My 90 Gallon Planted - Awaiting Discus!!

[Sharkbait]

So I've come to realize that I've been on this forum and haven't even posted pictures of my tank yet.

90 gallon planted
Fluval FX5
Pressurized C02 through Milwaukee regulator, SMS122 and Aquamedic 1000 reactor

PH: 6.5-6.7
KH: 4
N03: 5-10ppm
PHOS: 0.5ppm

30 Cardinal Tetras
2 Kribensis
2 Clown Loaches
1 Black Ghost Knife
10 Ottos
2 Albino Bushynose
5 Guppies

I'm waiting on getting six discus from April. When they arrive, I'll be sure to update!

Enjoy the photos!

http://photos-c.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc1/hs012.snc1/2917_527370855351_293001460_1609594_7600322_n.jpg

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http://photos-f.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc1/hs012.snc1/2917_527370870321_293001460_1609597_1130997_n.jpg

http://photos-g.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc1/hs012.snc1/2917_527370875311_293001460_1609598_5378122_n.jpg

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[Diskboy12]

Really nice tank, I love all the plants, and your kribs look really nice as well. What kind of lighting do you have on the tank?


-Kevin

[AquatiCreations]

I agree, Stunning tank,and excellent photography. :)

[Darren's Discus]

Beautiful tank,and absolutely stunning photography.



cheers

[Sharkbait]

Really nice tank, I love all the plants, and your kribs look really nice as well. What kind of lighting do you have on the tank?


-Kevin


For lighting I have:

48" 54x2 (108watt) T5-HO Power-Glo
48" 65x4 (260watt) Coralife Aqualight

Works to about 4 watts per gallon. I need that to grow the glosso properly.

Thanks for the comments guys!

[mcsinny99]

Wow! Like the background too. What kind of discus are you getting?

[Sharkbait]

Wow! Like the background too. What kind of discus are you getting?

Six total...

Brilliant Turquoise
2x Red Scribbelt
Red Pigeon Blood
Blue Pigeon Blood
Marlboro Red

I'm getting them from April when I save up enough!

I need to get adults, so they'll be at least 4 inches when I get them.

[calihawker]

Wow! That's super nice!
Great photography!



Steve

[Scribbles]

Beautiful tank and fish. It'll look even better with discus.

Chris

[Sharkbait]

Thanks for the comments guys!

Yeah...I can hardly wait to put the discus in :)

[mcsinny99]

Where's the knife fish? I thought I saw his tail in one of the pics. Like those guys if you can get pic...:)

[Sharkbait]

Where's the knife fish? I thought I saw his tail in one of the pics. Like those guys if you can get pic...:)

Last pic with the albino bushynose, right side. He's a pretty hard guy to get a good picture of because he's jet black. My favourite by far though. He's about 5-6 inches right now. One day he'll get to be 14 inches....one day :)

[cc_woman]

How have you managed to keep your guppies and cardinals with the BGK? Mine devoured all the cardinals I put in at one point. If he hasn't eaten them yet, eventually he probably will. Let me know how your BGK does with your discus, mine was at one point in with them but I think he stressed them out too much because he always wanted to be under the same log the discus liked to hide under lol. I don't think mine cared for him too much :p

[Diamond Discus]

I love your tank and plants. It's beautifully done. Great pictures.

I just sold my BGK, in fact he will be picked up today. I got him last October at around 5 inches. He is around 14 inches long right now. My ghost was my favorite fish until I got the Discus 4 weeks ago. They are an awesome fish...but he really stressed the new Discus. He is active all night while they are trying to rest and he would bite at and ZING the Discus if they got near his log during the day. They have a light electric charge to stun small fish. I went from 50 cardinals to 23 since I have had him. They require a much bigger tank than a 90 gallon as well. I've had him in my 178. The guy who is getting him has a 300 gallon tank for him.

I didn't realize how looming his presence had been in the tank until I removed him. The german blue rams, rainbows and cardinals immediately started swimming in all levels of the tank. They had been at the bottom in the plants or just above ever since the Ghost Knife was added to the tank.

[Sharkbait]

How have you managed to keep your guppies and cardinals with the BGK? Mine devoured all the cardinals I put in at one point. If he hasn't eaten them yet, eventually he probably will. Let me know how your BGK does with your discus, mine was at one point in with them but I think he stressed them out too much because he always wanted to be under the same log the discus liked to hide under lol. I don't think mine cared for him too much :p

My guppies mostly stay near the top 1/4 of the tank whereas my Ghost Knife will stay closer to the bottom until feeding time. My Cardinals..well, that's a mystery. I have some kribs in there as well which have been known to pick off smaller fish, and I had angels in there as well. But, I have had them for 8 months and only lost 5. It could be that they are a decent size and school fairly well.

I'm not sure how well the Ghost Knife will fair with the Discus. I've been given mixed reviews. Since I have an attachment to the little guy, I'm going to see how well he/she does. There are plenty of hiding places in the tank, so all should be well.

[Sharkbait]

I love your tank and plants. It's beautifully done. Great pictures.

I just sold my BGK, in fact he will be picked up today. I got him last October at around 5 inches. He is around 14 inches long right now. My ghost was my favorite fish until I got the Discus 4 weeks ago. They are an awesome fish...but he really stressed the new Discus. He is active all night while they are trying to rest and he would bite at and ZING the Discus if they got near his log during the day. They have a light electric charge to stun small fish. I went from 50 cardinals to 23 since I have had him. They require a much bigger tank than a 90 gallon as well. I've had him in my 178. The guy who is getting him has a 300 gallon tank for him.

I didn't realize how looming his presence had been in the tank until I removed him. The german blue rams, rainbows and cardinals immediately started swimming in all levels of the tank. They had been at the bottom in the plants or just above ever since the Ghost Knife was added to the tank.


Thanks for the comments :) I'm reluctant to give the guy up, but it may come down to it. Mine is 5 inches now and I've had him since October as well. How did you get him to grow so fast? I've started feeding ON Flakes now and I've already seen a difference. I've love to have him at 14 inches. Just to have something that large in my tank....He's always a good subject of conversation, but when you're dealing with $100 fish and a school of cardinals, you gotta make some hard decisions.

It's so weird, because I have moonlighting on the tank, and still never see him out and about at night. From what I've seen, he's almost more active during the day. Probably not true, because he is a nocturnal fish. Just an odd observation.

[Sharkbait]

Update:

I just finished moving and will be ordering my discus soon after I return from vacation in August.

Tankmates are now as follows:

2 Clown loaches (about 4-5 inches each)
30 Cardinal Tetras
5 Guppies
10 ottos
2 Albino Bushynose Plecos (female)
2 Kribs (male and female) with about a dozen or so fry that are growing up.

At first I was thinking six discus (4inches) but I wanted to see if I could add possibly eight with four rams. Is that overstocking it? I'm going to cut back on some of the plants to make more swimming room.

Should I keep the krib fry in the tank when the discus are in there? They're already developing a pecking order within their groups. It's pretty cool to watch :)

[Patr1ck]

Nice Tank and pics. What camera did you use?

Thanks,
Pat

[Sharkbait]

Thanks! I used a Nikon D200


Nice Tank and pics. What camera did you use?

Thanks,
Pat

[GrillMaster]

Just saw your thread and all I can say is you have got the photography skills for sure!! :thumbsup:

I cant wait to see the full shot of the tank with the Discus in it! :)

I think 8 Discus will really push the limit of your tank! I would just do the 6 with the stock you have in there now. They will still be a lil cramped but with good maintenance you should be able to pull it off.

[Sharkbait]

Thanks. I was thinking about the space as well. It's better to have more space then not enough right?



Just saw your thread and all I can say is you have got the photography skills for sure!! :thumbsup:

I cant wait to see the full shot of the tank with the Discus in it! :)

I think 8 Discus will really push the limit of your tank! I would just do the 6 with the stock you have in there now. They will still be a lil cramped but with good maintenance you should be able to pull it off.

[Yassmeena]

Six total...

Brilliant Turquoise
2x Red Scribbelt
Red Pigeon Blood
Blue Pigeon Blood
Marlboro Red

I'm getting them from April when I save up enough!

I need to get adults, so they'll be at least 4 inches when I get them.

Hey there - what a beautiful tank! Very nice work!!!!

About your discus selection, planted tanks effect the coloration of discus mostly I beleive due to the substrate and the bacteria/debris it holds. Any pigeon strain will pepper quite a bit in a tank that heavily planted. Albinos wouldn't darken at all, so that is always a nice option for a planted discus tank. I know some people don't mind peppering, but in case you do something to keep in mind!

Best of luck! Looking fwd to pictures!!!

Yasmin