Hoping someone kind will check my setup and answer a couple questions.

[TheDuckyOne]

Ok, heres what I have planned. It will be a planted discus show tank. I know that gravel and plants make it more difficult to change the water, but Ive been working w/freshwater plant tanks for 7 years now...those I feel comfortable with, the discus is what makes me nervous.

65 gallon tank (I cant give you the exact dimensions, but I know for sure it is 36 long, 18 wide...Im not sure how tall it is, but its pretty tall as far as a fish tank is concerned)

Aqua Clear 70 Filter (Old 300)
Rainbow Fluidized Bed Filter FB300 (running w/a 200 gph rio powerhead)
Magnum 350 Canister Filter Pro System

Ill be using some sort of clay at the bottom (i havent chosen the type or brand yet, I want to do more research on the kind of plants that I would be keeping in this very warm tank before I do)

As far as other fish...I am thinking a school of cardinals,rummynoses or columbian red and blue tetras (one or two of those choices, but not all 3) and a small shoal of cory cats.

My main question is about the discus itself, and I think its an odd one, but here goes. My understanding is that they are schooling fish, and should be bought in groups and introduced into the tank together, which is no problem, I have a BB 29 QT tank just waiting for them. My question is about the color varients. Are they all the same species, but different colored, like betta fish (all the same thing, but come in a wide variety of color variants) or is each color variant its own species? My concern is about them schooling together. I would like to mix and match, and get a couple each of a few different kinds (I have no intention to breed them, Ive never had an intrest in breeding any fish really) but I do want them to school, so that they can function normally, and be comfortable in the tank. Anyone with any advice on this I would be very grateful.

Thanks in advance for your time, a resource like this forum is invaluble to someone who is learning to seperate fact from fiction and keep these beautiful fish.

[Giniel]

Yes they are a schooling fish and do better in groups of 6 or more. I believe that all domestic discus are the same species and that all wilds are another species.Carol or Brewmaster might be able to farther answer your question on that part .As far as mixing colors ,it doesn't matter to the fish what color they are .
HTH
Debbie

[Howie_W]

Hi Ducky and welcome to Simply :)

You are correct in that Discus are schooling fish and best in groups. You can mix and match however you like, they are all the same species with a huge variety of color variation.

Some basic things that are most important;

Health is your first priority. Buy your fish set of fish from the same source...this helps reduce the chances of health problems. Quarantine for a minimum of six weeks. The larger the group you start with, the better they will interact, eating properly, with reduced aggression; 6 to 8 fish is a minimum number to start with.

In the long run, you'll have best results growing out your fish in a bare bottom tank for the fist year, and then placing them into a planted one.


Howie

[TheDuckyOne]

Thanks for clarifying that. I definately wanted to make sure that they would school together before I started picking favorites.

Any reason other then ease of cleaning and feeding that young discus should be grown out in a BB tank? Please understand, I am not questioning your knowlege, I am just trying to get a little clarification. As a child, my favorite word was "why?" and I guess I never really outgrew that.

I am a big time QT'er. I work in a pet store, and I have seen the quality of fish we sometimes receive thru no fault of our own. Ive seen perfectly healty fish get sick 2 days after being put in the tank. Even a big, healty, well fed (we feed 90% of everything at the store frozen at least 1 time a day) attractive fishes can get sick, and make everything else in the tank sick, for no known reason. I QT like crazy at home. Is it wise to medicate the discus for anything as a precaution while they are in QT tanks? If so what, and what kind of medication is recommended? Is there any kind of meds that I should just always have "on hand"?

Thanks again for the replies. Im sure that I will mess up a few times down the road, but thanks to this forum, hopefully all blunders will be minor.

BTW, the filter setup? Any comments on that? I was considering adding a water polisher also.

[Carol_Roberts]

Nothing takes the place of water changes and Nothing promotes growth like a bare bottom tank with daily water changes. Can you raise discus in a planted tank? Yes, some people can. Will they get as big and pretty as discus grown out in a bare bottom with lots of water changes. Not in a 65 gallon. All the filters in the world are not going to make the difference. You can not keep the water clean enough for 6 discus in that size tank with clay and plants.

However, many people want the plants and are quite happy to trade discus size for the overall effect of a planted community tank.

Why don't they grow? They don't eat as well. WAter changes and clean tanks promote health and appetite. The first symptom when the water quality is less than optimum is a reduction in discus appetite.