Not new to fish but new to discus.

[Gil]

So let me introduce myself... Name is Gil and I'm new to Simply Discus and new to discus.
Of course I have lots of questions even though I have been in the fish hobby for decades, yes I'm an old guy.

Two months ago I purchased eight small 2" discus from a trusted local breeder, not a LFS, four of them are doing great, 2 have died and there are two that look as if they won't last long either since they hardly eat, they are getting skinny and dark.
The other four are doing very nice, fins expanded, nice colors are starting to show, spunky and eat anything I drop in the tank.

Here is a description of their habitat...

55g tank
temp 86-88f
Two Fluval 204 running biological only, no carbon.
PH steady 7.4 no buffers, some driftwood.
Light 1/2 sand bottom

I usually change 5 gallons and vacuum the bottom on a daily basis with a bigger water change every week, I treat with Prime, don't use any medicines, chemicals, snake oil etc.

Been feeding frozen bloodworms, some frozen brine shrimp and they love Marine Flakes with garlic. I feed small amounts or till I see a little bulge on their bellies 4-5 times daily.

My questions...

What would you guys change or am I in the right track as far as a healthy (as I can make it) habitat for them?

And, Not counting deceases, Is the survival rate for small discus less than that of other fish or again, could something that I'm doing be changed?

I'd like to get more discus but I'd rather start slow and learn from mistakes before adding any more.

Thanks in advance.

[DiscusLoverJeff]

Hello Gil and welcome to SD.

I would up your water changes to 50% a day or more if you can. The grow out stage is critical to healthy and good shaped discus. That is why water changes are very important. Your temp seems a bit to high as well. Lower it 82/84 range. Other than that, looks good so far.

[Gil]

Thanks for the advice. Wow 50% seems like a lot but I have the time for now so will give that a go. I guess this is a crucial stage for them.
Thanks again.

[DiscusLoverJeff]

It is critical for proper growth.

Read some of the "Stickie" threads in the beginners section. Lots of advice there. If you have more questions, just ask the forum.

[SortSay2003]

Hi Gil,

Welcome to SD.

You might want to consider putting the two "thinning" discus into another (smaller tank) and see if you can nurse them back to health. Also smaller discus requires more TLC than adults. When you do get more discus in the future and want to grow them out yourself, you should try the 3-4" range (at least) and see how that goes. I think you'll find it a little less worrysome. Never the less, they will require: Space+Clean Water+Food= GROWTH. Give yourself room for 10-12gal per adult discus.

Good luck and enjoy your experience with discus:)

[Elliots]

As your fisdh grow you will probably need a bigger tank.

[Gil]

Hi Gil,

Welcome to SD.

You might want to consider putting the two "thinning" discus into another (smaller tank) and see if you can nurse them back to health. Also smaller discus requires more TLC than adults. When you do get more discus in the future and want to grow them out yourself, you should try the 3-4" range (at least) and see how that goes. I think you'll find it a little less worrysome. Never the less, they will require: Space+Clean Water+Food= GROWTH. Give yourself room for 10-12gal per adult discus.

Good luck and enjoy your experience with discus:)

So anything in the 2 inch range is a risk?
Looks Like out of the eight juveniles I might wind up with two or three. Not a good rate.

[Rudustin]

Not necessarily. It is a question of water changes. Young discus require an great deal of fresh water and very pristine tank space. I have discus that I have grown out from the 2.5 to three inch to adults. Water change, water change, water change. At least thirty to fifty percent every day. In some cases in order to grow out quality discus I have changed fifty percent twice daily. Two inch discus need more water changes than adults in general because they eat so much and eliminate waste as well. I would also suggest that frozen blood worms are not a good idea as a main food. They are not ultimately very nutritious. Beef heart is a great way to get discus to grow quickly along with frequent water changes. Good luck.
So anything in the 2 inch range is a risk?
Looks Like out of the eight juveniles I might wind up with two or three. Not a good rate.

[Aeon]

where did you get your discus? If they were of weak stock they might have been doomed from the start anyway. I have read stories of people who nearly gave up on discus because of high mortality rates and soon realized after getting better stock that they are quite hardy

[John_Nicholson]

Long story short......If you bought 8 healthy discus and handled them correctly you should have 8 healthy discus today. The only difference is they should be roughly 2 inches bigger. If they are not then they either were not healthy or you are not doing a good job of raising them. First oops is they are much easier to raise in a bare bottom tank. Second the diet is lacking. The best thing in my opinion is a good homemade beef heart mix. Also no need to keep them that hot. 82-84 is more than fine. Forth....you are not changing near enough water........

-john

[Gil]

Ok so looks like I have my work cut out for me. I have increased the daily water changes, as far as feeding, they eat just about everything with the exception of beef heart, I'll keep trying giving them beef heart more often and see how that goes. I'll post again with results. Thanks guys.