I'm new to discus and ask for your suggestions!

[Qbal18]

ok i have my tank set up now for 6 months and am going to go get a pair of discus tomorrow. now before you all jump and say who a little fast don't you think i have done research and know pretty well what i am doing but since this is my first time with discus I ask for your help. my current set up is a 50g tank that is heavily planted i am doing weekly water changes on it but i WILL start to do 2 water changes a week of 30% i hope this will be enough. my water spec are: KH30ppm GH 20-30ppm NO3 2-4ppm Fe.25-.50ppm Ph6.4-6.8 (i am putting in diy CO2 so it varies a bit but i am getting a pressurized system next month so it Will be much more stable) now Right now i already have a few other fish in the tank that i want to put the discus in:
5 cardinal
5 rasboras
5 rummy nose
2 Corry's
3 chines A.E. but i want to exchange them for S.A.E's

tomarow i am planing on getting a pair of 2.5" tangerine discus i have been looking at for a week and have had on hold. (i get them for half price tomorrow so i get the pair for 35$ can.
what i am asking for is any info that could be beneficial to me or liks that would be helpful, diseases, treatments, or just anything to really keep an eye out for.

[ReeferKimberly]

well first off, a bare-bottom tank is best IMO for discus but many keep them in planted so it's not like it can't be done. But the main problem i saw with your situation is that your only getting 2 discus. discus (especially juvies) should most definately be kept in groups so only 2 is not a good idea. 4-6 would be a much better choice but with the other fish i'm not sure how the bio-load would handle it.
coming off of that, i'm not sure how the other fish and especially the plants will handle the 82-86 temps that the discus need.
third point, 30% bi-weekly for many here, still seems like not enough water to be changed. some go all the way to 50% a day (including me) but that is another thing that the plants would have trouble coping with.
i think going into discus is a good thing for anyone, but many who do become obsessed really fast and find that when they started out, they made many mistakes....many of which starting with a situation that is not the best for them. so there is lots of other advice to be had from this forum, and i know you are probly semi-prepared for these fish, but from what i know, you may want to re-consider discus for your tank or go with discus but start out with a tank only for them.
just my $.02, and i wish you well
kim :-*

[Qbal18]

sorry if i made you think bie-weekly i am going to do 2 water changes a week wens and sun 30% if need be 40-50% if that would be better also i am also only going to get 2 of them tomorrow but am going to pick up 1-2 more next week form another place. i wan tot have 3-4 of them. now for the bio load it sould handel it fine up till mow i have had 2 2.5" geramies 3 rossy barbs and a half dozen live bearers but i took them all out a few day s ago in hops for the discus and my water temp right now is 80-82 will that be good if not i can go 84 ok my tank is warm to start.

[ReeferKimberly]

i always thought bi-weekly meant twice a week, u mean it doesn't??? me <--- dumb. well i meant that twice a week still seems like too little for some but works fine for others. 40-50% twice a week may just work. i'm glad your getting more then 2 also, they will form little personalities just you watch. just be sure to get more then 3, 4 at least. b/c with only 3, 2 of them may gang up on the 3rd and kill him...
good luck!
kim :-*

[Carol_Roberts]

I'm glad you're planning to get at least 4 discus. However, you will be much better off to get them all from the same source. Many times when you get them from two different places they have been exposed to different pathogens and get sick.

Growing out juvenile discus in a planted tank with CO2 and twice weekly water changes can be very challenging. I'm sure Ralph and DM in the show tanks section will be of great help to you.

[ReeferKimberly]

oh yeah i almost forgot,
82-83 should be fine
kim :-*

[Qbal18]

i woudl like to get them all form the sam eplace however the one store dose not have that many discus. but they have a really nice pair that i really like. also for when i get them is there anything that i soudl look for in there body for defects or maybe how to tell if they are stressed, sick or what not. i want to get this pair on hold but not if they are not in good health. so what should i look for?

[Ryan]

Qbal,

There are two threads here in the Beginners section that will help you out tremendously.

Recommendations on what to buy
http://forum.simplydiscus.com//index.php?board=21;action=display;threadid=6126

What not to buy
http://forum.simplydiscus.com//index.php?board=21;action=display;threadid=6125

If you have any additional questions after browsing those threads, do not hesitate to ask. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder and if the shape or color of your fish are not that important to you, buy what makes you happy. There are no standards written in stone, just the ones that are accepted and upheld by the breeders and serious hobbyists.

Ryan

[Carol_Roberts]

Look for ones that are bright eyed with erect fins, swimming happily in the tank. Don't buy ones that are dark in color, with dull eyes, hiding in the back of the tank.

[Ryan]

Ask the store to see them eat. A happy discus is a hungry one. They should meet your hand at the top of the tank wanting food at that size.

Ryan

[Ralph]

The fish you mention are good tank mates for discus and can handle 86+ degrees. Definately change the Chinese AEs for SAEs though. Also, most aquarium plants can handle the heat too, we have a thread that talks specifically which ones aren't a problem.

A planted community tank is a complicated thing. Add to that, discus require special water quality and young discus are even more sensitive to their conditions. It can be a challenge even for the experienced.
A couple alternatives:
Keep your discus in a 29 gal grow-out tank for 6 to 10 months (much easier water changes) and then add them to the planted tank.
Use a planted tank with no substrate (potted plants or plants tied to driftwood).
Use thin layer of substrate, less than 1/2"

The main thing though is to inform yourself and make a knowledgeable decision and we'll be here to help you with whichever one you choose.

[dm]

You have very good advice here. I would like to add that in a planted tank be careful not to over feed. anything that goes in the substrate is just dirtying the tank. I have found that live food (I use blackworms) make a huge difference in keeping the tank clean. A variety of foods is a must for Discus but with a planted tank I feed blackworms more than the others. It just keeps things cleaner.

[Qbal18]

ok thankx all so much so far i just got home form the lfs and i did get 2 2.5" discus i will be getting another 2 on mon or tue but for now 2 will have to do. i am going to put them in my planted tank i do not find it hard to keep a planted tank i have been doing this part for a year now so all i have been doing is slowly changeing the water over to how discus will like it more. even the plant lay out is prtty good for discus. this is the tnak they will be going in:
http://www3.telus.net/public/a5a32469/newtankplanted.JPG
just with out half the fish that are in it now. and yes i will definetly change those CAE for SAE for now i will just start by taking them out but i will have to do that this weekend. i will post a pic of the discus as soon as i can take a good one.

[Fisheyes]

;D ;D
Nice setup .
My one question would be are you adding fertilizer and co2.
I am assuming you are to have such a lush tank and I wonder what effect the chemicals would have on your discus if you are doing this.
Fisheyes ;)

[Ralph]

Nice looking tank. I'm becoming very fond of the sand substrates and am slowly converting all my tanks. Done correctly, I think they can be kept cleaner than the gravel and I like the look. Can you tell us about the sand?

Also, that's a great picture, my camera skills are far short of yours.

[Qbal18]

ok cuerrently i am adding DIY co2. it is hard to keep the ph very stable it dose flucuate up to .5 some times in a day but normally ony .3 but i am going to go pressuserize this month. i add 2ml per day of kent fress water fert. and 1 teaspoon potasium sulfate when i do water changes to keep around 20ppm.
the fert i use contains:
K2O 3%
Cu .0001%
Fe .24%
Mn .01%
Mo .0009%
Zn .00014%

my Fe levels are normally .25-.5ppm NO3 2-5ppm

i hope this will work with discus

O and the sand is a medium grade silica sand i havent had it that long but so far i am loveing it pluse it is easy to tell how clean it is.

[robmcm]

Hi QBal18,

I'm in Coquitlam, been into Discus for about 10 months. $35/pair is great price, haven't seen anything that low at Big Al's, King Ed or Fraser fish - where are you getting you Tangerines?

My tank is also planted. My wife just wouldn't tolerate a bare-bottomed aquarium in the living room. So far things seem okay - I vaccum a lot and do 30% water changes every second day. Definitely didn't understand the effor involved in keeping Discus when they first caught my eye, but we're enjoying it.

Here are some pics... http://www.members.shaw.ca/robmcm/McDiscus.htm

[Ralph]

That's a nice set up Rob. I like your website too, very well done, what kind of format did you use?

[Qbal18]

i am over in port kells so probally right acros the river form you. i know of a few good places to get discus over here. i can get 2-2.5" (not sure of the name of this store) for $19.99 1" for $9.99 (fish world 64th and scott road in surrey) or on thursdays 1/2 price at another place if you buly there pet card for $10 (petland at fraser hwy and 192 in surrey) but another thingby the looks of it you kow way more about discus then i do maybe some time you could give me some pointers or show me your set up.

[Qbal18]

not the best pic but here is a pic so far of the discus i got
any ideas of what type they are?
http://www3.telus.net/public/a5a32469/discus.JPG

[Carol_Roberts]

Red turquoise discus

[robmcm]

Glad someone new...I'm having a hard time telling varieties apart, and the LFS seems to, as well! You can be sure it's a discus, after that the mleage varies! Guess with time you get familiar with them.

[robmcm]

Thanks, it's fun to noodle around with web pages (and fish tanks). I used a Nikon Coolpix 900 digicam on a tripod to take the pics. Tripod is a neccessity for non-flash photos. I use Frontpage as an editor, but the page is very simple, any app. would do fine.



That's a nice set up Rob. I like your website too, very well done, what kind of format did you use?

[robmcm]

Thanks for the tips, I'll take a look at those shops next time I'm across the river. I've found SimplyDiscus a great source of information, probably spend more time here than any other discus-related site.

For pointers, my big lessons have been frequent water changes, the quarantine tank and keeping the damn snails under control. The discus have eaten anything I've tried (different flake, cichlid pellets, dried bloodworms, spirulina disks, etc.) but really freak out on live blackworms. It's like Wild Kingdom in there! :o

[quote author=Qbal18 link=board=21;threadid=7508;start=15#80727
date=1046449389]
i am over in port kells so probally right acros the river form you. i know of a few good places to get discus over here. i can get 2-2.5" (not sure of the name of this store) for $19.99 1" for $9.99 (fish world 64th and scott road in surrey) or on thursdays 1/2 price at another place if you buly there pet card for $10 (petland at fraser hwy and 192 in surrey) but another thingby the looks of it you kow way more about discus then i do maybe some time you could give me some pointers or show me your set up.

[jamesmcsyd]

One thing I have noticed as well. Cories are notories for picking up flukes. They will also stir up the substrate enough to release them towards the other fish. My suggestion is to get rid of them, and especially get rid of the Algae Eaters. Stick with the flying fox or otocinclus if you can.

James

[robmcm]

Thanks jamesmcsyd,

So often you read stuff like "Species <insert something> won't work with Discus" without any explanation. The CAE is gone - he would stick onto the discus and leave a noticeable mark, I assume he liked the mucous. The blue diamond is actually scarred from this.

We do love the cories, will have to keep an eye on things.

[95jeepxj]

I talked to a guy yesterday that came into the LFS that I'm working at part time. He was looking for some larger fish. I asked him what he is keeping now. angels-oscar-1 discus-misc others. I asked h20 conditions out of curiosity 7.2 and tap water changes every other week, temp 78. He has had the discus for a year and a half no problems and he said it was 4-5 inches.

moral of the story
YMMV

jake

[henryD]

I think there are some general rules about keeping discus and then there are exceptions to them. In the case above, I would say angels and oscar with discus is not a good combination. But I also know of people who have done it successfully. Like everything else fish have their own personalities. Some will get along better than others. It depends on case to case.

As for the PH thing. I don't think it is as important as trying to maintain stabel conditions. So I think stability is a better goal to strive for. As for breeding, I am unsure if PH makes a big difference or not since I am not going that route. But there are plenty of hobbist breeders who can tell you if it is an important factor or not.

I kills me ever time I go into a LFS and someone tell me how hard discus are to keep. They go on this whole speech of proper PH and other myths. If you read through this forum you will find that alot of things were probably true at one point but does not apply anymore.

[Carol_Roberts]

Hey Jake,
LOL, Maybe the discus was 6 inches when he bought it a year ago and is now down to 5 inches after being chased around a 78 degree tank by an oscar.

[95jeepxj]

I thought the guy was nuts when I was talking to him especialy after doing some research on my own from this forum :o

jake