Mixed discus tank vs One type tank

[ltd]

I would like to ask you, based on your general taste and/or experience:

Would a tank mixed with spotted, striated, and solid discus look good at all?? Or would it be better to just have one type of discus (just striated, or just solids, or...??

I know part of this is personal taste but what do you think/recommend?

Pictures would be nice/helpful :)


Thanks

[Skip]

hey.. if you can find 1 strain.. and not want anyothers.. you are the man!!

IMHO.. there are just TOO MANY STRAINS that i want.. so i go with a mixed tank.. right now, i have Blue Diamond, Pigeon Blood/checkerboard, brilliant Turq.

plus growing out Leopard Snake Skin, Brillian Turq. Flachxsnake skin juvies.. and 1 santarem/virgin red cross (my fav)

i want to pick up some Fire Reds, Alenquer & Santarem, maybe a couple of fish from Kenny(some kind of yellows)

the only reason i would have a tank full of the same, is to have get breeding pairs together to keep the line going....

goodl luck

:angel:

[ltd]

Well, I was hoping somebody could convince me that a tank with just one type of discus would look nice. I know what are you talking about, it seems very difficult (if not impossible) to just have one type/strain, there are so many beautiful strain out there that how could you stay with just one:D

But let's see what others have to say, maybe I get convinced about just having one strain or go for a mixed tank.

I just want my tank to look nice, to have a smooth contrast among the discus I put in there. I won't like to have too much of a contrast by having strains that their pattern (spotted, striated, solid, etc) don't seem to look nice when putted together. By this I mean that, if I look at the tank, I won't be saying: that discus or this discus doesn't belong there, doesn't look nice mixed with the others, it kind of doesn't match with the others :mad:, if you know what I mean...

[Skip]

as long as your happy, cuz you will see them everyday...

if others want say what goes in your tank.. then THEY can PAY for it!!

OR you could get SEVERAL TANKS with single strain!! :D

ps.. i too have wondered this.. and want to see what others say.. :argue:

[ltd]

[QUOTE=

OR you could get SEVERAL TANKS with single strain!! :D
[/QUOTE]


I knew somebody was going to say this. It's was a good one warlock :D

I feel better now knowing there are more people that have wondered this... Let's continue to see what people say.

[Discus master]

I would like to ask you, based on your general taste and/or experience:

Would a tank mixed with spotted, striated, and solid discus look good at all?? Or would it be better to just have one type of discus (just striated, or just solids, or...??

I know part of this is personal taste but what do you think/recommend?

Pictures would be nice/helpful :)


Thanks

yeah I have 8 all bu two are the same,, I am sure a tank with nothing but red turqs or snake skins or pb's would be cool but I like a sampling of as many cool looking ones I can fit into my tank like I said I have 8 all but two are diferent and when I up grade I will get a few more diferent types as well.

Now if you are talking wilds then yes I have seen a lot of people go with one particular type but if they are domestics then normally peopl get all diferent kinds. My tank is like an explosion of color it awsome. and yes its a matter of opinoin ans likes are whatever. If you go with 6 or so of one type make sure its a type that you absolutely love

[mathao]

i have a tank with only red turq's and to me it looks really nice.

[Discus master]

Yeah and I have seen a group of wilds together and that looks really nice, but what about finding discus strains that compliment each other like stay with the darker blues like Blue Diamonds, and Blue Turqs and Blue Snake skins or go with the redish group or red turqs and PB's red Snake skins. See you can still have diferent strains but viually they will all be some shade of one color and that would probably look really nice!

[discuspaul]

itd
You've probably seen it, but if not, have a look @ the sticky re: aquascape critique, under Plants/Show Tanks - 2nd posting by nornicle.
Displays his planted tank with red alenquers - looks great with one species of reds against the green plants, etc.
I'm got a low-tech, lightly planted tank with white silica pool filter sand & some driftwood, and am looking for a half dozen 'scarlet' spotted, or 'crimsom' spotted discus, which I think would make a stunning color combo.
Haven't found any here in Canada or U.S. by searching, but believe they are available from Chai's discus in Singapore (Chai Koon Seng) - chaidiscus.com.sg - who has bred them. They are a 'hot pink' type of color (true red/lilac) with eruption spotting - gorgeous, imo.

[discuspaul]

Also, if any of you are interested in having a look at these gorgeous discus, have a gander here:
www.aquariumhobbyist.com/discus/showcase/chaikoonseng
see 5th row of this gallery.

[Jennie]

Well, I would consider what you think may or may not happen down the road. Do you think you will be satisfied with a one strain tank and not want other strains or do you find yourself liking multiple strains? I have a mixed tank. It looks great. I've seen members with one strain tanks, those look great also. I also have a blues tank which will be mixed blue strains in a few months. It's up to you what you think you want!

[Tito]

Simple.

A one strain tank will simply look more realistic and natural. One strain tanks look amazing especially when the aquascaping is done right be it planted or zen like. My plan is to have a 125 gallon full of Red Spotted Leopards. This dilemma is not exclusive to Discus tanks but all tanks. Aquariums qith mixed strain of any type of fish tend to look like a community tank. While single strain tanks tend to look more biotope.

They all look great but it all depends on what you like.

[ChrisNif]

I'm planning on 12 total fish in my 180 gallon, and I'm planning on 3 groups of 4...I am strongly leaning towards Wattley's Hi Fin Coerulea, high fin diamond, and likely blue snakeskin. There is also the consideration of "more natural" looking fish, like Red Spotted Green, Royal blues, etc. I'm not a big fan of most the strains that came about as and after I left the discus hobby, i.e. panda, pigeon blood, marlboro red, etc...

[Jennie]

There you have it:)

[snowflake311]

Sure it would look nice them all the same. But variety is the spice of life. I think it's much more fun to have a mix. A tank of all the same could look great but much like a house with all white furniture can look clean and sleek.

I thought about getting all the same kinds but then thought that's not fun.

[kent1963]

Obviously this is just personal preference, but I think one strain tanks look vastly superior. If not one strain then at least similar strains/colors. So if the tank is only for display thats the way I would go. In the real world however tank space is often dear and if their compadable... in they go .;)

[DiscusBR]

Simple.

A one strain tank will simply look more realistic and natural. One strain tanks look amazing especially when the aquascaping is done right be it planted or zen like. My plan is to have a 125 gallon full of Red Spotted Leopards. This dilemma is not exclusive to Discus tanks but all tanks. Aquariums qith mixed strain of any type of fish tend to look like a community tank. While single strain tanks tend to look more biotope.

They all look great but it all depends on what you like.

+1

[lpiasente]

For me personally I love colour so in my house there was only one choice, a big bunch of mixed lollies and it looks fantastic. I think I would get bored with just one strain although I have loved the look of some single strain tanks on here

[wadewc]

I have three tanks with a variety of different colors. [Solid and straited.] Feeding these tanks with color enhance food caused the yellows to have a orange tint. I have one tank with nothing but whites. [albino snow whites and snow whites.] Whites are my favorite so I have them all in one tank. Good luck on your choices.

Wade

[Jhhnn]

I also like a tank with just one variety of discus. It just seems more natural. OTOH, it's good when there's enough difference that each individual is easily identifiable. My blue scorps are like that, although I don't think they're a true strain but rather a cross, SSxBD.

There are other reasons for single variety schools, particularly for beginners. I'm still a beginner, even though I've kept discus off and on for over 30 years, having recently returned in April of 2009.

That's when I acquired the scorps from Kenny as 4" fish. They were uniform in size, and they've grown at nearly the same rate, with 2 of 8 becoming somewhat larger. They're siblings from the same clutch of eggs, and have spent their entire lives together, so they had their pecking order mostly sorted out when they arrived. Nobody gets seriously bullied. I figure if any of them got sick that I'd have a basis of comparison so as to notice it more quickly. Quarantine was unnecessary, as they were the only live fish in the house when they arrived.

That worked so well that I acquired another group from Kenny, RSxAF, gave them their own tank, too.

My third venture with a second hand purchase of a group of Forrest's wild crosses hasn't been as good- they really haven't been right since I received them, but that's another story entirely.

I think my earliest experiences with discus shaped the whole single variety school idea. In the local pet shops, I'd seen discus several times as single specimens or maybe 3 at a time, and was unimpressed. In retrospect, these fish weren't really healthy, and it showed. Then, in 1975, I encountered a school of 6 wild browns in a large tank that the elderly owner of an out of the way fish shop kept as his pets. They were big and magnificent- golden brown, black halos, electric blue highlights, and they were obviously active and healthy- nudging, nipping, chasing, goofing on each other, begging for food- the way healthy adult discus should act. I went back many times, even got to help change water a couple of times. It felt like a privilege.

I don't think a tank of mixed varieties could possibly make the same impression...

[csarkar001]

i like the potpourri effect of having lots of strains. but my biggest problem with this arrangement is that the strains all tend to grow at different rates. (for example, the pidgeon bloods always seem to grow the fastest).

so if you start with 2" juvies, as i often do. you end up with all different sizes within a few months. and then the big ones tend to stunt the small ones.

but if you buy adults, this is much less likely to be an issue.

just my experience.

[3dees]

I'm not a big fan of mixed strains, but hey whatever floats your boat. for wilds or biotopes then a single strain is a must. I think a planted tank with all blues is a sight to behold. in the end it's you who has to be happy.

[Melissa]

Quote:
Originally Posted by Tito
Simple.

A one strain tank will simply look more realistic and natural. One strain tanks look amazing especially when the aquascaping is done right be it planted or zen like. My plan is to have a 125 gallon full of Red Spotted Leopards. This dilemma is not exclusive to Discus tanks but all tanks. Aquariums qith mixed strain of any type of fish tend to look like a community tank. While single strain tanks tend to look more biotope.

They all look great but it all depends on what you like.

+1

+1!!!!

*drools* Spotted leopards..................
:p