New member, and new to discus

[sanghan47558]

Hey guys! Im new to Discus, and I came here before I get my new tank so i dont mess up and kill m'y future disus. I plan on keeping them in a 150-200 (haven't decided) gallon tank, with no idea on what to do for filtration...I hear wet dry is good, but i am totally new to that. I was thinking about setting up chain canister filters, or maybe a sump.... I want as many discus as I can get, and have a variety of colors... Random question: What happenes when discus of different colors breed? anyways...I pla on sand for substrate, have know Idea for lighting( should i plant the tank?) I want to keep a large school of corys along with neons or cardinals
(which?) and maybe some more scavengers... any other fish I should consider?.... I like the color of the neons, cardinals, and discus.... THat sort of metallic neon color...
I will most likely attempt breeding my future discus and hopefully earn some money that way... By the way, Im sorry for the horrible grammar and the complete randomness.any suggestions on what to do? Say it was yours...tell me what you guys would do!

[cobaltblue]

Welcome to the site. Im new to this site myself, but i can give you a few tips. Others will be able to let you in on alot more. Most people on this site seems to prefer barebottom tanks ( no substrate at all) as discus require very clean water with frequent large water changes. My tank is a show tank though in my living room, so a barebottom tank was out of the question. I have a 90gallon planted tank. I went witht the one discus for every 10 gallon rule, so i have 9 discus. You are best to get 8-10 juveniles to start with and put them in all at the same time once your tank is cycled. I have a school of cardinals, as they are much nicer than neons. I also have 1 rubberlip pleco and 6 otocinclus to keep the tank clean. If i could do it all over again, i probably would do a barebottom tank, but have plants in clay pots. No gravel. All in all, the key is water quality. I do water changes almost every night, at least 25 to 30%. I didnt do this for the first month, as i didnt believe it was really that neccessary. Then my discus started getting diseases and i realized how important it was. Make sure you quarentine all your new fish, i made the mistake not doing it, and lost some expensive fish because of my stupidity. THis is a great forum and there are many great people here who can and will answer any questions you have. They have sure helped me. :)
ps ...i will enclose a picture of my planted tank...still work in progress though.

[KIWI13]

Chris you have gotten yourself a real beautiful tank there buddy. :D

Dear Sanghan, welcome to simply discus. Maybe what I'm gonna tell ya is not gonna be what you wanna hear but here goes anyway.

if your new to discus, I wouldnt advice statting off with a 150 gallon planted tank. this is too large a volume of water to control and if you have problems, things might get outta hand.

Normally a 70 gallon is a good starter size which can be maintained as a bare bottom tank in which you place 7 to 8 juvi discus and learn how to grow them up by feeding them correctly and cleaning the water regularly.

If you have no experience with these fish, then a 150 gallon planted tank is a hard starting point.

Its a great tank for adults but 6 or so juvis will be lost a bit. If you wanna go ahead though, We will help out in any way possible to get your discus looking good in your tank.

HTH

Jason

[sanghan47558]

i guess i'll do the 150 gal then..i was plannign on the biggest possiblke tank
i will post again when i get the tank... about 2 months... in november
ty
btw...nice tank

[ValorG]

whats the dimension difference betwen the 150 and 200? on choosing ur filter, it all depends on the amount of water changes ur willing to do. wet dry and sumps are really overdoing it when it comes to discus. one cannister filter will be fine and ive heard that chain cannisters was a bad idea. prolly the flow was slowed way too much. im not sure exactly y its a bad idea but ive heard it was on another forum. if u wanted to do a planted tank, u really should get the planted tank going first and then add the discus. It will be very difficult to do a planted tank with a lot of fish already as its hard to get the nutrient ratios right. concidering that ur new u shouldnt go planted if ur priority is discus. if u just want a nice show tank then the decision is up to u but remember that its easier if u start with a planted tank first then add the discus.

[Dood Lee]

For a 150 gallon tank, wet/dry filters (or sumps) or canisters are pretty much the easiest way to go. Less maintanence.

[ppv1951]

kiwi's advice is good. start a little smaller at first. it would be a good idea to start with a bare tank to begin with too. take the time now to learn about the fish and what they need. planted tanks are great, but it takes a bit of experience to keep them.

pat.

[fishfan]

Hi Jason,

In my part of the world, Africa, the larger the tank the better as this leads to more stable water conditions. Being new to the discus scene, am I missing something here? Congrats to All Blacks winning Tri-nations.
First pic shows nightly daphnia feed

[fishfan]

pic shows front view 550 litre tank which contains 34 discus. They are breeding in this tank so conditions should be ok

[fishfan]

use sump as filter with plants . Lights are left on all night and helps stabilise pH levels. Maybe on option for those wanting to have plants in their system.

[fishfan]

front part of sump. sorry bout the single pics, still have to figure out how to upload all onto one reply. :p I breed fish - not an IT person.

[KIWI13]

Fish Fan thank you on the tri nations compliment, Its great to see the boys in black bring it home.
Actually a big tank is easier to maintain once it is well established. BUT what I was trying to say was that if you have no experience with discus, its not the best beginners tank.
Plus it depends on hwo you want your fish to turn out, if you want to accelerate growth by daily or frequent water changes and feedings of 4 to 5 times a day then its better done with a bare bottom 70 gallon or so, its easier to maintain for this person.
But a 150 show tank is a breeze....

Jas

[sanghan47558]

-so u guys reccommend a 200 galon tank or 150....
-should i get a wet/dry filter or a canister filter?
-cna i add substrate and sand after i get to know discus better? btw I have a 50 gallon tank...can i take out the plants in there, add to the new 150-200 gallon tank, take out substrate, and keep the discus in there? (if so, how many?)
-is sand ok?
-wut type of lighting? Flourescent?
-can i add moon lights?
-wut u guys recommend for scavengers? Im thinking a school of cories, but how many? some ghost shrimp? will the discus eat them?
-should i add cardinals after or before i add discus?
Sorry for the many questions, but my first post was very disorganized and i guess many of u couldn't understand my writing... thanks guys

[KIWI13]

Ok Sanghan I will answer all of your questions in the same order you asked them :D

-so u guys reccommend a 200 galon tank or 150....
Well not really, i was hinting at a 70 gallon but if its 150 you want then do it bare bottom to begin with

-should i get a wet/dry filter or a canister filter?
A sump would be the best option

-cna i add substrate and sand after i get to know discus better? btw I have a 50 gallon tank...can i take out the plants in there, add to the new 150-200 gallon tank, take out substrate, and keep the discus in there? (if so, how many?)
-is sand ok?
Well its more like you can add substrate when your discus are young adults and you dont need to feed em 4 times a day. Yes you can add plants in there and pot them if you must to maintain a bare bottom.

-wut type of lighting? Flourescent?
-can i add moon lights?
It all depends on how heavily planted your tank is. Discus do no tlike bright light and will end up hiding in the plants

-wut u guys recommend for scavengers? Im thinking a school of cories, but how many? some ghost shrimp? will the discus eat them?
Cories are perfect. i would get a nice group of atleast 15 cories

-should i add cardinals after or before i add discus?
It doesnt really matter, as long as you respect the quarantine period of ATLEAST 4 weeks

Sorry for the many questions, but my first post was very disorganized and i guess many of u couldn't understand my writing... thanks guys
Your Welcome

HTH
jason :D

[sanghan47558]

thanks so much guys!