Will be traveling monthly for work, could use some input? :)

[number1sixerfan]

Hi All,

I recently got a new job and I'll be working fully remote.. although I'll now have to travel out of state every month or every other month. The tank is heavily over filtrated, my standard water changes are every other day, and I'd up that to daily the week before I leave up until the day I do. I'm actually having my brother-in-law come over this weekend to train him on everything, but he lives 45min away from me so it doesn't seem like a full proof option (he's the only person I'd trust). I also started walking through all of the steps of feeding/water changing and feel that it's risky even for someone that's been trained a few times. So I'm looking for some input from others that have been in similar situations.

My before leaving gameplan is: up standard, every other day water changes to daily the week before I leave. Feed them a bit heavier than usual up until the day before I leave. Clean all filters (btw, tank is over-filtrated with two canisters, sponges and HOB). Add purigen/chemipure to each filter for peace of mind. Water change on the last day. (9 adult 6-7.5inch discus, 90g tank)

1. Most times I'll be gone a week.. that should be fine. I've done this before without problems, but definitely was paranoid. Assuming many people do this with no problem whatsoever?
2. There are times where I'd need to be away for 10 days (no longer than that). Can the same approach generally be taken as above without issue? I'm first of all worried about them not eating, but also worried about the lack of fresh water.

I think I'm overthinking it a bit and they should be fine in either case as long as I prep right, but I wanted to hear from people with more experience. Thanks in advance for any help!! If push does come to shove, I'd probably look at rehoming. :\

[two utes]

Its good that you have a game plan since you are going to be away for 10 days at a time.
In my opinion your fish will have no problems making it through 10 days if they are in a bare bottom tank. Clean water is essential and much more important than them getting feeds. Over feeding will only foul up the water.
First thing i would be showing your brother in law is how to do a water change.

Hope all goes well.

[LizStreithorst]

HOw big a tank? How many Discus and other fish? Planted or BB?

[number1sixerfan]

Its good that you have a game plan since you are going to be away for 10 days at a time.
In my opinion your fish will have no problems making it through 10 days if they are in a bare bottom tank. Clean water is essential and much more important than them getting feeds. Over feeding will only foul up the water.
First thing i would be showing your brother in law is how to do a water change.

Hope all goes well.

Thank you! And yea, that was the plan. But the more I thought about it, I just worry that he could make any mistake or anything could go wrong and that seems more risky than just leaving them alone. I do however really like the idea of somebody to stop by just to check on things. Just tough because he's so far.

HOw big a tank? How many Discus and other fish? Planted or BB?

90 gallon, 8 adult discus (meant 8 when I said 9 earlier), 10 small cory cats, and lightly planted at the moment in sand. With that said, my substrate stays cleaner than any tank I've ever had given the placement of the three larger filters.

[Willie]

Over the last ten years of my working life, my travel scheduled ranged from 30% time to a high of 70% time. Here's what I've learned about maintaining a discus tank.

1. Discus don't have to be fed very often. A discus in my tank will eat more in 10 minutes than a wild fish eats in a week. Tank raised discus are chubby compared to wild discus. We overfeed to push growth, but it's certainly not necessary just to have healthy fish.
2. Having nobody feed is far safer than have somebody feed. The only success I've had with outside feeding has been a fellow discus hobbyist, someone who has been on Simply. Otherwise, I've lost many adult discus to incorrect feeding.
3. If you don't feed, water quality stays fine without water changes. My tanks only have sponge filters and the tanks stay very clean if you're not feeding.
4. Using an automatic feeder works fine but you need to test them for a week before leaving. Do not set up an automatic feeder right before leaving.
5. All this work with large discus. You cannot be successful with young fish with intermittent feeding and water changes.

Good luck Willie

[captainandy]

No problem regarding feeding. What I also do is have a temp and pH monitor in front of the tank and have a nest camera on so I can make sure the basics are followed and I get to watch em

[number1sixerfan]

Over the last ten years of my working life, my travel scheduled ranged from 30% time to a high of 70% time. Here's what I've learned about maintaining a discus tank.

1. Discus don't have to be fed very often. A discus in my tank will eat more in 10 minutes than a wild fish eats in a week. Tank raised discus are chubby compared to wild discus. We overfeed to push growth, but it's certainly not necessary just to have healthy fish.
2. Having nobody feed is far safer than have somebody feed. The only success I've had with outside feeding has been a fellow discus hobbyist, someone who has been on Simply. Otherwise, I've lost many adult discus to incorrect feeding.
3. If you don't feed, water quality stays fine without water changes. My tanks only have sponge filters and the tanks stay very clean if you're not feeding.
4. Using an automatic feeder works fine but you need to test them for a week before leaving. Do not set up an automatic feeder right before leaving.
5. All this work with large discus. You cannot be successful with young fish with intermittent feeding and water changes.

Good luck Willie

Appreciate all the tips! And #2 just convinced me that I rather not have someone assist. I may setup a web camera just so I can make sure the power hasn't shut off or nothing crazy has happened, but I think I rather just not feed them and let them be. Thanks again!

No problem regarding feeding. What I also do is have a temp and pH monitor in front of the tank and have a nest camera on so I can make sure the basics are followed and I get to watch em

That's a good idea on the prob in front. And yea, thinking a small camera will give me a bit of extra peace of mind. Thank you!

[number1sixerfan]

So I wanted follow up here. I actually had the chance to try this out over the Memorial Day week. I was gone 9 days and just got back a few days ago. Everything was fine for the most part.. the water quality was stellar when I got back. Nitrates in check, no foul smell to the water, checked each of the filters and they had barely accumulated much dirt at all.. the purigen is still relatively white which is a good sign as well. With the over filtration the substrate was clean as can be. This was a bit of an eye opener as to how feeding daily contributes to so much filth in the water lol (i know, duh, that's why we have WCs).

Couple of not so good things:

-I got a text notice that the power went out, which happens in NorCal in summer months typically in my particular area. Thankfully, it came back on, but nearly forgot about the issue.
-They ate 5 (half) of my Juli cory cats. These fish have been hardy as a rock, and the discus have never bothered them... there's not a trace of them
-They ate half of my Amano shrimp. I've had around 30 in the tank with the Discus since October with NO issues whatsoever. I built shrimp coves with cholla wood hidden under rocks, with anubias to keep the Discus out. This has worked like a charm for months. I have RCS that don't dare come out of the shrimp coves and survive just fine... but the Amanos have always come in and out confidently and the discus have never bothered them. Few days of no food changed all of that lol, and I get it
-They were skittish the first two days I was back. And the two tank Kings have been a little bit more aggressive than normal. But they have all since settled down.

So knowing I'd be doing this like once a month, I think I'd maybe look at moving the Corys and Shrimp to my second tank before doing so. Maybe I'll replace them with rams or a schooling fish. Such a bummer, I'm a huge fan of the Julis in this tank.. I'll also get a web camera as some of you mentioned. Without a generator, any ideas on how to deal with the power? Guessing the only option is to have someone on standby if I see it happen in real time. Thanks again for all the help and suggestions.

[number1sixerfan]

One additional update. I just got back from another trip, similar timeframe. Same prep, no issues and the tank was really clean. All fish were fine.. but I need to think long and hard. I'm not liking that it feels unfair to the fish (what if a fish gets hurt and I'm gone? Or if there's a sickness I can't address, etc.) and the additional worry it creates for me while traveling. I'm gonna keep trying for a bit, but by the end of the year I may need to find a home for them. It's a bit frustrating. Again, thanks everyone for the tips either way.

[Willie]

...Without a generator, any ideas on how to deal with the power?...

As you say, the tank stays very clean without feeding. Back in the 90's, our area got hit with 100+ mph straight line winds and power was knocked out for 5 days. My tanks had no air, no heat, no filtration and generators were sold out. Despite a lot of worry, there were zero losses. Having 1 discus/10 gal of water also helped. My experience is that aquarium fish are fairly resilient - until we mess with them.

[number1sixerfan]

As you say, the tank stays very clean without feeding. Back in the 90's, our area got hit with 100+ mph straight line winds and power was knocked out for 5 days. My tanks had no air, no heat, no filtration and generators were sold out. Despite a lot of worry, there were zero losses. Having 1 discus/10 gal of water also helped. My experience is that aquarium fish are fairly resilient - until we mess with them.

The power outage scenario is one of the greatest concerns I actually have, so that's actually really interesting to hear and good to know.