How many in a 60gal?

[dasbcard]

How many 2.5-3" discus should be kept in a 60gal. tank for optimum growth? Thank you in advance for any advice!

[Carol_Roberts]

6 or 12 or 18 in a bare bottom tank, depending on how often you are willing to change the water and how much experience you have with discus.

Since you are asking this question I would say 8 or 9 with daily water changes of at least 25%. AS they grow you will pick your favorites and sell off or give away 2 or 3.

[ndiscus]

Well I must admit I heard alot of phony information given on this page. Simply it is ONE Discus for every TEN gallons of water. No matter what size the fish is! Also carbon is no good for discus. Hope this helps?
Mark Rubanow Nassau Discus NY

[Dave C]

Ha ha ha, someone better tell the 50 3" Discus I've got swimming in my 65g tank that they're thriving on phony information. I'm about to split them into two 65g tanks to get the next inch or two out of them but they're doing great in the one tank right now. They get 50% daily w/c and have a Magnum 350 running 24/7. The water is crystal clear, the fish are very active and eat well. I allow about 7g per adult fish for a final tank but for younger fish I find they do much better in larger groups. So long as I keep the tank & water clean I have had no problems with stocking density like in my 65g tank. I also have 100 3" fish in my 180g, also no problems. We all do things differently and have varying success. I find what works best for me is to start groups of 30-50 small fish (1/2") in a 30g tank until they get to 2". Then I move them to a 65g tank until 3", then split to two 65g tanks until 4-5".

[April]

I have 14 2.5 inch guys in my 40 gallon and they grow everytime i look at them. but lots of wc's . theres lots of competition so eat well. and even the tiniest one is growing and getting bigger. if she was with only 6...she would get terrorized im sure and not grow.
as adults though or just buying a group of fish for yourself and as a beginner..id stick as close to the 10 gallon rule as possible. but as carol said add maybe 3 or 4 extras and keep the best later. some may be smaller or not turn out.

[Willie]

No inconsistencies here. Both Dave and April work in the pet industry and can consistently make large water changes. If you can't do that, then the 10 gal/fish rule is a good one for adults. I travel 3 - 4 times each month and sometimes twice a week. So I keep adults at the 10 gal/fish density, because they may not get a water change until the next weekend. The younger fish are kept at higher density because, as Dave says, they're happier that way. If I only have a couple of hours, then the grow out tanks get changed first. I make 100% W/C's.

Willie

No question....the 1/10gal rule is a good one...as a blanket statement! But there's also no question that the per gallon capacity CAN be pushed WAY beyond 1/10 and still have healthy fish and tank conditions.
There are alot of variables involved...and each situation unique. As Dave has already stated...the key is keeping the water clean.
Different methods does not = phony

Tony

[April]

thats why i said as a beginner your better off really to keep to the 10 gallon rule. and you do need to know your water and how it reacts and how your fish can handle large wc before you do that. i do 90 percent but i have done it long enough as Willie said.
still stored water overnight with an airstone is best way to keep your waters parameters even. especially with new fish. as if your doing large water changes and fluctuating and you are a beginner at discus.you soon would have unhappy fish.
also..remember try to get your new group all at the same time from the same place. best way to prevent problems .

[dred]

I can't keep myself from commenting here. But, I really think Carol's early advice is the most appropriate.

I'm a fresh, simple beginner. And, I've got two tanks of juvenile groups. One is 65gal with five 3.5 to 4.5" juvies, and now that they are better and behaving like they are happy I've still got Rudolf-the-red-spotted-leopard that doesn't get to laugh and sing and play in any reindeer games and Goldie-the-pigeon-brute that takes social ques from his mafia cousins, so ...

Conversely, I've got 17 2.5-3.5" discus in a 55. I prefer this density. IMO, they are ALL developing much faster, and the social structure is much more civil. Granted these are from a different importer and are from different strains, but to me the difference in tanks is like night and twilight.

I accepted the charge to provide fresh water before inviting any discus home with me, so ... And, I have the luxury of working from home most of the time so they get lots and lots of nourishment (no schedule, just minimum 5 times a day).

milton

[dasbcard]

Thanks everyone for your inputs but I have another concern. I know they will eat well in a large group but will the limited space hurt their eventual maximum size. For example if I have 6 in a 60gal each of these will reach 7" as adults but if I have 12 they will only grow to 5". Basically my concern is in a large group they will still grow fast but will they reach the normal maximum size?

[Willie]

You have to assume ending up with far fewer fish than you started with. If you start with 10 2" fish, you usually end up with 7 - 8 4" fish. Not all of them will be nice, so you should sell 2 - 3 of them. Then you'll have 1 - 2 pairs and sell of the extra. Remember, this is discus. Its not an easy fish, even for the advanced hobbyists.

Willie

[RAWesolowski]

Good comment, Willie! Case in point is the purchase of 5 2.5" fish from the same spawn. In 4 months, they turned into two 6" fish, a 5" fish, a 4" fish and a 3" fish. Brothers and sisters are not created equally despite identical water and feeding conditions... go figure!

PS growth was in a planted tank...