New Beginner and Introduction

[Carpe_Diem]

Good evening everyone,

I have been lurking for a short time here and have learned a lot in the few day's since I found this great site.

Some background on myself. I currently reside in Brighton Ontario Canada where the water comes out of the tap at about 7.9-8.0 :(
I use to be into freshwater fish keeping years ago but got completely out of the hobby due to my work environment with moving
around a lot. My experience in total is probably 7 to 10 years. I came back into the hobby at the beginning of October by starting up
a 46 gallon bow front community: The tank is completely cycled and the fish are getting along really well! No Discus but there is two
very nice looking Angels. :) I also have a good understanding of the Nitrogen Cycle.

My intent for this post is to seek information as I begin to build a proper home for some Discus. They have been a passion of mine for
a long time but I just couldn't convince myself to take the plunge until now. I will start modest with a 55 gallon. My plan or wish is to
have driftwood and live plants with a substrate of mixed seachem flourite and natural fine gravel. I don't plan on having any co-inhabitants
other than possibly a school of cardinal tetras. This leads to my first question as I have heard different opinions on number of Discus per
gallon ratio. Would four Discus work in a 55 Gallon? This build will be slow and patient as I will be waiting for the 55 to completely cycle
before even dreaming of putting any Discus in the tank. I don't even have the tank yet but I do have a nearly 4 foot long piece of
driftwood that should look nice when submerged.

I don't have the post count that I need for posting photos but my plan is to provide a log/journal with photos from start to finish.

Thanks again for the wonderful site. After searching for a couple of weeks I have determined that this site is easily
number 1 for Discus info.

Cheers.

[Trier20]

Four discus will be fine in a 55. Are you planning on getting adults or juvies? If you're thinking of juvies you might want to start bare bottom for ease of cleaning due to heavy feeding during the growout period.

[Keith Perkins]

I agree with Brandon's comments, but to be honest if you have the option I personally wouldn't choose a 55. With a large piece of driftwood if you're going to try to stick to the 10 gallon per adult discus guideline you really don't have any options going forward, and if you're like most of the rest of us around here you WILL find other discus you just have to have. Now I have a 55, so don't get me wrong it certainly can be done, but a lot of people prefer 75s. The extra 6 inches of tank depth gives you more flexibility and discus seem to do well with the extra room. If you can afford a 75 rather than a 55 I seriously doubt you'll ever regret the decision. Either way, good luck and welcome to SD.

[Teshi]

I agree with Brandon's comments, but to be honest if you have the option I personally wouldn't choose a 55. With a large piece of driftwood if you're going to try to stick to the 10 gallon per adult discus guideline you really don't have any options going forward, and if you're like most of the rest of us around here you WILL find other discus you just have to have. Now I have a 55, so don't get me wrong it certainly can be done, but a lot of people prefer 75s. The extra 6 inches of tank depth gives you more flexibility and discus seem to do well with the extra room. If you can afford a 75 rather than a 55 I seriously doubt you'll ever regret the decision. Either way, good luck and welcome to SD.

+1. And go with at least 6 fish

[Moon]

Welcome to SD. The advice you've so far is good. For a planted tank I would get adult discus.
Best to get your stock from sponsors here or local breeders. There are a few in Ontario.

[DiscusBR]

+1. And go with at least 6 fish

+2

[Curt]

+3 with the 6 fish. I am just starting out for a second go round and I will have around 10 fish I am growing out hopeing to get a couple pairs. I am eventually going to have a 120 gallon aquarium as my display so I am not worried about that many fish. If you can afford to I would get the 75. I am not fond of my 55 and it is going to get used as a grow out tank for mostly crypts now, I am also going to use a second 55 for grow out. The choice is yours but if you have the extra room go for the 75.

Curt

[Carpe_Diem]

Thank you for all the feedback folks.

Looks like I may have been convinced to go with the 75 gallon and 6 X Discus. :)

Cheers.

[johnny911]

+1