I'm a real beginner with Discus i need HELP

[Abercrombie6202]

I have a 75 gallon aquarium, been up for about 4-5 months now. It's a planted tank and i wnat it to be an amazon theme tnak with discus and other amozonian fish. I've been keeping fish since October, 2002, so i'm not a beginner with tropical fish.

The tank is going to inhabit
3 discus(about 3 inches right now, haven't bought them yet)
2 angelfish
12 tetras
6 hatchets
6 cories
1 clown pleco
1 farlowella
2 rams
3 pencilfish

Some people told me that this is too little for 75, some said it's too much, some have said you should get rid of the the 2 angelfish and get atleast 5 discus. I'm also wodnering would the discus eat the smaller fish like the pencilfish?

Another problem is does the PH really have to be at 6.0-6.5? My PH right now is at 7.8, becuase my tap water is 7.8 and if i do lower it should i lower it with chemicals or peat?

How many water changes would i have to do? and isn't it difficult to do daily water changes, becuase u have to add that chemical stuff that gets rid of the chlorine, don't you? Will the fish get stressed?

How do i get good live food for my discus i heard California Black worms would be good or the beefheart mixture, but i don't know how to make the beefheart thing and won't that cloud my water?

I might have forgot about some questions, but if you can help me with any more advice that would be appreciated very much!!

[chinoz]

Welcome to Simply,


I have been in the discus hobby for about 6 months now, and Simply is the best place to get information. I will try my best to answer your question.

First of all your 75 gal tank is fine, perfect for about 7-8 discus. I have a 75 gal tank like yours but i have like 28 discus in the tank.. With this large amount of discus, you have to do 100% W/C (water change) everyday. Since you are a beginer, i suggest stick with 5-7 discus.

As far as PH. DO NOT change it to 6.0 - 6.5 ...your discus will do fine in a 7.8.


Water change, i would suggest geting a big container for your aged water. Add some chlorine remover if your water has chlorine in it. for 5-7 discus in a 75 tank, i would do a 50% water change every other day, monday, wednesday, friday and sunday. Make sure you heat your age water, areated it with air pump and let it sit for at least 24 hours.

Food: feed them a variety of food such as: CBW ( california blood worm), flake food such as Ocean Nutrition Formula 1 or 2, Tetra Bits, frozen blood worm. This way your fish will grow bigger and at the same time will develop a better color.

Thats my 2 cent..Im sure discus fanatics here can give you better suggestions. Best of luck with the discus.. ;D ;D ;D

[chinoz]

by the way, yes please remove the angels and get some discus instead. ;D

[Carol_Roberts]

Hi and welcome to Simplydiscus :wave:
There is bunches of information here on keeping discus. I'm sure you will enjoy reading through the different sections and seeing all the pictures.

My water is also pH 7.8. You will find pH is less important that stable water parameters.

For the type of tank you are planning I get a pair of discus. Juveniles grow best in groups of 6 or more in bare bottom tanks.

[iceskater]

Hi And Welcome,
I had some of my juvenile discus eat Neon Tetras I would not mix them.
My advice listen to the advice given here and you will have no problems. I started keeping Discus in February. I started with 7, still have 7 and have had no problems at all, other then occasional bloating. I also have barebottom. You will love it at cleaning time.

Karen

[ronrca]

Hi Adam,
Welcome to Simplydiscus!


Some people told me that this is too little for 75, some said it's too much, some have said you should get rid of the the 2 angelfish and get atleast 5 discus. I'm also wodnering would the discus eat the smaller fish like the pencilfish?
A 75G is just right imo! I agree that you should replace the 2 angels with discus, at least 5-6 discus! About discus eating other fish? If it fits into the discus month, discus will try to eat them however when discus are small, you dont have to worry about that unless your other fish are also small. Usually however, discus are not fast enough to catch other fish like cardinals.


Another problem is does the PH really have to be at 6.0-6.5? My PH right now is at 7.8, becuase my tap water is 7.8 and if i do lower it should i lower it with chemicals or peat? Dont bother to change the ph! Too much work, too many headaches unless you are a reason to change the ph like breeding! My tap water ph is also 7.8!


How many water changes would i have to do? and isn't it difficult to do daily water changes, becuase u have to add that chemical stuff that gets rid of the chlorine, don't you? Will the fish get stressed? The million dollar question, water changes! Well, in a planted tank, you get change water every day! Here's a few examples:
- daily at 25%
- weekly at 50%
- the main thing is keeping your nitrates low

You do not want to put juvenile discus into a planted tank because it is harder to grow them. The reason is that it is difficult to keep it clean from massive feedings. It is not impossible just harder from my experience so you want to start with discus around 4-6".

Your next question about chlorine. It will depend on how much water you change. If you are only changing 25% daily, I would not worry about chlorine because it gets diluted but you will still need to add dechlor every time. You can also 'age' your water.

About food! Variety is the best. I feed flake foods with blood worms in the evening. I actually dont feed beef heart anymore. Matter of opinion but it works! The bottom line is nutrients and stuff like that ;)

O, btw! Dont bother with lfs discus! You will not be happy with them!