Completely new to discus, any tips?

[Christople]

Hi all, first post and I'm wondering if German blue rams are good companions to discus fish. Also any tips would be welcome, size of tank, food, temp, and anything in general. I also have successfully kept and bred P. Taeniatus, Microgeophagus Ramzeri, P. Pulcher and am a fairly experienced aquarist, just looking for something new.

[discus day]

55g bare minimu for a group of 5-6 but more is better. since its your first time i would start with 4"+ discus. temp should be 80+ ideally 84-86 but 82 is also fine. rams makes wonderful tankmate for your discus. cant coment on food as im still trying to figure that out myself. but i been feeding beefhearts and flakes and they been doin well so far.

for me as a begginer i would recomend a 75g with 6 discus at sie 4"+ and no tankmate until you have some experience with discus first

[TNT77]

Lots of info to read.
http://forum.simplydiscus.com/showthread.php?28937-How-do-I-set-up-my-first-discus-tank
http://forum.simplydiscus.com/showthread.php?27180-Beginners-Information-Index
http://forum.simplydiscus.com/showthread.php?46982-What-not-to-buy

[Christople]

I planned on getting a 75 off craigslist, and I'm afraid I can only afford 2-3 inch fish for at my LFS 4+ inch fish are 80+ dollars compared to 30 for the juvies, I might look into a local breeder but no idea where to look for them

[roclement]

Get out now while you can! Discus are addictive...you were warned! :)

Welcome and good luck!

Rodrigo

[Bud]

Check out the sponcers list to see whos closest.Worth decent road trip.IMO

[TNT77]

Get out now while you can! Discus are addictive...you were warned! :)

Welcome and good luck!

Rodrigo
+1 Very true Rod. Once you get sucked into the vortex there is no escape lol.

[Christople]

Thank you for the helpful links TNT

[Chicago Discus]

+1 Very true Rod. Once you get sucked into the vortex there is no escape lol.
I'm not addicted

[TNT77]

I'm not addicted
Are you? Lol tell me then when was the last time you ordered more fish? :p

[Chicago Discus]

Are you? Lol tell me then when was the last time you ordered more fish? :p
Today LOL

[TNT77]

Today LOL
I WIN! :D

[BoiseDiscusGuy]

I'm not addicted
We can quit anytime we want, huh? Lol...

[Larry Bugg]

I planned on getting a 75 off craigslist, and I'm afraid I can only afford 2-3 inch fish for at my LFS 4+ inch fish are 80+ dollars compared to 30 for the juvies, I might look into a local breeder but no idea where to look for them

Most here will give you a strong reccomendation to not buy from a LFS. The quality will not compare and the price won't either. Where do you live? Either find a local breeder or buy from one of the sponsors on Simply. The reccomendation to buy 4" vs the 2"/3" is because it takes a lot of work to grow out discus from that size. The 75 gallon is perfect for a first discus tank. The 18" debth is great. You will want to go bare bottom until you have them grown out. It will simplify the work and the discus will appreciate it. The two biggest keys to growing out discus is CLEAN WATER and lots of good food. You should be doing daily water changes on them while they are that size. GBR's make excellent tank mates. I keep most of my tanks at 82.

[Sean Buehrle]

I suggest you don't have any tank mates, just the discus you purchased from one supplier.

Up to you.

[Christople]

Portland Oregon is where I live, how much do the 4+ inch discus cost by Simply's discus cost?

[ShinShin]

BUY a few books on discus written by some of the masters. Jack Wattley's books are dated but still relevant if you want to succeed. Discus are discus. What worked for him still works today. I know. I use his ideas. Two good ones are "Discus for the Perfectionist" and The Discus Handbook. Dick Au has a good book for new people - Discus, Back to Nature. Jim Quarels two books as well work. Yeng's "Penang Discus". There are others but these are good how to books.

Get a disease book. Dieter Untergasser has 2 - Discus Health and Handbook of Fish Diseases.

It is important to read and learn. A big mistake many new people make is to depend on people on the internet to raise their fish for them. Most of these people fail. There is good advice on the forums, but lots of bad as well.

Don't buy on impulse. Look at what is available from some of the sponsors here. Get them all at once if you can (from the same place). This is important if you are new to discus.

Mat


BTW, if you aren't willing to change a lot of water and other time consuming chores, forget it. Asd Jack Wattley say - you have to make up your mind if you want to raise discus or watch TV.

[Christople]

I am willing to do the water changes and my lfs looks as if the discus are nice and healthy, is the shipping cost of 70 dollars good and should I start with a a bare bottom if I get juvies. If the difference is their immune system really that different from 3 inches to 4 inches? So different that I would have to do a bare bottom tank?

I will try and go to my lfs this weekend to see if they know of any local breeders.

[Jennie]

your number one tip is dedication.

[Larry Bugg]

I am willing to do the water changes and my lfs looks as if the discus are nice and healthy, is the shipping cost of 70 dollars good and should I start with a a bare bottom if I get juvies. If the difference is their immune system really that different from 3 inches to 4 inches? So different that I would have to do a bare bottom tank?

I will try and go to my lfs this weekend to see if they know of any local breeders.

Not very likely your lfs will tell you about local breeders. Not good for their business.

[Christople]

Well I talked to kenny's discus and like the lay of the land. When I get the tank up I will buy one of his packages with six discus and free shipping and then maybe get two more to add on and also get free shipping.

[Christople]

Is say an ehiem filter rated appropriately good enough for the tank or if I can find one with a sump cough up a bit more for it. Is eight discus in a 55 too much or is it okay, and any tips on breeding discus

[Orange Crush]

Not very likely your lfs will tell you about local breeders. Not good for their business.
Mine did! A good business will tell you but if they wont then either they do not know or they know their stuff is not as good as other local breeders in which case I would no longer shop there. When your stuff is as good or better than everyone elses your customers will come back to you even when you told them where else to go.

That said I would buy from one of the sponsers on this forum, they have been vetted.

$70 for shipping is a great deal.

[Orange Crush]

Well I talked to kenny's discus and like the lay of the land. When I get the tank up I will buy one of his packages with six discus and free shipping and then maybe get two more to add on and also get free shipping.
Kenny is one of the best for sure, I bought my discus from him. He is a great guy too!
When you buy your discus just make sure to QT them and do not mix discus from different places without QTing them seperatley. Unless you are very strict with QT protocol it is best to get all of the discus from one place at the same time to be safe.

[Orange Crush]

Is say an ehiem filter rated appropriately good enough for the tank or if I can find one with a sump cough up a bit more for it. Is eight discus in a 55 too much or is it okay, and any tips on breeding discus
Slow down a bit, learn the basics of caring for discus. Once you are able to consistantly give them the proper care and environment they will let you know when they are ready to breed. One thing at a time padawan!

[Christople]

The discus/ rams would be the first inhabitants of the tank so why QT them, I could QT them and probably will the rams because can't be sure when I will see some I deem worthy enough for discus.

Would a UV light placed in-line or shining in the filter help sith diseases, ich would be very uncommon in 84 degree water and is feeding the n ewly bought discus a puree of garlic good to get rid of parasites

[Skip]

The discus/ rams would be the first inhabitants of the tank so why QT them, I could QT them and probably will the rams because can't be sure when I will see some I deem worthy enough for discus.

are the RAM and the DISCUS coming from the Source?!!?

if not.. you need to QT them.. anything new, needs to always be QT

[Christople]

two different places but I just thought that I'd get the discus the very next day I order so then I could get the rams at the same.

[Skip]

two different places but I just thought that I'd get the discus the very next day I order so then I could get the rams at the same.

you need to research QT (quarantine) of new fish from Existing fish... mixing fish from different sources.. could be disastrous...

[Skip]

http://forum.simplydiscus.com/showthread.php?21044-Quarantine-*questions...

[applekrate]

Is say an ehiem filter rated appropriately good enough for the tank or if I can find one with a sump cough up a bit more for it. Is eight discus in a 55 too much or is it okay, and any tips on breeding discus

I did a ton of research on filters and I went with the eheim "classic" for my situation and tank. I would look to see if it will work for your tank. Mine is very quiet,-can't hear it running. The directions for set up leave a lot to be desired so you could possibly run into a few snags in the begining. I like mine though.

[SeaDragon]

I have a Ehiem pro 3 on my 90gal, it's been nice enough but also a pain at times. It's head has broken twice, luckally with a bit of time on the phone Ehiem replaced them. it can be a bit touchy if you have to turn it off when doing WC. But the ehiems as a brand have been fairly nice.
Though if your going to do a BB tank, I'd say just do some sponge filters and more WC's.


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[Christople]

Okay thanks for all the info, and sorry for the late reply. I have no idea how to subscribe to a thread, can anyone tell me how?

[Orange Crush]

Okay thanks for all the info, and sorry for the late reply. I have no idea how to subscribe to a thread, can anyone tell me how?
When you are on the page of a thread you want to subscribe to at the top you will find the words "thread tools" click on it and on its drop down menu click on "subscribe".
If you want to put it into subcatagorized folders go to your "settings" on the very top of any page and on the left there is a box that says "my messages" in that box click on "edit folders" from there you can create folders and give them whatever title you want like "food" or "water". hth! :)

[Christople]

All right thanks, would growing out discus and ram fry together be a problem?

[gerrard00]

I have a Ehiem pro 3 on my 90gal, it's been nice enough but also a pain at times. It's head has broken twice, luckally with a bit of time on the phone Ehiem replaced them. it can be a bit touchy if you have to turn it off when doing WC. But the ehiems as a brand have been fairly nice.
Though if your going to do a BB tank, I'd say just do some sponge filters and more WC's.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I've had two shutoff levers break on my pro 3. The first time, they were very polite and shipped a new head out to my LFS with no questions asked. The second time, I had to go to the LFS where I purchased the filter to get proof of purchase, I had to call multiple times to get any response and then the guy at customer support chided me for doing daily water changes and told me that the shutoff lever was intended to be used only once a month or so. Instead of giving me a new head, they only sent the shutoff lever without any repair instructions. I had to go to the hardware store to buy special tools to repair the thing. Once I did, it became clear why it keeps breaking. There's basically two pieces of plastic that rub each other. It's really hard for me to understand why such an expensive piece of equipment can't be made with slightly more expensive and durable parts. At this point, I just unplug the filter instead of using the shutoff lever.

The filter works great and it's super quiet, but I have to say that I'm ambivalent at best about this purchase.

Sorry to hijack the thread! I was just glad to see that it's not only me who has had trouble with them.

[applekrate]

gerrard00-

I also read similar stuff on the pro models. Overall, I heard good things about Eheim as a brand so I went with the classic. Its a simple design and the classic model has been out there for a while. I didn't find to much negative press on the classic but I might have missed it. Although, you have me thinking on the daily WC and the shut off valve....
When you say shut off valve do you mean the quick release valves? Or maybe the pro has a completely different set up than the classic. I don't shut the quick release valves off to WC so Im wondering if Im suppose to or if just turning it off and on is a no go.

[Christople]

Can I keep ram fry with my discus fry?

[gerrard00]

gerrard00-

I also read similar stuff on the pro models. Overall, I heard good things about Eheim as a brand so I went with the classic. Its a simple design and the classic model has been out there for a while. I didn't find to much negative press on the classic but I might have missed it. Although, you have me thinking on the daily WC and the shut off valve....
When you say shut off valve do you mean the quick release valves? Or maybe the pro has a completely different set up than the classic. I don't shut the quick release valves off to WC so Im wondering if Im suppose to or if just turning it off and on is a no go.

Sorry, I'm not familiar with the classic models. The pro models have a lever that can be used to stop the flow of water without having to unplug the filter or remove the hoses. I know a lot of people leave their filter running during water changes, but I figure I might as well give the siphon tube the chance to pick up detritus without competition from the filter. In my experience, that lever eventually stiffens and then can break. The system uses a plastic lever that runs along the top of another piece of plastic. Unfortunately, the fit isn't perfect.

[DerekFF]

You can always add in your own ball valve for a few dollars more from any hardware store

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[Christople]

Ram fry plus Discus fry?

[Orange Crush]

Sorry, I'm not familiar with the classic models. The pro models have a lever that can be used to stop the flow of water without having to unplug the filter or remove the hoses. I know a lot of people leave their filter running during water changes, but I figure I might as well give the siphon tube the chance to pick up detritus without competition from the filter. In my experience, that lever eventually stiffens and then can break. The system uses a plastic lever that runs along the top of another piece of plastic. Unfortunately, the fit isn't perfect.
Hey guys I think you should be discussing the filter issues elsewhere the OP has questions that are not being answered.
Christople I wish I could answer the question you have hopefully, someone will see this thread and respond to YOUR questions.

[applekrate]

Hey guys I think you should be discussing the filter issues elsewhere the OP has questions that are not being answered.
Christople I wish I could answer the question you have hopefully, someone will see this thread and respond to YOUR questions.

Already figured from post #41's repost of the same question. Thanks for the advice though. A new thread will be made if it becomes thread worthy.

[Christople]

So?

[SeaDragon]

Is say an ehiem filter rated appropriately good enough for the tank or if I can find one with a sump cough up a bit more for it. Is eight discus in a 55 too much or is it okay, and any tips on breeding discus

Yes eight discus for 55gal is a bit much. The normal rule is one adult discus per 10gal.
Then take it from us just try keeping them alive before try breeding them. If you get lucky they'll pair themselves up.
For filters I'd say go to Kensfish.com and check out his listing of canister filters, he has some of the more popular brands. Then if you think you find one you like you can do a little extra research.


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[Discus Origins]

Ram fry plus Discus fry?

Could be done but not ideal...growing out discus fry requires high protein/fat content food. Ram fry will be prone to bloat with the same food.

[Christople]

do you thing I could by a tank divider for a 38 gallon with two sponge filters but do seperate feedings?

[BiggDogg66]

Portland Oregon is where I live, how much do the 4+ inch discus cost by Simply's discus cost?

Here's a link to Simply Discus' forum and the pictures and prices of his latest sale. Hope this helps. Mike Beals is top notch and so are his fish!

http://forum.simplydiscus.com/showthread.php?94570-NEW-MARCH-2012-quot-FISHTRADEZONE-quot-SHIPMENT-IS-READY-TO-GO!!!!!