Changes to my 40 gallon tank decoration with suggestions.

[dvsrk]

I have a 40 gallon tank with following, (eventually i'm going to upgrade to larger one)

two 2.5 inch turquoise, (4 weeks since introduced to the tank)
one 3.5 inch fiamma rosa, (2 weeks since introduced to the tank)
one 3.5 inch albino (2 weeks since introduced to the tank)
one 4.5 inch neon sapphire (yet to be delivered)

With above fish i have a ship wreck decor in my tank, whenever i go near to the tank for feeding they all go hide behind the decor & comes slowly out when I go off the tank.

1) I have seen online sources where discus becomes active and comes to the feeder nicely especially during feeding times. Will this take more time to see this in my tank? If so usually how long will it take?

2) I have seen some online sources where there are no decors in their tank with bare bottom & discus seems to do well without any hiding spots. Do i have to remove my decorations for few weeks & add them back once the discus are well adapted to my tank & its environment. I would also like to do this because it becomes easy for me to clean the uneaten food. Not sure if i can suddenly make this change to their environment(removing decorations) & how the fish are going to react with this change.

Some say they need hiding spots but some say its not mandatory. I'm confused with this...

I have observed they are eating well hanging out well when no one is near the tank.

Thanks

[Ryan925]

Discus can take time to settle. Then can be skittish until they get comfortable with their environment. My tank is in a very high traffic area. At first fast movements could spook them. After some time they rarely ever get spooked.

The bigger question would be are you able to maintain proper tank cleanliness and water quality, with your existing decor, to properly grow out your juvies. Do you have photos of your tank? Do you have substrate?

Your fish will very quickly outgrow that tank as well.

Also QT is extremely important

[dvsrk]

I have sand as a substrate with canister filter capacity of 75 GPH. Here is the picture after removing the decors... I will make 30% water changes every alternate day & 75% over the weekend by vacuuming bio waste.

IMG_2091.jpg

[Filip]

They do not need decorations to hide behind them IME.
They will learn not to be skittish and scared in time with or without decoration . Give them a month or two at worst , and they will come out on the front glass whenever you approach the tank .
They feel more secure in bigger numbers , 6 is considered their usual minimum .

Buying them one by one and from different vendors is a very risky practise , try avoiding it .

Put a prefilter sponge or floss on your canister intake and rinse it daily , to keep your filter clean of debris .

As Ryan already mentioned , you'll need a bigger tank very quickly .

[dvsrk]

Thank you Ryan & Filip. For sure I'm going to upgrade before they grow out.

[Phillydubs]

I agree with the other fellas above and you already got some good advice...

Tank looks good, I agree you will eventually need to upgrade but it will be fine for a bit to grow them and keep things clean and easy to maintain. The best recipe is good food and big water changes. Can you up you level of water changes, I feel your proposed plan is still too little...

The fish will come around, try not to act fast around them but also don't tip toe. My tank sits in the middle of a high traffic office and my fish dance and beg all day at the glass, it takes time. Also don't abruptly blast them with light and things like that. Some folks will tap the tank or do something to signal feeding time to trigger the fish a bit. Give them time and it will relax them.

I agree with proper qt as you may see issues based on how you are adding

and again big frequent water changes!

[dvsrk]

Thanks Phil.