discus turning black

[lilit]

what does it mean when they turn dark in colour, almost black. and also fast breathing

my discus freak out at the slightest noises or movements i make. like opening the tank lid is enough for them to freak out and swim in all directions. is there a way that i can make them feel more secure? i read that having a school of tetras makes them feel secure, is there anything else? why are they freaking out like that? is it just because they are young and new to the tank? ive had them for about a week or so now.

when this happens, they turn dark. (well i have one red one and one blue one..the blue one turns almost black). the red one has white poop but i saw its poop a day ago and it wasn't white anymore it was normal color (even though it hasn't eaten anything for a week).

is the dark colour a sign of stress because they get scared of little noises? or can it be something else? there is no sign of mucous

ammonia/nitrite/nitrate = 0
temp = 27 (having heater problems. my old heater only heated the water at 25 degrees so i changed it to a 250watt and now it only heats it up to 27..even though i have it set at 30)
55 gallon tank
sand bottom
2 discus, a school of tetras, bristlenose (bristlenoses had fry so theres actually like 30 bristlnose fry swimming around..im getting rid of them soon)
a few anubias plants
tanks been cycled and running for 4ish months
40-50% water change daily for the past week.

discus also turns dark every time i change the water. it happens when i pour in the new water so i think its the water flow and bubbles when pouring in the new water that scares it. ph of the new water matches the ph of the water in the tank (hm actually its more acidic by like 0.5..its hard to get it exact)

sorry for all the stupid questions. my gf got me these fish and i need to keep them alive happy and healthy for her

thanks

[Eddie]

2 discus only, is a bad number unless its a pair. Generally a group of about 6 or more helps to make them secure. They won't school with tetras really.

Do you age your water? Do you have chlorine or chloramines in your water? What product do you use to treat your water to rid of chlorine or chloramine?

Going dark and fast breathing is stress, could be from the water or an illness. Where did you get the fish? Did you quarantine properly, to include plants?

[Astolfo]

Eddie, where is the questionare?

[Eddie]

Eddie, where is the questionare?

He gave the majority of the info in his original post.

[Skip]

tanks been cycled and running for 4ish months
40-50% water change daily for the past week.

discus also turns dark every time i change the water. it happens when i pour in the new water so i think its the water flow and bubbles when pouring in the new water that scares it. ph of the new water matches the ph of the water in the tank (hm actually its more acidic by like 0.5..its hard to get it exact)

1. what water change schedule did you have BEFORE

2. it happens.. mine do same thing.. not all but a couple of them do not seem to like it

[shoveltrash]

you really need more than 2. 2 will feel insecure, unless they are an established pair in their own tank. they are schooling fish - the more the better (altho overstocking requires more maintenance re WCs). it might take several weeks for them to acclimate to their new digs as well. all JMHO. I'm no expert, but can share my own experiences.

do you have photos? how quickly do the regain their normal color?

WCs make my Discus happier - i.e. they are more colorful, bold, & active during/after a WC.

[lilit]

2 discus only, is a bad number unless its a pair. Generally a group of about 6 or more helps to make them secure. They won't school with tetras really.

Do you age your water? Do you have chlorine or chloramines in your water? What product do you use to treat your water to rid of chlorine or chloramine?

Going dark and fast breathing is stress, could be from the water or an illness. Where did you get the fish? Did you quarantine properly, to include plants?

I am planning on getting 2 more sometime this week..im just a little hesitant because i dont know if my current discus are doing ok or not.
I dont age the water. its just straight from the tap, with API stress coat and seachem buffer. the fish came from a aquarium shop. they aren't the best quality discus. im going to get my next 2 discus from a discus specializing store

[lilit]

1. what water change schedule did you have BEFORE

2. it happens.. mine do same thing.. not all but a couple of them do not seem to like it

ive only had these discus for a week. before that, i did a water change once every two weeks because all i had in there was a few tetras and bristlenose.

[lilit]

you really need more than 2. 2 will feel insecure, unless they are an established pair in their own tank. they are schooling fish - the more the better (altho overstocking requires more maintenance re WCs). it might take several weeks for them to acclimate to their new digs as well. all JMHO. I'm no expert, but can share my own experiences.

do you have photos? how quickly do the regain their normal color?

WCs make my Discus happier - i.e. they are more colorful, bold, & active during/after a WC.

I dont have any photos, but ill take a pic soon and post it. well the blue one has been almost black for a few days now. it started because i closed the tank lid to hard and it freaked out from the 'bang'. since then it has been freaking out at any noise or movements.

[lilit]

IMG_20120707_151106.jpg

sorry its small, couldnt get it to fit

[Orange Crush]

IMG_20120707_151106.jpg

sorry its small, couldnt get it to fit

Very thin....

[lilit]

Very thin....

something helpful would be appreciated.....

[pinoysport]

by the pic .... check your background color... black is prob not a good thing to have while you are acclimating. I use a black background but my fish are established with me.... red up on the pros and cons of dark background and substrate

how big is your tank now? i think the best advise here is to change the background color to something softer and lighter and get more fish next time...

now s far as treating that fish with meds.... not an expert there...