4ft long tank for discus?

[greenphantom1994]

hi guys looking at getting a larger tank. thinking of something 4ft long, 2ft high and 18' width. how many adult discus would happily live in this size tank? bearing in mind I will be keeping 2 plecos and a shoal of tetras in the tank aswell. also im thinking of either a bare bottom tank or sand. think my stone/gravel days have ran its course. thanks for any replys. I could be getting this tank within a couple of days if im lucky, so any quick replys would be much appreciated.

[DiscusLoverJeff]

Sounds like you want a 90 gallon tank. That would be good for 8 to 9 adults.

[Second Hand Pat]

A 90 gallon tank is exactly those dimensions. You could do eight or so comfortably. Are you adding a sump?

[Rudustin]

Are these adult discus or juveniles. I personally would not do any more than eight adults in a 90 gallon. Rufus.

[fishtanktenderfoot]

Hi GreenPhantom, that is about the size of my aquarium, although mine is 25" high. I think they call it a 93G. I have 7 4-5" discus on order for it, and I plan to add a couple of rams and about 12 cardinals someday in the future. I used this site below for stocking info. I found it on SD when someone posted it a while ago. I found it very useful, but I'm not sure if everyone here agrees or not. But it is a good guideline to get started, I think! It does all of its calculations based on adult discus, though. So if you want stocking levels for juveniles, I'm not sure it will help that much. Good luck with your new tank! Here's the link:
http://www.aqadvisor.com/

Sam

[greenphantom1994]

Thanks for all your replys. Pat, I have never had a tank with a sump before, all my tanks have had internal chamber filters. But I do plan for this tank to have a sump. Is that a good thing? I'm hoping the guy from my local store will set it up for me. As it's a completely new route. Also do you guys think sand would be a good addition to the tank? I'm thinking it will be easy enough to vacuum clean. Just a thought!

[Second Hand Pat]

Thanks for all your replys. Pat, I have never had a tank with a sump before, all my tanks have had internal chamber filters. But I do plan for this tank to have a sump. Is that a good thing? I'm hoping the guy from my local store will set it up for me. As it's a completely new route. Also do you guys think sand would be a good addition to the tank? I'm thinking it will be easy enough to vacuum clean. Just a thought!

Some people like sumps and some don't. I would suggest letting your LFS guy walk you through one which is already setup. I bet there is one setup in the store. I personally like sumps but people do get concerned about them leaking at the connection points. Many sumps have places you can place a mesh bag or filter batting (in a tray) for filtering junk from the water column which keeps the sump clean.

I keep a very thin layer of sand in my adult tanks but I keep wilds. It's really a personal choice but BB is easier to keep clean.

[greenphantom1994]

Thanks! I have heard that sumps can also be loud with the constant noise of dripping water. Does it make filtration alot better than a chamber filter or large high quality internal clip on filters?

[DiscusLoverJeff]

The only thing that makes my sump loud is the water action on my protein skimmer, but that's for a reef tank.

Sun-Sun makes a good large canister filter for $69.00 on Amazon. That would be sufficient for a 90 gal tank if you decide the sump is to loud.

[adapted]

My experience is that all of the filter varieties can provide adequate filtration for a reasonably stocked discus tank. Some prefer hang-on-the-backs like an Aquaclear 110 for ease of service, some prefer canisters so they can use inline heaters or UV sterilizers. some prefer sumps so they can get unsightly items out of display tanks.

Filtration usually cannot match water changes in keeping water clean, so most discus owners generally depend on filters less than keepers of other fish.

[sdrexler078]

My canister is louder than my sump. I love my sump but I also love sponge filters. Anything to make it easy is what I go with

[greenphantom1994]

pat, how do you go about cleaning your sand? I imagine that when vaccuming the waste, you would also vaccum all the sand out aswell?

[Second Hand Pat]

pat, how do you go about cleaning your sand? I imagine that when vaccuming the waste, you would also vaccum all the sand out aswell?

I use one of the gravel cleaners from petsmart and use a long 1/2 inside diameter hose to drain outside. My sand is generally no more then a 1/2 inch or so thick. I usually suck up all the sand into the cleaner in a small area then dump it back in the same place.