Breeding In A 55 Gallon Tank

[hexed]

Hi,
My question is, how many pairs of discus can breed in a 55 gallon tank?
I currently have one pair of pigeon bloods (white dragons) in there and she keeps laying and they eat the eggs. I have tried the mesh thing but the eggs do not hatch and they turn white. Both discuas are totally afraid of the mesh. I was thinking about getting another pair and hopefully they will snap out of whatever they are thinking
So how many pairs can breed in a 55 gallon tank?
Also I have 5 small rams in with the pair but they stay on the opposite side of the tank and do not bother the discus, but I can remove them from the tank if need be.
Any and all help is appriciated. Will this idea work? I paid over $300 for this pair and I want BABIES LOL! 8)
One more question, I have purchased a hardness test kit but I do not understand how it works. I use tanksoft in my water but I still cannot get the strip to turn green, what am I doing wrong? How do I get it to turn green?

[Carol_Roberts]

IF you add 20 drops to the test tube the water still does not turn green? Time for a new test kit. If you are on city water call them and ask what the hardness is.

IF your water is too hard you will need an RO.

Has this pair produced fry in the past?

I think each pair should have their own tank

[hexed]

Carol,
The seller told me that the male raised young without any problems with a different mate and the same for the female. He told me that these 2 discus were never paired together that this will be their first time. But I would think experience would tell them how to do it LOL.
The hardness test kit is brand new I purchased it on Monday. I will try right now and add 20 drops into the test tube.

[hexed]

Carol,
It took 21 drops to turn the water green, but I do not know what that means because the book only tells what the parts are for up to 12 drops. Is this ok?

[hexed]

Carol,
Here are all my readings:
Nitrite: 0
Nitrate: 0
Ammonia: 0
Ph: 6.0
Hardness: 21 drops?
Temp: 84 degrees
Anything need to be changed?

[nokoto]

Hex

How about a domed piece of plastic, that has 1/2" holds drilled through it, then the fish may feel calm because they can see, in your case a clear tube to go around the spawn pot....

The stuff exsits you just got to track it... or may use a white colour instead, colour or the mess could have a big part in why they are afraid of it....

Just a thought

Wayne

[nokoto]

I just had a thought...

Glass makers...

I bet you could get a Glass mesh made for not much it would sink and is inert...

I might be able get them made. any takers on my mad yet wild idea...

Wayne

[Carol_Roberts]

Well, that answers that question. No eggs will hatch in your water. Call the water company to verify your water hardness.

You will need to get the GH down to 6 drops. Only way to do that is with an RO.

[hexed]

Carol,
The hardness straight out of the faucet is 3 drops so it isn't the tap water. It's the tank. I put 2 kinds plant food in the tank as directed on the bottlles. They are called Kent pro plant and Kent freshwater plant food.. Pro plant says to add 1 Capful per 30 gallons so I add almost 2 capfuls. It has the following analysis:
Total nitrogen: 1%
Boron: .0002%
Magnesium: .05%
Sulfur: .06%
Then it tells me to add the freshwater plant food 3 capfuls per 30 gallons. It's analysis is:
Soluble potash: 3%
Copper: .00001%
Iron:.24%
Maganese: .01%
molybdenum: .0009%
zinc: .00014%
Can this be the cause of the high hardness? It is the only thing I add to the water besides the tanksoft and peat extract.
Wayne, Thanks for the ideas on the mesh ;D
I would use the mesh again only if I knew for certain that they would not eat the babies. At least right now they eat the eggs and it doesn't effect me as much as them eating the actual babies. I don't think I could take that as well knowing I let them live for them to eat them LOL.
But no one has told me How many pairs can be put in a 55 gallon tank?

[Nightowl]

Hexed, if your water is good out of the tap then don't add all the stuff to it. The best way to breed discus is in a bare bottom tank, IMO. Your tap water may be fine the way it is. Re: hardness, are you measuring GH or KH , or both?
In a 55g tank you could have 6 or 8 adults, allowing them to pair off,etc., but usually only one pair of breeding fish will succeed in the same tank....fry usually get eaten when there is competition from other fish.
The only time I've seen 2 pairs w/fry was a few weeks ago...there are photos in general section under"Double Spawn" by Nightowl. Usually the result is devoured fry. Good luck, J.T.

[hexed]

Carol and JT,
I just got off the phone with Kent Marine products. He said that the plant food will not make the water hard. He asked how I do the water changes and I told him. He said it's the salt. See I was told but the girl at my aquarium that when I do the water changes to add the salt. I'm adding to much salt. If I remove 20 gallons I should only add enough salt for the 20 gallons I put in. The girl told me to put in 55 gallons worth. Does this sound right? Can the salt do this? :
I'm doing a water change now and the man at Kent said not to add salt today to remove 20% of the water and then another 20% next week and then the following week do the same but instead of putting the correct amount of salt only put half. He said after each water change to test it and the hardness should go down. He told me to treat the water in the bucket with Kent expert to lower the ph to 6.0 from 7.0 before adding it to the tank also be sure the water is almost the same temp. I guess I will try this today and keep you all posted. 8)

[Carol_Roberts]

NO, NO, NO!

Table salt does not increase hardness. Do not lower pH. Do not listen to the man from Kent! Certainly the iron and magnesium will raise the GH. Those are minerals!

Here is how to breed discus. Fill a bare 29 gallon tank with dechlorinated water. Add a heater set at 84 degrees. Run an airstone or empty filter in it for 24 hours to stabilize pH. Add filter media and pair of discus. Do not add anything else except more clean water every day or so. IF the GH from your tap is 3 it should be 3 in this tank.

Discus do not like living in chemical plantfood soup.

[hexed]

Carol,
I did a the water change and I didn't put anything in the water except stress coat. I figured, lets see what happens if I do not put anything in it. All the readings are the same except now it takes 13 drops for the hardness instead of 21 drops. So it seems to be working. I will do another quick water change tommorrow. I will get the hardness down :-*
How come the ph is still reading 6.0 shouldn't it have come up a little?

[Carol_Roberts]

Are you running CO2?

[hexed]

no what's that?