Greetings!

[Boscowoe]

Hello, everyone!

I recently began my journey into keeping discus fishes and transformed my 3-foot planted tank to accommodate these young fish. I'm here to learn and connect with fellow enthusiasts. Selecting a beautiful juvenile discus has proven to be quite a challenge for me. The fully grown ones can be quite costly, so I've opted to start with the younger ones.

Thank you, and I wish you all a fantastic weekend ahead.

[Iminit]

Nice looking discus! Looks like about 4” how many did you get and how many gallons is the tank? Is it still planted?

[Boscowoe]

Absolutely, you nailed it! The fish is around 4 inches in size.
I have 9 of them in a 55-gallon tank and plan to upsize once I get the hang of it.
The tank now features driftwoods and river sand as the base.
Interestingly, I only learned that the shape and form of the fish are more important than their coloration and patterns, especially in juveniles. I ended up with some fish with pointy beak, triangular shaped and etc..
Thank you for reaching out, and I hope you have a wonderful day ahead.WhatsApp Image 2023-10-22 at 12.26.03.jpg

[brewmaster15]

Welcome to SimplyDiscus!

Theres a bit of a learning curve with discus and getting the hang of it can take some time and often comes with mistakes. Mistakes happen.. which is not really a bad thing if we learn from it.You found the best place to learn here at SimplyDiscus. Hopefully we can help the journey go more smoothly for you!

Al

[Second Hand Pat]

Hi Boscowoe and welcome to SimplyDiscus. Your fish are still growing so they could round up as they grow.
Pat

[Iminit]

Got to say your main fish there is really nice! Where did you get them? Next 9 in a 55 is a lot. What is your water change routine. They’re not all 4” but they do look good and healthy. What are you feeding and how often?

[AquaticNerd]

Welcome to SimplyDiscus! I'm looking forward to seeing your tank and fish as they progress.

I like the substrate - I can't tell if it's the image or what, but that is some of the largest grained river sand I've ever seen! Do you remember the brand?

[Boscowoe]

Welcome to SimplyDiscus!

Theres a bit of a learning curve with discus and getting the hang of it can take some time and often comes with mistakes. Mistakes happen.. which is not really a bad thing if we learn from it.You found the best place to learn here at SimplyDiscus. Hopefully we can help the journey go more smoothly for you!

Al

Thank you so much for the encouragement.

[Boscowoe]

Hi Boscowoe and welcome to SimplyDiscus. Your fish are still growing so they could round up as they grow.
Pat

Really? So there's a chance we'll see them transforming into rounder bodies. Thank you for the clarification as I was thinking of giving some of them away.

[Boscowoe]

Got to say your main fish there is really nice! Where did you get them? Next 9 in a 55 is a lot. What is your water change routine. They’re not all 4” but they do look good and healthy. What are you feeding and how often?

Thank you for your kind words! Beginner's luck might be at play here. I found these discus fishes at a local shop that sells various fish species, and it seems I lucked out with my choices.
I feed them dry food twice a day(Tropical Discus Gran D-50+ and Tetra Pro Colour Multi-Crisps), in the morning and evening. My routine includes a 50% water change every Saturday. The largest one measures 4 inches, while the others are smaller. They were bought at different times, and the earliest addition has been with me for just 2 months.
Unfortunately, my confined space doesn't allow for a larger tank yet, so I'll stick with the current setup. I might consider reducing the population as they grow larger.

[Boscowoe]

Welcome to SimplyDiscus! I'm looking forward to seeing your tank and fish as they progress.

I like the substrate - I can't tell if it's the image or what, but that is some of the largest grained river sand I've ever seen! Do you remember the brand?

I'm not familiar with the brand; they simply sold it to me in kilograms when I asked for 10kg. I'll capture some photos of my humble setup within the next two days. Apologies for the delay.

[Adamski77]

Very nice looking discus… I also think the substrate is looking great with nice contrast to the wood.

[Iminit]

Ok you may not like this! But! You need to change more water more often. 9 in a 55 with one 50% weekly water change just won’t work. These fish need clean water. More so when under 4”. Even more so when the tank is overstocked.
Now just saying. The people who’ve really read up on these fish and want the best would be changing 50% daily. These fish will stress in bad water. Stressed fish get sick. Sick fish die. When not in the best conditions they don’t grow.

Foods ok. Being there eating granules allready look into the sera discus granules and simply discus discus chow. Both better foods.
Next I think your 3’ tank is a 50g. Here’s a pic of my 50g5DDF6591-930E-4715-A2EC-61172FDC8D83.jpg

[Boscowoe]

Ok you may not like this! But! You need to change more water more often. 9 in a 55 with one 50% weekly water change just won’t work. These fish need clean water. More so when under 4”. Even more so when the tank is overstocked.
Now just saying. The people who’ve really read up on these fish and want the best would be changing 50% daily. These fish will stress in bad water. Stressed fish get sick. Sick fish die. When not in the best conditions they don’t grow.

Foods ok. Being there eating granules allready look into the sera discus granules and simply discus discus chow. Both better foods.
Next I think your 3’ tank is a 50g. Here’s a pic of my 50g5DDF6591-930E-4715-A2EC-61172FDC8D83.jpg

Respectfully, your advice led me to change 30% of the water just now.
I've diligently monitored the water chemistry daily, and the NO3 and NO2 levels have consistently been optimal for the past 2 months. My tank is equipped with one canister filter and one overhang filter. I believe that frequent water changes might disrupt the crucial work of beneficial bacteria responsible for nitrifying the water.
Having maintained a planted tank without frequent water changes for years in the past, it will take me some time to adjust to the idea of more frequent changes.
I appreciate your suggestion and need some time to adapt to this new approach. Thank you.

[Boscowoe]

Very nice looking discus… I also think the substrate is looking great with nice contrast to the wood.

Thank you. This is my modest setup featuring pointy beak discus. I've recently given one of them away.
WhatsApp Image 2023-10-24 at 21.06.42.jpg
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