I think I finally FIGURED IT ALL OUT!!

[Spices]

It's been a long haul. Trying to decide what it is I'd like to see in a tank filled with discus and angels. Well, I settled for the natural stone with some plants look. Thanks to those I'm inspired by their beautiful planted tanks!

Here we took into account redecorating the tank. Those angels are my daughter's. Soon they will have their own tank and I think I'll be missing them.

Enjoy!

[Spices]

There's not alot of plant! Who ever said discus is not a plant eater....Tss..tss..tss.. I surely can vow for my guys. They love plants. Seems that the more in the tank is the more they have healthy digestive system.

Way to go with plants.

*Angie*

[NatakuTseng]

I think I would have foregone the gravel. Traps a lot of wastes and such unless your willing to spend a while vaccuming it at each water change. The white won't bring out the colors on the discus very well either. Just my personal opinion though. I don't mind bare bottom tanks at all sometimes they look very good, and I'm really fond of planted tanks, but not much tollerance for stuff inbetween, lol. Thats me though, as long as it makes you happy and your fish are healthy thats what counts.

[Spices]

I used to have a lot more Cabomba plants. This is all that is left of them.


But I plan to get some more. I don't mind so long as they eat the plants and not shred them apart to float.

*A*

[Spices]

I hear ya, Nataku. I thought this one out long and strong. Over two years. I did both a few times too (barebottom and pot planting). I did not use gravel before. If I did it wasn't to the extent as now. I may have had a brushing of it with potted plants (this was when I first started keeping any type of fish) about three years ago now.

But I came upon discus as I was hooked. It all was accidental. I lossed plenty fish from making idiotic mistakes but they were mistakes that were absolutely legit (meaning I had success with making those mistakes but plenty of caution was needed for each mistake I make). Now, I realize that it is absolutely not important to have any thing other than clean crystal water and plants for your fish (among fine healthy foods that won't make them constipated).

*Angie*

[Don_Lee]

Very nice! Although many do not like gravel, I think that if you keep it clean and mainly have adults you do not have to feed alot that it is no problem. If you do have young fish, which it seems you have a few at least, then you just have to keep it clean.
You may want to try some hygro or some other type of fast growing plant. I have some of this in my tanks that grows so much I have to prune it every one to two weeks as it will take over the tank. That should be enough vegetable matter to keep your discus happy and still provide you with some plants that will grow easily and require not a high amount of lighting.
Great tank!

Don

[shalu]

I don't get the association of discus eating plants and having healthy digestive systems. In fact, the only time I noticed my discus eating/yanking plants is when it HAS digestive problem and stopped eating meaty food.

[Condor]

I like it What size tank is it?

Adrian

[tpl*co]

My discus will eat the spinich I put in for my bristlenoses . Nice looking tank. I agree though with the gravel, I ended up taking most of mine out of my show tank and just left a 1 pebble thickness on the bottom twords the front of the tank, that way it didn't look so bare (and I was too lazy to tear down the tank and get every last pebble). It is definitely easier to clean.

[sidra]

Looks nice Angie. Even with the plants and gravel it's the fish you notice and I think that's the ideal.

I have a planted/gravelled tank with my older discus and it's a lot of work to keep clean. I have one of those gravel vacs that plugs into your air pump to vacuum out the gravel. It works great. (on the other hand my bare baby tank is a breeze to clean-lol).

I like it. Enjoy!

[Don_Lee]

I think the USA has the most avid population of discus keepers that do not use gravel on the bottom. In my opinion, the lack of a substrate is unattractive and would only be an option if I were breeding. I keep an aquarium because I love the appearance, among other things, and I am not attracted by bare bottom tanks. I really do not feel it is that hard to keep a gravel tank clean, depending on how much one is feeding etc... but I would not want to try to raise young discus, and feed all of that beefheart, and try to keep that clean....but adults are no problem IMO.

Don

[Tiptoptank]

I either og BB, or fully planted, co2, ferts ,everything. BB offers easy feeding and breeding but seems so dull to me. I see BB tanks and think of poor zoo animals trapped in cages. This is why I like my Fully planted tank. I don't really vacuum the mulm up that much because the plants eat all the problem out of the water. If I don't dose amonia and nitrates and phosphates ( the three no-no's) then I get algea. the fish simply can't get the water problems to a piont were it is a problem. The only disadvantge to fully planted is meds and espeially flukes. This is the only time besides QT that I use my 29 BB tank. JMO

[Spices]

Thanks everyone!

Hey Don, you're one of those who has tanks that I admire a lot. I remembered when I first began SD almost 3 years now when I first saw your photos and I believe "Phil's" photos of a fully planted tank. It was a heavenly sight. Then I saw Wahter's photos and was over my head at trying to accomplish that same look. In some of your threads and Wahter's you both mention the Amano book. Well, I saw them and was like google-eyed. Light bulbs went on and "Dr. Angie" went into research. LOL [Literally went to town!]

It is a challenge I say. And I find it no different from keeping the barebottom tank. I have to do the same for a planted tank that I do for the barebottom. Except one thing different, the algae is totally gone!! I only have to vacuum and since it is a good idea to do water changes daily, the vacuuming of the gravel comes in just handy (the python kills two jobs with one stone).

Wiping the walls off (with build up of yukkies) became a past since now I have it all under thumbs.

It took me a while to catch the fever but I agree with you Don Lee, it's difficult to watch an aquarium that is not quite suitable for fish. This is why I had a hard time deciding which I wanted (whether barebottom with the every two days cleaning walls, floor and installing new water or stone-layered planted tank with the every three days removal of gook with a python and installing fresh water). If you look into Wahter's posts you will learn that he refer to a planted tank as a self-cleaning mechanism as well as Don's too. There are a few in this forum that has a fully stocked planted discus tank and they all have one thing in common that I picked up on and that is "it's not that difficult." With that in mind, it helped me to understand.

The tank is a two year old soon-to-be-repaired 75 gallon.

Filtrations: Emperor 400 and Vortex XL (removed the AC500, was an overkill).
Ballast: Orbit 260 watt Daylight over 10,000 system
Airpump installed for 150-gallon tank



*A*

[Don_Lee]

Thank you for the compliment Spices. I am not nearly as accomplished as some of the other posters here, I tend to take a simple approach to planted tanks that does not lend itself to an extreme amount of work to maintain. I feel that a nice planted tank is not that difficult with the correct basic pieces in place, and if one wants to take it further the sky is the limit. I have had many failures along the way, and understand the need to cover the basics and learn some of the concepts of water and plant chemistry. At the end of the day, I feel a planted tank is a better place for fish.....and see this much more accepted in Europe than in the USA. I am pleased to see that many others feel the same, and appreciate all of the information that is available to help us all learn what is attainable.
Right now I have only a 180 liter planted tank....because of the possibility of moving and the need to stabilize the tank, I do not have discus yet. I hope to soon when all of the rest is sorted out. I will post some pictures of my humble tank soon, which surely cannot compare with Wahter and Shaulu's tanks among others.
The beauty of a planted tank cannot be disputed IMO.

Don

[Condor]

Thats what I love about this part of the forum. I call it SSH (Substrate Save Haven) Nothin wrong with a great lookin substrate. I think that when it comes down to it, it is all about balance.

Adrian