( about 50 lbs sounds like a lot, but it is a big tank) and several z fake plants as well as some drift wood. I thought it would be good to give them places to feel "safe". I also put a small school of neon tetras, and golden tetras in there since I read somewhere that schools of other fish would help them.( It also helped cycle the tank ). So I have a quandary. Should I start the babies in another tank- one that is bb? The only other tank I have is 20 gal and it has lots of gravel in it. I could pull all the gravel out , but would it be big enough?
Why do discus get stunted in a planted tank? Or is it the size of the tank that stunts them?

Some people have grown out babies in planted/substrate tanks. Its not impossible, just requires a bit more work. In a bare tank, you can keep things SUPER clean, no build up of organics in the substrate. I wouldn't use the 20 to grow out 6 juvies unless they were an inch in size.

[ZX10R]

Some people have grown out babies in planted/substrate tanks. Its not impossible, just requires a bit more work

I did this with some good results but NEVER again way way to much work trying to keep everything clean when feeding 4-6 times a day. I raised my juvies in sand, fake plants, and driftwood but now they are adults they live in a BB tank. I believe I did it in the wrong order :D

[Eward]

Thanks for the speedy replies! Do ya'll think I could get a 45gal grow out for juvies, bb of course, then put them in the 70? How big should they be before I transfer them? I got the 70 specifically for discus, it seems nuts not to use it.

[shoveltrash]

Let me just say, starting out it is MUCH easier to keep a tank clean with a glass bottom. IMHO sand would be a better choice than gravel...I'm amazed how much Discus graze off the bottom while feeding. Gravel might be problematic, in that food would get hidden down in nooks & crannies in the gravel. My tank has been running for almost a year now, and I will keep it bare bottom, even with adult Discus :). I should take a photo...

[Eward]

Do you suggest stripping my 60 gal tank of all substrate and growing out the juvies there? Or should I set up a smaller grow out tank- perhaps a 29 gallon bb to grow out my babies? Will the babies grow better in the smaller tank? I think I'm going to take out the gravel in the bigger tank anyway. All you bb advocates can't be wrong!;)

[Eddie]

Do you suggest stripping my 60 gal tank of all substrate and growing out the juvies there? Or should I set up a smaller grow out tank- perhaps a 29 gallon bb to grow out my babies? Will the babies grow better in the smaller tank? I think I'm going to take out the gravel in the bigger tank anyway. All you bb advocates can't be wrong!;)

Large grow out tanks are better than small ones. When you say babies, what age/size exactly?

[Eward]

I hadn't decided yet. Probably 3". What do you recommend? Are 2.5 any harder than 3"? Obviously they are more expensive the larger they get, but are the smaller ones more fragile? In other words which one would I be less likely to kill (Lol)

[Eddie]

I hadn't decided yet. Probably 3". What do you recommend? Are 2.5 any harder than 3"? Obviously they are more expensive the larger they get, but are the smaller ones more fragile? In other words which one would I be less likely to kill (Lol)

If this is your first time with discus, I do recommend 3.5" or larger. This way they have some growing out to do and you can watch them develop out. At 3.5", I would not use anything smaller than a 55 gallon minimum with larger being better. A 75 would be great.

[Eward]

"Not my first rodeo " as Dr. Phil would say. Several years ago I had a pair of adult discus in a dedicated, planted tank. They did very well, and even laid eggs a few times. Unfortunately the female was an egg eater.

[Eddie]

"Not my first rodeo " as Dr. Phil would say. Several years ago I had a pair of adult discus in a dedicated, planted tank. They did very well, and even laid eggs a few times. Unfortunately the female was an egg eater.

Then getting them smaller is totally up to you, if you are confident in growing them out. I'd still use a large tank, just sectioned/divided off to keep the fish closer together and remove the section/divider as they grow out.

[Eward]

Thanks for the advise ;)
Is there an advantage to to larger fish?

[Eddie]

Thanks for the advise ;)
Is there an advantage to to larger fish?

Just that they are more robust and forgiving.

[shoveltrash]

Is there an advantage to to larger fish?I myself started with 3.5-4" fish. they're still alive! :D (thanks to SD) and have reached 6"
but seriously, it is a lot easier to get sub-adults starting out.

[Eward]

I decided to listen to the advice of all the experts, and removed the gravel from my tank. Thank God for husbands with long arms! I actually like the way it looks BB, although we did decide to keep the drift wood, and plastic plants. Next step Discus!

[Eddie]

I decided to listen to the advice of all the experts, and removed the gravel from my tank. Thank God for husbands with long arms! I actually like the way it looks BB, although we did decide to keep the drift wood, and plastic plants. Next step Discus!

Cool! Good luck and take pics! Make sure you get some quality fish too!

[Eward]

My plan was to contact Hans. I tried to look at Kenny's site too, but I've had trouble seeing what he has to offer.

[Dogvet06]

kenny posts on here when he gets his shipment in not on his website. it depends on what u r looking for. look at kenny's past shipments and it will give u an idea what he may have at the end of the month. I personally love them both so i ordered from both :)