Mom Seeking Answers to MANY questions....are we in over our head?

[gators111]

As far as your other products. Keep the freshwater test kit. You'll be using it a lot over the next few months. Also, get a kitchen timer to go with it. Hang on to the salt, if you ever get a case of ich. Trash the ph up and down. You shouldn't be tinkering with your pH until you really understand buffering and pH crashes. You can keep the food, but I doubt the discus will eat it. They can be very finicky eaters. The sponge filter will be okay. Your water just won't be as crystal clear as someone running a canister filter or a sump. But with 5-6 discus that should be plenty enough to house the beneficial bacteria and keep the water looking good for you. Many discus breeders only use sponge filters in their setups, so you will be fine.

[Kyla]

Another paint idea - some ppl have used the spray-on speckled texture paint which is coloured like sand, that way when u r looking at the tank the bottom appears to be sandy even tho its bare bottom. I think there are some threads here showing how this turns out. Def go with a lighter colour to brighten up the discus. I painted mine white, and I don't mind it, but if I could redo it i would try the textured light coloured sand look.

[Kyla]

I agree that it's is wise to avoid using ph up/down products. They can cause ph swings, and consistency is key.

[Kyla]

My favourite food for feeding our discus is freeze dried Australian black worm. The discus like it best, of all the foods I feed, and it is very "clean", meaning it doesn't make a big mess. It is sold on this forum (there might be a banner across the top where u can click). I buy the little cubes and squish them under the water against the glass where they stick and the discus attack them. I have more recently also set up a little Eheim Automatic Feeder to feed the discus loose FDBW several times a day, so they eat bits of food while I'm away from the house and they really seem to like grazing on it occasionally as well.

[Ryan925]

My favourite food for feeding our discus is freeze dried Australian black worm. The discus like it best, of all the foods I feed, and it is very "clean", meaning it doesn't make a big mess. It is sold on this forum (there might be a banner across the top where u can click). I buy the little cubes and squish them under the water against the glass where they stick and the discus attack them. I have more recently also set up a little Eheim Automatic Feeder to feed the discus loose FDBW several times a day, so they eat bits of food while I'm away from the house and they really seem to like grazing on it occasionally as well.

+1

There are lots of good quality high protein foods available, many of which are available here through the forum owner. As Kyla says there is usually a banner but if not it's aquaticsuppliers

The freeze dried black worms are great. I've also used the bio gold and the freeze dried black worms pellets. Most recently I have been feeding the discus chow which is great for the autofeeder as Kyla suggested. One word of advice is start off slowly with new foods as discus can be resistant to new foods. Patients and persistence is key. If you are going to feed pellets start very slow it's really easy to feed far too much

There is lots of good info here. The more you can learn prior to your purchase the better chance of success you will have. Discus are not as difficult as they may seem but you do need to be well informed of their needs.

Stable water, quality food and good tank maintenance/lots of clean water will serve you well

[discustip]

Thank you again all for your replies.
Our son has had some behavior issues and patience issues, so the brakes have been hit on discus. In the meantime, the water is in the tank and we will continue to research until behavior changes.

I’m super confused on the whole filter thing. So, we purchased another air pump and a true sponge filter that sits in the bottom of the tank. ( we will use the hang on double filter and then the sponge filter). The filtration that Kyla suggested was $79. Is that truly necessary or can I use the carbon filter from our old tank? Is the end result to eventually get a canister? I’ve been watching the videos and I see lots of canisters and what I believe to be sumps.

I am elated you all clarified the paint. We went to the aquatics store m, asked about paint and they looked at us like we had 7 eyes! So no paint. We started putting water in the tank when we started reading replies back. Read about the lore of possible peppering with black grounds. So, we were able to wedge sheets of bright green construction paper under most of the tank. Thanks for the heads up!!!

Food wise, we are returning all that was purchased at Christmas. My son found a high protein dry food that was was endorsed by hans discus. My son nearly had a coronary as Hans is GOD in his mind! Lol! So he bought that....we we will order the worms when we get the fish.

So now we wait and watch videos and continue our research. And I still need to do the water tests on tap water. .

[Altum Nut]

Hello Mom and applaud you working with your son. All this information can be overwhelming so I encourage you to take your time...keep asking questions and please try your very best to hold back on any info your LFS throws at you.
Your son is right where many would consider Hans a God. We refer him to our Discus Pimp.
I will only say that in this hobby your most expensive purchase will be to start with quality Discus from a reputable source so if your choice to go with Discus Hans your off to a good start. Besides a glass box...everything else is to ensure your prized Discus remain happy and healthy.
Water quality is key and is something you want to monitor daily for stability.

Please keep us informed if your confused about anything your not clear on...mistakes are expensive and in most cases are not reversible.

Cheers,
...Ralph

[Kyla]

I think someone else had recommended the aquaclear hang-on-back filter. I have used these myself and they are very easy to operate and to clean. You just pull the sponge and bioballs out and rinse them under a bucket of tank water and plop them back in the filter - fast and efficient, and they keep your water nice and clear. I love them as a staple beginner filter and when I help new aquarists set up new tanks they are usually the ones I recommend, just because they are so simple and ensure frequent cleaning won't be a hassle.

But I think you already purchased sponge filters? I have never used sponge filters but many ppl on this forum do. They are quite simple too, and I think someone previously in the string said they should work in your size tank, but the clarity of your tank water might be sub par? There is no harm in using them to start off and see if they are good enough for your liking. If you want more filtration later you can always add an aquaclear HOB at that point.

I personally run a huge fluval FX5 canister filter on my 180gal. I love this filter but it is not pleasant to clean. It is very heavy and has to be dragged out from under the tank and opened up and cleaned out, which takes much more time than your sponge filters would, or an aquaclear HOB would. The draw back with canisters is that although they clean all the particulate matter out of the tank and keep it nice and clear, that debris and waste and gunk sits unseen in the filter (out of sight out of mind) so ppl tend to slack off on cleaning them out, which negatively affects the water quality. So I do recommend them, but with those warnings.

[Kyla]

I think that's a smart move on switching to Hans' food. I was worried you might have trouble getting the discus to eat. Hans rocks! And the fish he sells are top quality. Buying sickly discus from local pet stores or poor suppliers is how a lot of ppl start off on the wrong foot with discus, so it's a really good idea to get them from Hans.

Others have mentioned this but it I will reiterate it - get all your discus at the same time. That way you won't encounter issues with cross contamination if you add 3 and then a couple months later try to add 2 more. And there won't be as much bullying amongst the larger group of discus as there would if u just added a few at a time. If this means he needs to save up more $, do extra chores, wait for his bday $ etc, it's a good plan to wait and do it all at once and also get the largest discus you can afford.

[Bizarro252]

We also have the following products:
API: Aquarium salt, pH up, pH down, Freshwater master test kit, Omega one Freeze Dried Blood Worms and another canister of brine shrimp.

Toss/Sell the PH Up/Down products, as others has said consistency is key

Hans is awesome, him and Kenny would be my choices but then again those are the only two I have any experience with and both are great - IMO, for the beginner, and one of the reasons I went with Hans for my first fish was that you can always add more from him without to much worry (not the case if you mix from different sources) and he always has stock, so no waiting for your preferences to come in - nice if you are impatient like me

I went with 3" fish for my first Discus - it was very rewarding but a lot of work. If he is willing to commit to daily care of these guys he will be OK with 3", the larger the fish you go with the less 'touchy' they are (harder to screw up).

Buy a Python for water changes, unless you are using pumps. WAY better than buckets!!

Regarding Hans' food, if you mean the Cobalt flakes/pellets then agree, they are great, my fish take them well. Just FYI though if you were talking about his frozen food, he does sell it, but it cant be shipped with the fish and shipping gets spendy - IMO unless you are close enough to get it from him I would make your own (he even posted his recipe on here because he is a BOSS)

[discustip]

This is DiscusTip, not mom. How does my tank look? Think it's good for discus?

[discustip]

Why is my photo upside down? I've tried it twice.

[Altum Nut]

Why is my photo upside down? I've tried it twice.

Hello discustip...I fixed photo for you.
I think your tank looks great...I would recommend setting sponge filters further near the bottom and heater only if fully submersible resting parallel on bottom which will distribute heat better.

...Ralph

[Kyla]

The tank looks great!! I love the wood. You are off to a great start, with a set up better suited to discus than I had when I got my first discus. I agree that if your cord is long enough the heater would distribute heat more efficiently if it was deeper in the tank and angled horizonzontally.

[Jenene]

You have a lot of great people helping you out here. I am late to the game but wanted to welcome you and your son to the hobby of keeping discus. There is just nothing like them. I know it is overwhelming but you have come to the perfect place for advice and support.

I also wanted to commend you on your determination to provide your son with something he has a passion for. I work with very young children with Autism in a primary school and I see those passions forming early on. I know that they become a very important focal point in their lives and learning as much as they can gives them an opportunity to grow confidence and share their beloved passion with others. The skills that arise from these passions will continue build and benefit them for the rest of their lives. What a gift you are giving him. So much more than just fish!

I look forward to following your progress. You have a solid community behind you here. Enjoy the journey!