"Queries regarding my first fish tank, preferably a discus tank"?

[Second Hand Pat]

You can tell if the ammonia has detergents by shaking it. If it foams then it has detergents or surfactants.

[bullzi]

^

Hey thanks a lot for the info, I will keep it in mind.

[strawberryblonde]

Ahhhh, it's true that you need to do massive water changes each and every day when you are raising juvenile discus, but if you purchase sub-adults, you can reduce the size of the water change considerably!

I purchased 4" discus. They were a whole lot easier for water changes than the smaller discus. With a reasonable feeding schedule, you can do 50% wc per day with these bigger guys and still have the fun of watching them grow out into adults.

It's completely up to you which way you want to go though, ok? Raising angels can be fun too. =)

[bullzi]

^

Hmmm, even 50% waterchange daily can be a hassle for me to start with, I just want to get used to this job first, that is why starting with angels. If 50% water change each other day was suitable, I would have had no issues at all.

[BigBruiserAl]

like you i work in IT and i do 14hr days, i change my water every 4th day i also check my water stats evey 4th day before water change everything normal here

[Orange Crush]

it would be a nightmare for me to make daily water changes (not to mention that I have to prepare the new water separately). Hence, I thought of starting with a bit more hardy fish, the angels, get used to the maintenance work a bit and then shift to discus.

No matter what size you get there may be a time where you will need to do daily changes (water quality issues, illness, etc). Also, it is best to do daily water changes no matter what size you get.
If you are not up for doing it now, are you sure that you will be in the future? If not, then discus are not for you.

[bullzi]

@BigBruiser

I hope your wc routine works out for me too.



@Orange Crush

I have said it would be a nightmare for me to do daily water changes right from the beginning as I have no previous experience and I may mess up with things most probably. When I am used to using siphons and pumps, it will be a lot easier/less time consuming for me to do the maintenance work. As simple as that.

Also, not all of the discus keepers do daily water changes except for breeders/guyz who are rearing up discus.

[Orange Crush]

I have said it would be a nightmare for me to do daily water changes right from the beginning as I have no previous experience and I may mess up with things most probably. When I am used to using siphons and pumps, it will be a lot easier/less time consuming for me to do the maintenance work. As simple as that.

Also, not all of the discus keepers do daily water changes except for breeders/guyz who are rearing up discus.

Actually, a lot of non breeder discus keepers do daily water changes. From what I have read on the forum the newer a person is at keeping discus the less likely they are to do daily water changes but then they get sick fish and learn that wc's is the most important thing in keeping discus happy and healthy. They are very finicky about their water (the discus not the owners, lol). People who have been discus owners for a long time are much more likely to do daily wc's because they know it works. The ones who are most sucessful are the ones who do the most wc's.

I have had discus for only 2.5 months but I do daily wc's because after being on this forum, I listened to the "old timers" advice.

That said, I understand it will be a struggle when you are first learning, it takes much more time to keep up tank maintenence than I ever expected even with heartier fish like guppies, mollies, danios, etc. I am glad that I learned on fish who could survive my mistakes.

I just wanted you to think about whether you are going to be willing to do all that is necessary to keep discus healthy, it is a LOT more work than other fish; especially if you do not buy adult discus.

[bullzi]

^

Thanks for the advise. I will definitely do whatever is needed to make my fish happy. And I also do not want to let my fish die for careless activities of mine, that is why I am not jumping into discus right from the very beginning as I know they need special care.

As you have said earlier, a lot of non breeders also do daily wc. But not all of them make daily water changes and still have happy healthy fish. As I have read, if you feed your discus daily with BHM/GHM, you may need to do 100% wc daily. WCs also depend on how often you feed/what you feed isn't it? And also what I have read in various forums/articles, under feeding is better than over feeding?

Also I will be buying adult fish, I am not gonna grow up juveniles.

[Orange Crush]

As I have read, if you feed your discus daily with BHM/GHM, you may need to do 100% wc daily. WCs also depend on how often you feed/what you feed isn't it?

Yes, the amount of wc's depends on several factors but I still think the best way to take care of discus no matter the age, tank, set up ect. is to do daily wc's. It keeps it simple and will help to prevent many sick discus.

Less than ideal water quality will be the cause of many problems and excellent water quality will be the cure of many problems, including illness.

[bullzi]

^

Hmm, ok