Discus Tank situation for adding fish to solve some issues

Hey everyone,

I have always referred to this forum for any doubts i have. But i have some specific situations and would love some advice from everyone here.

My Tank :
At this point i have a 150 Liter tank with 6 juvenile Discus, 1 Koi Betta and some yoyo loaches. Plants have have 2 anubias Nana, some java fern and moss around the tank. For substrate i have a mix of sand and gravel lightly scattered around.

Issues i am facing :
Malaysian Trumpet snails infestation (hence why i bought the YOYO Loaches)
Pretty high nitrate level in tank about 40 ppm (maybe because of the MTS infesation)
Algae growing pretty fast as well
Fish occasionally rub their sides on the wood i kept in the tank (because of this i do water changes everyday about 40% of the tank)

Questions :
1st ) is it a good idea to keen the yoyo loaches? i had 6 in and noticed the bigger ones going at the Discus , almost like sticking to the discus. i took 3 out and now i have 3 left(those 3 do not bother the discus)
2nd ) i am thinking of getting some catfish to solve the algae issue... would that be a good idea?
3rd ) Any other advice anyone could give to solve the MTS issue besides getting loaches?

I appreciate any help anyone is willing to offer, i have kept fish before from Koi, Asian Arowana, Red parrots, Gold fish and gourami , however this is the first time i am keeping discus but i havent yet settled at a happy state in the tank yet.

Cheers :)

Hi blackhawk and welcome .

Your problems are all connected with low maintenance and water quality and are easily soluble with just raising WCs and maintenance .

First off , get rid of those Yoyos ASAP because discus won't take their attacks much longer before they get week and sick .
Secondly , MTS heavy infestation is a sure sign that your bottom has too much leftover poop or food that needs to be siphoned daily . 40 PPM nitrates is another sign that you need to raise your WCs and maintenance and asking for trouble when it comes to discus health .
Either siphon out the sand and keep a BB tank or keep it frequently siphoned and clean of poop and debris .
Discus scratching is also related to sub par water quality.
Algae are also related with a nutrional disbalance and excess nitrates and phosphates in water column , so they should also die off once you start to keep the water quality on top and spotless .
They are also dependant of light , so lowering the light intensity and Photoperiod should weaken them too .

And finnaly your tank size is too small for that bioload and you should consider a bigger tank in near future if you want to keep a healthy batch of 6 discus in it .

Good luck and please send some photo and info about your tank and equipment .

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Filip

Hi blackhawk and welcome .

Your problems are all connected with low maintenance and water quality and are easily soluble with just raising WCs and maintenance .

Good luck and please send some photo and info about your tank and equipment .

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Hey Filip,

thanks a lot for the advice.

Yes i have removed the YOYO that were disturbing the discus, and 2 other to accompany so it's not alone. I left 3 in there that were fairly into their own things. However, if you reckon i should take them out as well, i guess i will. Maybe since if i am gonna try to go bare bottom, it's no point keeping them in that tank.

btw, i understand what you mean, and i have another 150L tank to move 2 or 3 discus into . I originally had 4 however to due fighting amongst themselves, i got another 2 (from the same fry). This solved the fighting issue. :)

For water change, as i mentioned above i do close to 50% everyday. Would twice a day improve it? I reckon however, if i make it bare bottom, it would be easier to syphon out the access poop, which is rather difficult with substrate at the bottom. How do ppl manage with planted thank? I would miss the (a e s t h e t i c) tho T.T . haha

As for what i have for filtration , i have a canister filer , Aquis 1200 by Aqua One. I leave the light turned on about 12 hours each day. I have a light for tropical condition (that's what the packaging said, another aqua one branded item).

Pictures are as shown below this :)
Attachment 114963Attachment 114964Attachment 114965

Hey Filip,

Thanks for the response :)

yeah, i got rid of the yoyo that was annoying the discus along with 2 other to keep it company. However i left 3 in the tank since they were more to themselves hunting for snails. BTW, getting them help the nitrate levels by a lot as it dropped from 80 PPM (i am surprised my discus are okay with this, i know its not healthy which is why i am trying to look for a solution). But since you recommended me to go for a BB tank i might do that and remove the YOYO completely as they prefer tanks with substrate. How to ppl who keep discus have a planted tank tho? its soo hard to siphon pool with substrate and other plants around. I am gonna miss the -a e s t h e t i c- T.T hahaha

As for my equipment.
- Canister Filter (Aqua One : Aquis 1200)
- Tropical Light (Aqua One)
- Air pump + airstone
- Heater , that stays at a constant 30 degrees Celsius

As for the tank's future.. i have another 150L tank which i was planning to move 2 or 3 of the discus into next year when they have grown a lil. I originally had 4.. but due to aggression amongst themselves i got another 2 from the same fry. That solved the aggression issue and now they are all goods.

Tank Pic:
Attachment 114966
Say hi to (from the left) Tiger, maze+tron, tiny, Blue and Dot... also Koi the betta (2 of the yoyo crew members are in the pic too)

Attachment 114967
Close pic of the discus in their tank (these pictures were taken today too, so i will send through pics after i do the BB change)

Also thanks for the advice , i'll try out BB... any advice on how to get into tanks with substrate?

Remove the YOYOs as they bother your discus and that can cause health issues on the long run .

You can't divide your discus in 2 small groups in 2 tanks because they should be kept as a minimum of 5-6 , otherwise aggression takes its toll , as you have already seen for your self.
So you'll nedd a one bigger tank , instead of this 2 you have right now . shoot for at least 60 gallon for a start.

Change your coarse pebbel gravel with a fine Pool filter sand and put only a thin layer just to cover the glass . that way you can still enjoy a sandy bottom and it would be still easier to siphon dirt from what you have at this moment .

I am amazed how can you have such big nitrate levels with daily 50% WC ?
You must check your filter media and substrate for collected dirt and keep them both regularly clean and in check .
Maybe you should cut down on your feeding too .How much and what do you feed ? Do you prevent your filter sucking in the food you pour in the tank ?
Whatever the problem is you must find it and fix it because discus won't take 80 Ppm nitrates much longer before their immune system gets weak .

BTW, You have a very nice looking group of discus with a lot of potential in them , and it would be shame not to get the best of their growth .

Check your source water for nitrate

If you can find them get assassin snails. I've battled an MTS issue and these guys keep it in check. Removing substrate will obviously make it possible to drastically reduce the MTS issue and the YOYO's might eradicate them if you go through a period of having a BB tank.

I used assasin snails in a different tank that was heavily infested and they solved the problem. Another benefit is once they kill off the bad snails, they eventually kill off each other so you don’t get infested with assasin snails.
Also, Filip is so right about removing substrate! I tried what I thought was a thin layer of sand and am currently treating some sick discus. When they say thin layer, they mean really really really thin. I’m back to bare bottom now and what a difference in the water!