New tank

[neon]

I have a 55gal tank that I would like to setup for discus. How many discus can I put in my 55gal? Also what are good tankmates for discus? This will be my first discus tank.

[Ryan]

Hi,

I would first suggest reading Carol's thread in this board called "How do I set up my first discus tank?" Here is a link:

http://forum.simplydiscus.com//showthread.php?t=28937

As a newcomer to discus, I would recommend only keeping them with other discus. You want to start with about 6 young fish and raise them up. It's best to save your money and get them all at once. If you bring them home a couple at a time, you have to quarantine the new fish or run the risk of disease. Also, discus have a pecking order, where there are "ranks." The more discus you have, the less aggression you will see. Only having 3 or 4 fish can lead to one fish being stressed too much if it's being harassed by its tankmates.

A 55 gallon should be fine for 6 discus if you provide an adequate amount of food and fresh water with water changes.

Ryan

[hexed]

Hi and welcome to Simply!

Carol's thread that Ryan mentioned will help you set up your first. She is the human discus encyclopedia LOL! Love ya Carol!
As far as tankmates, I myself would hold off only because if you get young discus they need to be fed a lot and need a lot of water changes. If a tank mate gets sick you could loose some discus and that isn't really worth losing.
I would concentrate on the discus first and once you get the hang of it, then add some tank mates, be sure that you have a 10 gallon tank set up for quarantine and have the tank mates in there for at least 3 - 4 weeks. This is so if they have any illness you can treat them BEFORE you add them to your discus tank.
Frank