Week 47..... A little update!

[Chad Hughes]

All has been great with the contest fish. I think they're still growing. I haven't pulled any of them for measurement in some time but I can't tell if it's the new, smaller tank they are in or if they are in fact still growing. Anyway, they still eat like pigs, play like kids and lay eggs from time to time. Still no successful spawns but they haven't given up. They were at the cone again tonight.

Water changes are the same as the last post. These fish are in the growout system of the fishroom wich is about 900 gallons. No intentional water changes are done. The only water that gets changed out is what gets pulled out from siphoning debris from the 17 tanks that make up the system. In one cleaning cycle, 250 gallons of water is spent. That's a little over a 25% water change daily. All of that water goes in to holding drums for watering of plants and the grass, all of which look fantastic at the moment! LOL!

Their diet is a mix of beefheart (fed in the mornings). Around 4 pm they get a round of live CBW and then a feeding of FBW around 10. Three feedings has been the avearge throughout their upbringing. Water parameters are 560 ppm TDS, pH 8, KH 9, GH 18. Yes, the water is insanely hard.

Enjoy the pics!

[Chad Hughes]

A few more....

[Chad Hughes]

And some more....

[Chad Hughes]

And the last few for now.

Best wishes!

[AirCapital]

chad, very very nice.

[Eddie]

Looking good Chad!

All the best,

Eddie

[vera]

Fantastic fishie Chad !!
..and plants /grass are happy :)good idea btw
GL with a spawn !!

[Ed13]

They are looking good Chad!

[wreck]

good job dude!! very very nice

[Chad Hughes]

chad, very very nice.

Thank you AC!


Looking good Chad!

All the best,

Eddie

Thanks Eddie!


Fantastic fishie Chad !!
..and plants /grass are happy :)good idea btw
GL with a spawn !!

Thanks Vera!


They are looking good Chad!

Thank you Ed!


good job dude!! very very nice

Thanks Wreck! I appreciate all the compliments!

[2075turner]

They look great Chad!

[wgtaylor]

Hi Chad
Your group of albino's look great, fat and happy. :)
That waste water is got to be the best thing going for your plants and lawn too. You have done an excellent job with your discus, fishroom and water conservation. Well done buddy. :):)
Bill

[Chad Hughes]

They look great Chad!

Thank you Evelyn! I still think your males look fantastic! Their finnage is outstanding! I'm worried that you have them all and I have all the females. LOL!


Hi Chad
Your group of albino's look great, fat and happy. :)
That waste water is got to be the best thing going for your plants and lawn too. You have done an excellent job with your discus, fishroom and water conservation. Well done buddy. :):)
Bill

Bill,

Thank you for the kind words buddy!

These fish have been a joy to rear. Absolutely no issues at all. I am pretty pleased with them.

I agree with you on the water for the landscape. It's a little stinky, but everything grows like mad with the extra "stuff" in the water. LOL! I just got my water bill this week and I couldn't believe that with the addition of the fish room, my water usage has gone down 30% from last year. I was shocked.

Anyway, thanks for the compliments my friend!

Best wishes!

[calihawker]

Beautiful Chad. Simply beautiful!

[acroken]

Chad,
they are looking real nice in their new home. everything about them is awesome. very very nice looking group you have raised. well done.

Kenny

[Chad Hughes]

Beautiful Chad. Simply beautiful!

Thank you Steve! I hope all is well with you!


Chad,
they are looking real nice in their new home. everything about them is awesome. very very nice looking group you have raised. well done.

Kenny

Thank you Kenny! I really appreciate the kind words. I wish you well!

Best wishes!

[Arkangel77]

Impresive as always Sr.! I have found that my Fish seem to do best with 50% every other day. Kinda like 25% a day I guess. Your way is probably better but I dont want to be in the tank every day. Anyways - Sorry for rambling. Keep up the good work! :D

Ark:angel:

[Chad Hughes]

Impresive as always Sr.! I have found that my Fish seem to do best with 50% every other day. Kinda like 25% a day I guess. Your way is probably better but I dont want to be in the tank every day. Anyways - Sorry for rambling. Keep up the good work! :D

Ark:angel:

Ark,

Six of one, half a dozen of the other. Thanks for the kind words. Now that nearly all of my fish are in the fish room full of bare tanks, I feel the need to clean more. LOL! When the tnaks are clean, the room looks great. When they get a little nasty I can't help but clean. I just spent 3 days in Vegas so tonight I'll be giving them all a good beat down.

Best wishes!

[Peace]

All has been great with the contest fish. I think they're still growing. I haven't pulled any of them for measurement in some time but I can't tell if it's the new, smaller tank they are in or if they are in fact still growing. Anyway, they still eat like pigs, play like kids and lay eggs from time to time. Still no successful spawns but they haven't given up. They were at the cone again tonight.

Water changes are the same as the last post. These fish are in the growout system of the fishroom wich is about 900 gallons. No intentional water changes are done. The only water that gets changed out is what gets pulled out from siphoning debris from the 17 tanks that make up the system. In one cleaning cycle, 250 gallons of water is spent. That's a little over a 25% water change daily. All of that water goes in to holding drums for watering of plants and the grass, all of which look fantastic at the moment! LOL!

Their diet is a mix of beefheart (fed in the mornings). Around 4 pm they get a round of live CBW and then a feeding of FBW around 10. Three feedings has been the avearge throughout their upbringing. Water parameters are 560 ppm TDS, pH 8, KH 9, GH 18. Yes, the water is insanely hard.

Enjoy the pics!
Hey Chad, beautiful fish you've got there... best of luck...

One of the things that caught my eye was the pH of your water... it was 8... is your water supply from well water?

My pH is close to 8 as well (given our geographical proximity, it would make sense our water parameters are comparable)... when I first tested it, I freaked out knowing how these fish prefer lower pH's... they seemed to have settled in alright now, but I was concerned about the high pH's impact on egg hatching... I've read elsewhere that higher pH's reduce the chance of successful hatchings and was considering putting in driftwood to lower the pH...

Any thoughts on pH and successful breeding? Thanks

-Shazli

[Chad Hughes]

Hey Chad, beautiful fish you've got there... best of luck...

One of the things that caught my eye was the pH of your water... it was 8... is your water supply from well water?

My pH is close to 8 as well (given our geographical proximity, it would make sense our water parameters are comparable)... when I first tested it, I freaked out knowing how these fish prefer lower pH's... they seemed to have settled in alright now, but I was concerned about the high pH's impact on egg hatching... I've read elsewhere that higher pH's reduce the chance of successful hatchings and was considering putting in driftwood to lower the pH...

Any thoughts on pH and successful breeding? Thanks

-Shazli


Yes, our Ph here in San Diego is high. I'm on city water and the parameters are the same after aging. My growouts and adults do great in this hard water. Remember, DOMESTICATED discus don't know what really soft water is unless they have been raised in RO.

As for breeding, I use RO. I have heard that some folks in my area have had successful spawns in tap water. I don't have specifics on that though. Some people just do things differently. For good hatch rates, I would recommend the use of RO in San Diego. I also use muriatic acid to bring down the pH of the RO. Basic parameters are pH of 6.5~6.8 and a TDS of about 60.

Hope that helps!

[Oroborus]

They look happy and healthy! I still like your blue diamond with yellow eyes though, that's one cool fish.

[Chad Hughes]

They look happy and healthy! I still like your blue diamond with yellow eyes though, that's one cool fish.

Thanks! They don't complain much! LOL! :D

[Disgirl]

Beautiful and very healthy looking Chad! I see a couple of them checking out their cones :D.
Barb

[Chad Hughes]

Beautiful and very healthy looking Chad! I see a couple of them checking out their cones :D.
Barb

Thank you Barb! Your cones have been getting quite a lot of attention lately. :D I hope you guys are well! Take care!

[David Rose]

Yeah yeah...BEAUTIFUL discus there Chad... but now I want to see your green thumb of a yard from all the waste water :p

[Chad Hughes]

Yeah yeah...BEAUTIFUL discus there Chad... but now I want to see your green thumb of a yard from all the waste water :p

LOL! Thanks David! As of right now the rain is keeping everything pretty green! I can't keep the grass cut. Every three days it's time to mow again! UGH!

Best wishes!

[blkrob]

I love the color. Great job!

Robert

[Chad Hughes]

Thank you Robert!

Best wishes!

[MRQuad]

wow.. that's a beautiful group you got in there bud!

[Chad Hughes]

Thank you Marvin! It's almost over now! LOL!

Best wishes!

[MRQuad]

im so happy for you and for all the contestants.. good job!

[Chad Hughes]

Thanks Marvin! I agree, everyone did a great job! :)