Jameson
01-10-2003, 12:55 PM
Went to the breeder two days ago and purchased four more discus. 1 Red Royal blue, Two German Red Turq, and One Wattley Turquoise. This man had one INCREDIBLE setup with fish shimmying and breeding in front of my very own eyes, and not just one pair, Three were tending to large hatches of fertilized eggs and fry in 120gal tanks eating beefheart, babies eating slime, babies stuffed in corners, tanks cleaned to perfection... A perfect setup, and he uses the local water (he lives 15 mins away) with the same parameters as mine, and agrees I am doing the right this with acid buffer to lower mine (he uses sodium biphosphate [if I remember]) and that causes blooms in my plant tank.
I had no reasons to not belive his wattley statements as he has doccumentation and pics with the man e.t.c. and his fish are all fargon perfect. He has pairs for $4k I was amazed, I didnt count but there were at least two dozen tanks with large pairs all in some stage of mating. He pairs them in three 200gal tanks then tanks the pairs and they spawn, babies are ALL raised with parents on slime then bbs, to flake/beefheart and treats of bloodworms a couple times a week, then beefheart tetrabits, and the BREEDER told me as they get bigger they will get smart and wait you out for the meaty beefheart or bloodworms, or shrimp. He also told me the size I bought (about 4-5 month old 2.5-3.5" maybe bigger I'm not sure) would NOT eat flake anymore. Well in my tank they gobble it up like candy ONF1/BSplus/Primereef varieties, as well as ONF1 frozen food.
My situation:
55gal planted tank (medium planted)
Driftwood (15"l x 3"-1" tapering width)
PH: 6.2 always-new fish it is 6.0
Hardness: 3deg KH
3deg GH
Temp: 84
Lighting: 130Watt Sealife Compact Fluorescent
Filtration: Fluval 204 w/ Matrix biomedia (2 compartments), lower compartment stuffed with bluebonded filter material, and two spnges fore. The intake is covered with a Filter max small size which is cleaned weekley, sponges squeezed monthly in fluval. I also run a powerhead for an hour on an hour off on the opposite side of tank parallel to gravel with duckbill output that flushes the debris toward pre-filter sponge.
Co2: Power reactor with rio 50 powerhead and 10#bottle.
Water change: Every other day or third day 30% with extensive vaccum of surface. I feed in two small clay high sided dishes the frozen ONF1 and it stays in or near the dish and aids in food not getting lost in gravel. I move the sipon around rooth and use the siphon tube to get the upper half of the gravel OR deeper. I really do this well.
Plants: Cabomba Carolinia
Ruffled Amazon Sword
Amazon Sword
Rotala Indica
Anubias Nana
Giant Saggitaria
Crypt Balanese
Crypt Blassi
Crypt Willisi (?)
Echinodorus Rubin
All of these grow weel in the heat and lighting. In my opinion, as long as they have enough Co2 (I DON't USE MUCH EITHER though I have never tested it it is a couple bubbles a minute in my bubble counter never wanted to wait and watch as the reactor I use uses every last bit) they will survive. The lack of co2 at high temps is the killer of most plants, as well as light needed to use the co2 to grow, and the nutrients like potassium which is most lacking in city waters and is impossible to overdose and lead to algea.
Gravel substrate 1"-2.5" tapering back
Fish: 16 Cardinal Tetras (4 months)
2 Clown Loaches 2"&4"
2 Cories
1 Bristlenose Pleco 3"
1 Clown pleco 1.5"
6-10 Otocinclus (4 months or longer)
6 or more amano shrimp
Discus Fish: LFS =One Pigeonblood 3", One Blue Diamond 2", One Red Turq 2.5", All happy and healthy for over five months now. Breeder fish listed above (four all in the 2.5-3.5" range) for a total of seven.
I removed two discus a 3" PB and a 2.5" wild as they were being meanies. They are in my 30gal quarantine (sponge filter) I lower my tap ph with acid buffer. The discus in my show tank are setting up a pecking order but feeding happily in between. When I have been observing them they are happy and the new ones show usually only the stripe on there heads and no body stripes. They arent fully colored up yet but there patterns are beautiful. The storebought ones were brighter when I bought them months ago from hormone food I think but they lost that but still have nice colors and patterns, the breeder ones will turn out nicer for sure, since I saw daddy and mommy in the first place makes me feel good. And under my bright lighting their turquoise and patterns look insane.
Is this a good water change schedule? The breeder does 20% a day from vaccuming up the debris in his barebottom/sponge setup. Told me if I flip the tank water once a week I am safe. I get no PH fluctuation, Algae requires a swipe or two once a week when i wipe off all sides of tank, then I siphon after that anyway...
Basically I want to know if I am doing the right things to get them on there way. I fertilize with potassium only (flourish) and my plants grow very well, and have been for nearly six months. The tank is setup for ten months with numerous different angelfish. I vortex the water (diatom filter) and mix the gravel up totally every two weeks or more, I havent had algea blooms of any sort in over three months and I think I have my balance figured out with water changes and everything.
What I really want to do is remove the ugly piece of driftwood from the tank as the plants are so beautiful. The driftwood looks ugly to me and I hate having to move it when I clean and just want to get it out of there. Will I experience any PH fluctuation or any water quality suffrage from doing this? Is this wood biologically helping? It has been in there since two weeks after setting up the tank, it is malaysian driftwood which was heavy and dense when I bought it and released tannins into the bucket I soaked it in (it floated for a day) and took a lot of wire brushing and resoaking for a week until i felt safe and it realesed no tannins e.t.c. I know it is a safe piece of wood, but will the tank be safe if I remove it? I dont want it further softening my already soft tap water. I know this is a long one but I had these questions and this place is the one to come for answers IMO.
In closing I have checked many a message board and been lurking here for three months, and you people here are the most knwledgeable on the net about htis subject. And are most willing to help out. I went to a breeder who obviously was a professional, and he told me what I had read here over and over, this proves to me that you have things figured out and it amazes me everyone is so willing to share there information for free. I hope to engage in many furthre discussions here and would like to thank the host and Administrator for having us and mention to him that without all the knowledgeable people who visit and post these message boards for all hobbyists would be for not. Thanks for the time.
Sincerely,
J. Carnes
I had no reasons to not belive his wattley statements as he has doccumentation and pics with the man e.t.c. and his fish are all fargon perfect. He has pairs for $4k I was amazed, I didnt count but there were at least two dozen tanks with large pairs all in some stage of mating. He pairs them in three 200gal tanks then tanks the pairs and they spawn, babies are ALL raised with parents on slime then bbs, to flake/beefheart and treats of bloodworms a couple times a week, then beefheart tetrabits, and the BREEDER told me as they get bigger they will get smart and wait you out for the meaty beefheart or bloodworms, or shrimp. He also told me the size I bought (about 4-5 month old 2.5-3.5" maybe bigger I'm not sure) would NOT eat flake anymore. Well in my tank they gobble it up like candy ONF1/BSplus/Primereef varieties, as well as ONF1 frozen food.
My situation:
55gal planted tank (medium planted)
Driftwood (15"l x 3"-1" tapering width)
PH: 6.2 always-new fish it is 6.0
Hardness: 3deg KH
3deg GH
Temp: 84
Lighting: 130Watt Sealife Compact Fluorescent
Filtration: Fluval 204 w/ Matrix biomedia (2 compartments), lower compartment stuffed with bluebonded filter material, and two spnges fore. The intake is covered with a Filter max small size which is cleaned weekley, sponges squeezed monthly in fluval. I also run a powerhead for an hour on an hour off on the opposite side of tank parallel to gravel with duckbill output that flushes the debris toward pre-filter sponge.
Co2: Power reactor with rio 50 powerhead and 10#bottle.
Water change: Every other day or third day 30% with extensive vaccum of surface. I feed in two small clay high sided dishes the frozen ONF1 and it stays in or near the dish and aids in food not getting lost in gravel. I move the sipon around rooth and use the siphon tube to get the upper half of the gravel OR deeper. I really do this well.
Plants: Cabomba Carolinia
Ruffled Amazon Sword
Amazon Sword
Rotala Indica
Anubias Nana
Giant Saggitaria
Crypt Balanese
Crypt Blassi
Crypt Willisi (?)
Echinodorus Rubin
All of these grow weel in the heat and lighting. In my opinion, as long as they have enough Co2 (I DON't USE MUCH EITHER though I have never tested it it is a couple bubbles a minute in my bubble counter never wanted to wait and watch as the reactor I use uses every last bit) they will survive. The lack of co2 at high temps is the killer of most plants, as well as light needed to use the co2 to grow, and the nutrients like potassium which is most lacking in city waters and is impossible to overdose and lead to algea.
Gravel substrate 1"-2.5" tapering back
Fish: 16 Cardinal Tetras (4 months)
2 Clown Loaches 2"&4"
2 Cories
1 Bristlenose Pleco 3"
1 Clown pleco 1.5"
6-10 Otocinclus (4 months or longer)
6 or more amano shrimp
Discus Fish: LFS =One Pigeonblood 3", One Blue Diamond 2", One Red Turq 2.5", All happy and healthy for over five months now. Breeder fish listed above (four all in the 2.5-3.5" range) for a total of seven.
I removed two discus a 3" PB and a 2.5" wild as they were being meanies. They are in my 30gal quarantine (sponge filter) I lower my tap ph with acid buffer. The discus in my show tank are setting up a pecking order but feeding happily in between. When I have been observing them they are happy and the new ones show usually only the stripe on there heads and no body stripes. They arent fully colored up yet but there patterns are beautiful. The storebought ones were brighter when I bought them months ago from hormone food I think but they lost that but still have nice colors and patterns, the breeder ones will turn out nicer for sure, since I saw daddy and mommy in the first place makes me feel good. And under my bright lighting their turquoise and patterns look insane.
Is this a good water change schedule? The breeder does 20% a day from vaccuming up the debris in his barebottom/sponge setup. Told me if I flip the tank water once a week I am safe. I get no PH fluctuation, Algae requires a swipe or two once a week when i wipe off all sides of tank, then I siphon after that anyway...
Basically I want to know if I am doing the right things to get them on there way. I fertilize with potassium only (flourish) and my plants grow very well, and have been for nearly six months. The tank is setup for ten months with numerous different angelfish. I vortex the water (diatom filter) and mix the gravel up totally every two weeks or more, I havent had algea blooms of any sort in over three months and I think I have my balance figured out with water changes and everything.
What I really want to do is remove the ugly piece of driftwood from the tank as the plants are so beautiful. The driftwood looks ugly to me and I hate having to move it when I clean and just want to get it out of there. Will I experience any PH fluctuation or any water quality suffrage from doing this? Is this wood biologically helping? It has been in there since two weeks after setting up the tank, it is malaysian driftwood which was heavy and dense when I bought it and released tannins into the bucket I soaked it in (it floated for a day) and took a lot of wire brushing and resoaking for a week until i felt safe and it realesed no tannins e.t.c. I know it is a safe piece of wood, but will the tank be safe if I remove it? I dont want it further softening my already soft tap water. I know this is a long one but I had these questions and this place is the one to come for answers IMO.
In closing I have checked many a message board and been lurking here for three months, and you people here are the most knwledgeable on the net about htis subject. And are most willing to help out. I went to a breeder who obviously was a professional, and he told me what I had read here over and over, this proves to me that you have things figured out and it amazes me everyone is so willing to share there information for free. I hope to engage in many furthre discussions here and would like to thank the host and Administrator for having us and mention to him that without all the knowledgeable people who visit and post these message boards for all hobbyists would be for not. Thanks for the time.
Sincerely,
J. Carnes