Discus Gasping for Air

[nabilbb]

Hi All,

two times when I woke up in the morning I found all my Discus facing the surface and looks like they are gasping for air

first times I immediately did 25% water change and they were ok
second time I raised the output of the filter (eheim professional 2) above the surface to make splash on the surfave and they were ok

here is my conclusion
the output being below the surface of the water, there will be no exchange or oxygen can't be defused into water and eventually oxygen level will be low. but with the splash happening above the surface, it allows diffusion of oxygen into water.

Is this correct?

Thank you

[DISCUS STU]

Sounds right. The spray bars need to agitate the surface for air and water to interact.

I always run an airstone, sometimes two, to prevent problems like this. Before I ran airstones religiously I added some "Discus Trace" and the next morning found half my fry dead and the parents gasping at the surface for air. Something in this mixture depletes air/oxygen content in the water.

[rickztahone]

Sounds right. The spray bars need to agitate the surface for air and water to interact.

I always run an airstone, sometimes two, to prevent problems like this. Before I ran airstones religiously I added some "Discus Trace" and the next morning found half my fry dead and the parents gasping at the surface for air. Something in this mixture depletes air/oxygen content in the water.

Running air stones helps with this problem. Since it is mainly at night, I must ask, do you have plants in this tank? Plants tend to use up a whole lot of oxygen during dark hours and can cause this problem. This is why many times, it is recommended to elevate the output line above the water to cause splashing. This is very common with lily pipes and in ADA tanks which use a lot of co2 injection.

[nabilbb]

No, no plants in the tank