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Thread: Paul's 1st discus tank

  1. #31
    Homesteader Paul Sabucchi's Avatar
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    Default Re: Paul's 1st discus tank

    Thanks for the advice, I am going to strip the bark to avoid problems but as I felled the tree only 2 months ago the bark is still really tough to remove (any tips welcome), I will leave the branch to "bake" through the hopefully long hot Italian summer and see if it comes off, I know that it comes off easy from oak left a couple of years and I have been advised anyway to put as little as possible in the way of decor untill the fish are grown (as I am planning to grow out juvies it will take at least 18 months). Eventually I would like to have some epiphitic plants (Bucephalandra?) to provide foliage on the topmost branches of the "tree" and just a thin layer of amber sand on the bottom but tempted as I am by the pursuit of an aesthetically pleasing tank I do not want to compromise the correct growth of the fish by prematurely placing in the tank items that get in the way of keeping a clean tank and pristine water conditions. I really value all the information and advice from this forum, thank you again to everyone!

  2. #32
    Homesteader Paul Sabucchi's Avatar
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    Default Re: Paul's 1st discus tank

    Hi, I had ordered for this 100 gal tank a 300w Schego Titanium heater but there is a problem with supply so only 250w or 600w available. So optoins were either 2x250 or 1x600. I went for the 600w, thinking that these heaters are supposed to be as reliable as it gets I din't need the redundancy of having 2 heaters in the tank and the extra juice may help if I need to bump up the temperature. I am happy with the setup I have in other tanks with an STC 1000 and an Inkbird 308 for extra safety (and the audible allarms)

  3. #33
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    Default Re: Paul's 1st discus tank

    Did you decide which route to go with the fish?

  4. #34
    Homesteader Paul Sabucchi's Avatar
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    Default Re: Paul's 1st discus tank

    Decided to stick to the original plan and wait for my 50th birthday in February to get the fish. I am really looking forward to enjoying these fish and would rather take my time, dot my T's and cross my I's and try to avoid major screw-ups.
    Now that Penazzi is not breeding anymore I still have the breeder an hour or so drive away. In the photo are two of the breeding pairs he is giving away so hopefully the ones he is keeping should be better. In the mean time I keep looking around for other options
    Unfortunately the other really good breeder (SG discus) is in Milan - at least 12hour round drive and I can't be absent for that long. They do ship to some shops within range but I would like to see what I am getting.
    In the mean time with the heater I should be getting a large sponge filter to use as prefilter and some Bucephalandra plants that I will start growing out in (one or two -if I decide to try emersed as well) separate 10g tanks, this way by the time the fish are fully grown and I can put my oak in I may have enough plants to give it a bit of a canopy. I still have to get a 60gal bin to age the water and a few yards of hose to make water changes as easy as possible (my veggie plot next spring/summer will be watered like never before!).
    In the mean time I keep following the forum to learn as much as possible.
    Kind regards
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  5. #35
    Homesteader Paul Sabucchi's Avatar
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    Default Re: Paul's 1st discus tank

    Goodies arrived! Happy with the german titanium heater and big filter sponge but absolutely chuffed with the two Buce plants, so much growth on them for such slow growing plants, and for a measily 3.50 euros each! Will rig up a small tank with blue/red plant growth LEDs, a small pump for water movement and plenty of NPK ferts. Pity I don't use CO2 in any of my tanks otherwise I could probably speed growth up a bit (may try some liquid carbon).
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  6. #36
    Homesteader Filip's Avatar
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    Default Re: Paul's 1st discus tank

    Great purchase Paul .
    I gues you can boil a soup or a coffie with this 600w heater if you like to . .
    Where did you order this heater and the Buces ?
    Did the buces survived the long shipping without any damage ?

    About your plant growing tank I advice you to make a simple yeast bottle CO2 injection .
    It is very easy to be made , and it helps a lot compared to a non co2 pumped plant growth .
    If you are too lazy to DIY you can order this cheap bottle caps for yeast Co2 from EBay :

    http://m.ebay.com/itm/DIY-CO2-System...%257Ciid%253A1


    Having separate tank made especially for plant growth is my long desire too .But unfortunately I lack space in my apartment , as well as permits from my wife for another tank in our apartment .

    Growing them well with NPK and Co2, potted in a rich nutrient soil pots ,and have them ready to use for my discus display tank would be my plan , if I ever have my plant growing tank .
    Well cared , deeply rooted in rich soil ,and potted plant is much more resistant for discus tanks , than just buying a plant from a LFS and half way killing it with bleach prior its use .
    Last edited by Filip; 05-26-2017 at 04:35 AM.

  7. #37
    Homesteader Paul Sabucchi's Avatar
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    Default Re: Paul's 1st discus tank

    Really impressed by the Schego heater, you are right it is solid as a military grade weapon and if my electric kettle ever breaks I will have no problem boiling some water for a cup of tea! (not having a built in thermostat you need to get an Inkbird 308 or an STC 1000 temperature controller) I get most of my stuff here in Italy from Aquariumline, probably best online retailer in this country. They only have two vaieties of Bucephalandra but there are many more (this post is by a chap -I think he is Polish- who has/imports/possibly sells most varieties of Bucephalandra you never even knew existed https://www.ukaps.org/forum/threads/...-in-one.26970/ ). Ciao

  8. #38
    Homesteader Paul Sabucchi's Avatar
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    Default Re: Paul's 1st discus tank

    Over the last few weeks I have been narrowing down the choice of strain (pigeon checkerboard and red melon, 6 of each about 4") and the search for suppliers of top quality fish over here in Italy and now that Francesco Penazzi has wound down his fishroom it seems to leave 3 professional breeders, 2 near Naples (Gennaro Nuzzo and AquariumAngri) and 1 near Milan, SG Discus (probably one of the top breeders in Europe) here is a video of their facility https://youtu.be/MAuOWWT0UEE if you can stay awake through the first part about air pumps, heat exchangers and r/o systems once you get to the fish it gets interesting. They do not sell direct to the public so I'll go through a shop in Milan (that also gives the choice of discus imported from NaDiscus in Asia), they overnight the fish sending them at 5 p.m.,I should then be able to collect them from my local courrier depo the following morning at 8. They swear by their packaging but just the same I will not wait for my birthday in February but get the fish around the 2nd half of September when the weather should grant warm but not scoarching temperature. For this reason I have started the fishless cycle seeding the media with (Prodibio Biodigest) starter coultures, ammonia and a pinch of Amminovita P (aminoacids, nucleic acids and vitamins I normally give to my CR shrimp) hoping to speed up things without risking potential pathogens. As the tank is going to be left BB at least until the fish are grown for now there is not a lot left to do, just tinkering with the lighting the bulk of which is from 2x1 meter 3560 x 6000k LED bars while colour hue can be tweaked by 3x90cm 5050 rgb LED bars, all controlled by a TC420 that will also do the timing, dimming, dawn and dusk effects.

  9. #39
    Homesteader Filip's Avatar
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    Default Re: Paul's 1st discus tank

    Great news Paul. You'll have your discus in less than 2 months . Enough time to get started with your tank and establish a Bacteria colony in your filters . Just don't forget to feed the colonies with ammonia or food until then.

    At the end of the SG video I saw some stunning looking Red melons and Checkers in a same tank and they look great together as a combo.
    Some high quality fish and facility they have there .A very good place to buy discus from Paul.
    I would drive to hand pick mine I I were you though , Napoli - Milano is not a big distance for choosing your own discus .

  10. #40
    Homesteader Paul Sabucchi's Avatar
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    Default Re: Paul's 1st discus tank

    Problem is SG does not sell direct to the public anyway, you have to go through one of their retailers and I will probably go with the specialist one in Milan (discus is 90%of their turnover) who would overnight - not the cheapest but probably the most reliable. Even if I could go myself to SG from where I live (other side of the boot from naples) it would be a 12 hour round trip and I can't leave all my animals for that long so I will have to do the next best thing and use a retailer with good reputation. Ciao

  11. #41
    Homesteader Paul Sabucchi's Avatar
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    Default Re: Paul's 1st discus tank

    Ok, the 100gal BB tank is cycled and more or less ready, filtration is by a Fluvall 306 with a large sponge filter in the tank as prefilter, all plumbed to ease wc just by turning a few taps and switching on the pump from the aging barrel. Heating is by a 600w Schego titanium heater controlled by an Inkbird 308 and an STC 1000 for redundancy. Lighting is by 2x cool white and 3xrgb LED strips controlled through a TC420 (set at no more than 8% of max power for now). Thinking of ordering the fish 2nd half of September for temperatures safer for shipping, most likely from a specialized retailer in Milan (The Royal Discus), that only stocks italian fish from SG or Malaysian from NaDiscus. Will be getting SG bred 2.5" red melons and pigeon checkerboard or roadmap. I have a few questions:
    1)Should I order 12 in case one or two will need culling as they grow?
    2)During growout is it adviseable to keep the tank with only about 60 gal of water in so easier to change a greater % with daily wc (my ageing barrel holds 60 gal + I have another 30 gal)?
    3) What size food granules best to order for that size juvies: 1 or 2mm? Thinking of getting Northfin Krill and sone Cichlid formula + some of whatever they have been fed by breeder/retailer.
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  12. #42
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    Default Re: Paul's 1st discus tank

    It sounds like you have everything planed and set very well Poly . I'm looking forward seeing your high quality SG discus swimming in your tank.

    At 2.5 inch they will be so tiny and small that you can easily keep them in 40-50 gallons or % of your 100 Gallon tank for the first 2 -3 months to change water more frequent an easily .
    About numbers , Yes I would def. start with 12-14 pieces in order to select the best 8-10 for the long run . Be prepared to end up with 2-4 runts out of your batch .

    About the food I would Def. start with the smaller grain 1 mm granules -and fed them presoaked and i wouldn't save money to buy a bulk of ther breeders original growing food because they may take some time until they transfer to other food types .

  13. #43
    Registered Member Jenene's Avatar
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    Default Re: Paul's 1st discus tank

    Wow Paul, this has been quite the work in progress. I had no idea I missed so much of this thread. I thought I had subscribed and will do so now but it was fun catching up on it.

    You are so patient and methodical in your planning. I can't wait to see fish in there. You must be really excited knowing how close you finally are.
    There is nothing more exciting than getting your discus. I remember the feeling so well. Your time is almost here Paul!
    "You can't trust water: Even a straight stick turns crooked in it." -W.C.Fields

  14. #44
    Homesteader Paul Sabucchi's Avatar
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    Default Re: Paul's 1st discus tank

    Thanks, it has been a bit of a slow burner but I have plenty of other tanks and a goldfish pond to keep me entertained. On the other hand over the years I have come to appreciate the process of sifting through information to set up a tank avoiding rookie mistakes. This is where forums such as this are invaluable with their cumulated wealth of experience. You are right I am counting the days to when I get my fish but I will have to bid my time as the temperature is going back up to the high 90's. It has been a long hot summer, early June I had some fish overnighted, they were shipped in the afternoon and got here middle of the morning next day but all Dicrossus were poached. Would love to be able to go to Milan and pick the fish myself but a 600 mile roud trip is not feasable. At least the retailer should be reliable. Stocking up on lesser bits and bobs (need to order some Northfin food and some wormers) and I should be all set. As always I am very appreciative of all the goodwill from all the discus keepers on the forum. Ciao e grazie

  15. #45
    Registered Member Jenene's Avatar
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    Default Re: Paul's 1st discus tank

    You are very smart about taking your time setting up. This forum has taught me so much but more than anything is the lesson of patience. It's not an easy one, but it really pays off in the long run. I am learning. This forum is not only wonderful for discus but also helped me start a reef tank. I found a lot of advice and support here. I gave up on the reef forums. They are much too big and impersonal. Love the friendly atmosphere here.

    You are on an amazing journey here. Thank you for letting us join you. (-;
    "You can't trust water: Even a straight stick turns crooked in it." -W.C.Fields

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