Wild growouts...

[Darrell Ward]

How did you handle the problem with the media moving to one side of the sump?

A section is divided off with a piece of Poret foam 4" thick, wedged across the sump. Another piece of the foam is wedged across the top to act as a prefilter. Six air stones in the media chamber keep the media fluidized and moving...

[Larry Bugg]

Don't downplay them, lol. Lots of potential. John has some really nice wilds.

[wgtaylor]

Darrel
You have perfect water for discus. I like growing out the smaller wilds and watching them transform into gorgeous adults. I'm sure they turn out better than they would on their own in the wild. Great to see you growing these guys out, wish you the best. They are all looking good.
Bill

[Darrell Ward]

Yep, most people pamper and feed them far better than they would have it in the wild. I enjoy growing them as well, but I'll admit I do get impatient along the way waiting for them to mature.

[Len]

Last ones, I promise...

can you tell me what the far right group are? I really like them.

[Darrell Ward]

Heckels that I think were sold to me as being from Rio Negro? Hard to remember. Heckels for sure.

[vera]

these Heckels are so beautiful , cant believe they are budget fish !

[Darrell Ward]

these Heckels are so beautiful , cant believe they are budget fish !

Thanks. I have had the Heckels for a while, so they have grown some since I first got them. I moved them from a 75 gal. I had them in. The greens are much newer, younger, but they are doing great. I think they will probably end up outgrowing the Heckels, since Heckels tend to grow a bit slower IME.

[Doc_Polit]

I second Bugman's thoughts......don't downplay them.

They look good and $$ spent is irrelevant!

[Darrell Ward]

Thanks. They were purchased really small, that's the reason they were inexpensive. Good stock for sure.

[GlennR]

Darrell,

The wilds look great. Regardless of being on a budget I think it's exciting to get them small. You get the pleasure of watching their colors and shapes develop. You get to know their individual personalities from early on. And when they turn into beautiful healthy fish you know that you were a big part in getting them there. If you'd just purchased them full grown you'd miss out on all that, and all you could say is "So&So sells great fish" ....and anybody with the money could have a tank of them.

I'm still working on my house....someday I'll get my tank full of baby discus too. I look forward to seeing yours sometime.

[Darrell Ward]

Darrell,

The wilds look great. Regardless of being on a budget I think it's exciting to get them small. You get the pleasure of watching their colors and shapes develop. You get to know their individual personalities from early on. And when they turn into beautiful healthy fish you know that you were a big part in getting them there. If you'd just purchased them full grown you'd miss out on all that, and all you could say is "So&So sells great fish" ....and anybody with the money could have a tank of them.

I'm still working on my house....someday I'll get my tank full of baby discus too. I look forward to seeing yours sometime.

Anytime. I'm just down the hill from Blowing Rock. I took off the 2x55 watt pc lights awhile back, and replaced them with 2-70 watt, 6500k double ended metal halides, hung 8" above the tank. I like this setup much better, and the shimmer is great. My background fell off, LOL! and I haven't put it back up, it's a pain to do so, I may just leave it off...

[wannafish]

Hey,

Nice looking tank and fish too. I too have Rio Negro Heckels. I think thery are pretty, and it
looks like they have the potential to really color up. I am wanting to get a tank like yours
someday. I have been following tank interests. More swimming room seems to be in order.
I wanted to add, you might want to put a thin layer of sand on the bottom. From what I
read the Heckels really need to gargle in the sand for food, plus I think it would look more
natural.

[vera]

Looks good without background

[Darrell Ward]

Hey,

Nice looking tank and fish too. I too have Rio Negro Heckels. I think thery are pretty, and it
looks like they have the potential to really color up. I am wanting to get a tank like yours
someday. I have been following tank interests. More swimming room seems to be in order.
I wanted to add, you might want to put a thin layer of sand on the bottom. From what I
read the Heckels really need to gargle in the sand for food, plus I think it would look more
natural.

Thanks, bigger is better with wilds. Might be hard to see in the pic, but the tank has pool filter sand.

Looks good without background

Thanks, without the background, there are a couple of reflections on the back glass caused by the wall behind the tank, but I can live with it.