discus tank mates

[ctmpwrdcamry]

Hello,

I recently set up my 75 gallon planted tank. I plan to get discus in a month or two once the filters cycle and the plant growth is started. What fish would you recommend to help cycle the filters that i will not have to get ride of when the discus arrive? Someone mentioned yo you loaches but i am worried they are to active for discus. Any recommendations are welcome.

Thanks

[Tek]

I recommend pull 1 to 2 comment Pelco.. Soon or later, you will need to add those to keep your tank clear.

[wolfbane]

tankmates can include cardinal tetras, rummynose tetras, bristlenose plecos, not common one, cory cats, hatchet fish.

[ctmpwrdcamry]

I think ill go try and pick up some panda corries or somethign this weekend. Thanks.

[CAGE-RATTLER]

I have 2 six inch common plecos in my tank and they dont bother anyone.
I also have a group of High Fin Serpae tetras that are very hardy fish and definately compliment my tank. They are the most colorful that ive seen anywhere.



I was gonna go with cardinals but they are smaller than the serpae's and i also have a large Black African knife and a dinosaur eel in there so i need a bit larger fish to keep them from being eaten.

I had rummy noses but they disapeared real quick along with some smaller rose borras.

[KIWI13]

Corries are great cause they are bottom feeders and clean up the scraps and left overs.

Bristlenose & Plecos are great for algae control on panes and decoration.

Tetras like cardinals , add quantity and colour and since they are a schooling fish, they are beautiful to watch.

You can keep some angels too ( many people on here have contridicting viewpoints on this issue) I for one have never experienced any problems.

Dwarf cichlids, liek rams are nice tank mates too.

HTH

Jason

[crash]

I am still a newbie with discus 2 months into the discus bug,
But here is my 2 cents

Bolivian rams are excellent tank mates because, they like low PH like same temperature as discus. They r from the same habitat as discus.

RUmmy nose tetra, Neon tetra, same reason as above.

I have a bristol nose pleco and kulih loaches
they are a little hyper but i dont think the discus mind them.

thank you
Crash

[crash]

i did cycle my tank with 2 bolivian rams and a bristol nose pleco 5 rummy nose 10 neon tetra's

I have a 45 Gallon.

I added the 6 discus about 2 to 3 inches in size, once I was sure that bolivians were adapted to the conditions, Since they started showing excellent colors. I knew it will be a good environment for discus.

Also, in a planted tank you should add driftwood i heard it helps bring the ph down. I planted some java moss on the driftwood, looks nice.

[candyl70]

Crash,
Just be sure to check your water pm's. Adding 6 discus is a bigger bio-load and might cause a spike in ammonia, nitrites, etc. Sounds like a nice tank. do you have any pics?

Candy

p.s. The driftwood doesn't really lower the pH much, but it releases tannins in the water giving it a tea color that the discus like.

[crash]

Hi Candy,
I kinda suspected about the bio-load. Checked it with Kumar from kumlin tropical. He thinks it ok. I do regular waterchanges. Also I make sure the the top fin of the discus is streight up(might be a rookie way of checking the health) , but so far I havnt had any signs of congesion. I had a bacteria infection to one of my discus. But good help from Kumar, and his recommended furan2 cured it. BTW, ctmpwrdcamry if you are new to discus, I suggest you talk to kumar from Kumlin tropical. , Excellent source of discus and great guy overall.

I dont have any pics of the tank with discus, But if you remeber I posted my rams picture on the thread where I was consulting about my Rams which Laid eggs in my discus tank.

thanx
crash

[candyl70]

Crash,
Great to hear that they are all doing good. I do remember your rams... any more eggs?

As far as the fin being erect, i think it's a good indicator for stress, as well as the overall color.

Great to hear from you!!


Candy

[JMArtist]

Also, in a planted tank you should add driftwood i heard it helps bring the ph down. I planted some java moss on the driftwood, looks nice.

While Driftwood will not lower your pH, it will contribute to softening of the water. You may find that if you have slightly to moderately hard water, it will respond very nicely to the introduction of a piece of drift wood. Of course adding peat to your filter will help also.
If you are at the stage where you are seriously considering breeding your discus, then you can look into reverse osmosis or deionization pretreatment of your water.

[goheel]

What about gouramis and tiger barbs? Are they compatible with discus?

[candyl70]

I think that the dwarf Gourami is an ok choice for discus. They don't seem to bother each other. The tiger barbs i would stay away from because they tend to be nippy. jmo.


hth
Candy

[CAGE-RATTLER]

I have a large Blue garami & a medium size Gold gorami in my tank and they dont bother anyone but each other.