new to discus hobby

Hello all;
I am new to keeping discus fish, my current experience is with reef tanks and saltwater fish, but I am thinking on getting into the discus fish hobby.
I have read some material about keeping discus especially the water quality but what I don't seem to find is the tank filtration setup.
What is the most successful or I might say common tank filtration setup?
sump or no sump? ETC
I will like some opinions from anyone that wants to share their setup.
I am planning to have a 90 gallon tank but as of now I don't have a freshwater tank setup, but I learned that patience pay offs and once I know enough I can start planning for a good sound tank setup for the discus.

Thanks in advance. :)

Hi Felix, welcome!

There is not really a best way here. You’ll get all kinds of passionate answers. I’ll tell you what I chose and why. You’ll see the other replies and then you can decide what will work for you. I also have a reef tank by the way. Discus came first. Then I decided to try my hand at reef. A little over a year in on that one now. But I digress..

I had a community tank before the Discus and I had a canister filter. They work great. I have nothing against them. However my personality is... out of sight, out of mind. Those things can sure look clean on the outside!!!! :eek: On the inside, without regular maintenance they become nitrate factories. My poor community fish were the hardiest creatures ever. I knew I needed the Discus dirt to stare me in the face. I needed to be able to see the nasty stuff. Also knowing by the time you see it, it’s already too dirty. The sump is by far... for me... the easiest solution for filtration. You can just reach right in there. My tank is a 75 gallon cornerflow with a 20 gallon eshopps sump. I wouldn’t go with that brand again just by how it’s set up but it does the job. Others will have very good points on their methods. You will learn the pros and cons of each and be able to make an educated decision for your situation.

You can also check out the water works section. Should be tons of useful info there..
http://forum.simplydiscus.com/forumd...35-Water-Works

Read as much as you can. Years and years of experience in this forum. It’s the perfect place to be for learning and exchanging ideas about Discus and anything else under the sun.. Blue cheese, beer and cats seem to be popular lately... ;)

You have the right attitude about patience. Good clean water and good stock will set you up for success.

Enjoy and welcome to this big crazy family!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by fdcatano

What is the most successful or I might say common tank filtration setup?

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Daily siphoning and water changes. After that, it's personal preference but no amount of filtration will replace water changes.

Discus pro don’t filter, they man up WC!

Jk aside ppl around here run sponge filter +100% daily wc... so,,,

Quote:

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Originally Posted by fdcatano

Hello all;
I am new to keeping discus fish, my current experience is with reef tanks and saltwater fish, but I am thinking on getting into the discus fish hobby.
I have read some material about keeping discus especially the water quality but what I don't seem to find is the tank filtration setup.
What is the most successful or I might say common tank filtration setup?
sump or no sump? ETC
I will like some opinions from anyone that wants to share their setup.
I am planning to have a 90 gallon tank but as of now I don't have a freshwater tank setup, but I learned that patience pay offs and once I know enough I can start planning for a good sound tank setup for the discus.

Thanks in advance. :)

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Hi Felix and welcome to Simply. Filtration for a discus tank is really no different then for any aquarium. It is really up to the discus keeper and what they are familiar and/or comfortable with. The thing that is different with discus is their need for clean water. I do suggest you visit the beginners section and do some reading. Check out the stickies and ask questions. We want you to be successful with discus :)
Pat

Thanks Jenene, I am getting the feel of what's needed the only thing in my mind right now is that the tank needs biological filtration, correct? in that aspect what exactly is it used in this hobby?
Bio-balls,ceramic, refuge, canister, chemi pure blocks, activated carbon?
I am trying to the get the picture in my mind of what is the basic discus tank should look like.
thanks for all the advice.

I just started in discus a few months ago I went with a sump and love it it’s easy to maintain and keep clean . I do a little over 50% daily water changes and clean and alternate sock filters every 2 days and clean my sponges and filter floss every month or 2 just to get the bigger stuff out . I also wipe out tank with paper towel every day and Syphon bottom of tank to get the waist of the bottom

Attachment 116388this is my sump

Quote:

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Originally Posted by snxtif

Discus pro don’t filter, they man up WC!

Jk aside ppl around here run sponge filter +100% daily wc... so,,,

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2 thumbs up:):)

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Kfactor

I just started in discus a few months ago I went with a sump and love it it’s easy to maintain and keep clean . I do a little over 50% daily water changes and clean and alternate sock filters every 2 days and clean my sponges and filter floss every month or 2 just to get the bigger stuff out . I also wipe out tank with paper towel every day and Syphon bottom of tank to get the waist of the bottom

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That’s one nice sump!
Patty

Thanks I built my new setup I love having the sump area as nice as the tank or try too .