does this sound good?(for keeping discus)

[flyhawk]

hi, this is my first post
i have heard so much about this forum

i am just wondering if these tank specs sound good enough for discus

55 gallon
7.8 ph
16 degrees of hardness(fairly hard-chicago water-windy city discus)
1.6 wpg
dose macro/micro ferts
heavily planted
ehiem classic filter
powerhead
temp at 84F
stocking:
1 male Pearl Gourami
4 bleeding heart tetras
3 rummynose tetras(going to get more)
1 pleco-(going to get rid of him)
4 australian rainbowfish
2 siamese algae eaters
3 otos

how many discus?
what size?
will buy from windy city discus!!:)
do u have room for anymore tank mates?
what type would also be good?(cardinals, corys..etc)
how many water changes per week?

thanks so much

[Eddie]

Welcome to Simply!

If you have never kept discus before, I strongly advise on having a discus only, barebottom tank first. In the long run, you will thank me. What size discus are you looking to buy and where will you be getting them?


Eddie

[mmorris]

I agree with Eddie; I wouldn't put any discus in that tank. Most of the fish listed are not suited to discus. I bet it is a lovely tank though. You could put a breeding pair in that tank if you got rid of the SAE's, the ottos, the rainbows and the pleco. I'm not sure about the Pearl Gourami and the bleeding heart - you could do a search in the tankmate section and see what the general consensus is on them. If you buy a pair make sure they are a breeding pair. If you buy two adult discus you may very well see problems develop between them.

[Eddie]

how many discus?

The average is 10 gallons per discus but this can be tricky. Is has alot to do with the filtration, water change routine.

what size?

This would depend, as mentioned above, the 10 gallon rule would put you at 6 but without any of your tankmates.


do u have room for anymore tank mates?

Again, would not advise on any tankmates for a first time discus owner.

what type would also be good?(cardinals, corys..etc)

Same as above

how many water changes per week?

7 :D


Eddie

[Cowillaggn]

Welcome to the forum!
I know I'm not going to be very popular for making this remark, but discus (in MY personal opinion) are pretty easy fish to keep. Personally, I have never kept discus in a bare bottom or even a species tank and I have had alot of success. The two major tricks in my opinion are water and food. The cleaner the water, the happier and more active your discus will be. Same goes for food, only the better the food, not the cleaner :) . The tank sounds good, but I would not get the otto's, as I have heard a lot of "horror stories" involving them and discus. Maybe fewer tetras too, but thats up to you. I would get 5 small discus for that tank because they'll obviously grow.

Good Luck And Have Fun!!! :D

[Eddie]

Sometimes people go to vegas and win big but the majority of the gamblers, go home empty handed and with less than what they started with.

Read this thread entirely and ask yourself, what would you have done different. If you look at the advice given by most of the members, it was not ill advice, just trying to help. Sometimes, you can only help so much.

http://forum.simplydiscus.com/showthread.php?t=72179

Eddie

[Cowillaggn]

That is a REALLY good point though...

[flyhawk]

o my gosh
that has changed my whole outlook
thank you so much eddie

alright-50% water changes 2 times per week?
2-3- 3-3.5 inch discus?
take out pleco, saes.

i would realllly like to keep my tank planted-ive worked so hard at it!!
Any hope?
like i saw from a shipment of kennys discus-4 inch red turq for 52 dollars
should i still dose ferts/(EI?)

[flyhawk]

i also dont think i can do discus-just to expensive for big discus:(
really got my hopes up

[Eddie]

My advice, since you want the planted tank, remove all of the tankmates that Martha mentioned. Keep everything going as is in the planted tank and get another 55 for growing out your discus. Gain experience growing out the 3.5" discus on their own. Getting them eating right and maybe performing at least 3 water changes a week as a minimum with every other day being better. Grow the discus out and then, add the fish to your established planted tank. This would be your best course of action for success IMO.


Eddie

[Scribbles]

My advice, since you want the planted tank, remove all of the tankmates that Martha mentioned. Keep everything going as is in the planted tank and get another 55 for growing out your discus. Gain experience growing out the 3.5" discus on their own. Getting them eating right and maybe performing at least 3 water changes a week as a minimum with every other day being better. Grow the discus out and then, add the fish to your established planted tank. This would be your best course of action for success IMO.


Eddie

I would do this or get rid of the other fish and get a mated pair.

Chris

[flyhawk]

wellll, its just that i dont have the money for a mated pair, let alone a new 55 for growing out young discus

would it be okay to get 2-3 adults, or would this be a disaster waiting to happen?

[mmorris]

As I said earlier, if you buy two (or three) adult discus you may very well see problems develop between them. Expect serious problems if you buy three. I have force-paired discus by putting two adults together that I knew were male and female. If trouble develops, I can move them to a large tank with other discus. You can't, and you may find yourself with two males or two females that most likely are not going to get along. I know you want to keep discus, but something has to give. Clean out and empty your whole set-up and get a half-dozen juvies, or keep your planted tank (minus most of the inhabitants) and spend money on a breeding pair.

[prolude006]

I would save up money in the 300 or so dollar range and then buy a confirmed pair that you really like, might need a bit more for a nicer pair but its worth it. I would keep that tank going until you have the money and then you could add the pair to the tank. I would also remove many of those fish but my ottos have been fine. Read up on care and look at other peoples tanks so you can really decide what you want when you can afford a pair.

[mmorris]

This is what I tore up for discus. Never looked back. :)

[Cowillaggn]

Why didn't you keep discus in that?

[Double Up]

Listen to Eddie, I started with a well established planted tank and put 4 young discus in there. 6 months later and $$$ for meds, qt tank setup, not to mention a huge hassel, no surviving discus. i am currently growing out 8 juvies in a bare-bottom 55 gal. I have had ZERO issues since going BB and my little ones are growing like weeds!!!

[dbfzurowski]

hey,
you can do bb or do fine sand, if you decide bb make sure you paint the bottom:)

[CodOnMyRod]

Flyhawk, just like you I also have a heavily planted tank that I wanted to keep discus in. I ran across some beautiful discus at a LFS and I really wanted to get some for my tank. I came home did a search on google and found Simply. I started reading the forums and kept reading and kept reading. I read for nearly a year and a half before I decided to get some discus. During that time all the questions that I had were answered here, either in past posts or in posts that were being posted by others that were having troubles with their setups and their fish. I learned what to avoid and I also learned what is working for most people. I put all that info together and had a game plan before I even had a tank set up. I learned that putting them in my planted tank was not in the best interest of the fish. So I decided to set up a bare bottom tank just for discus. During that time I was also able to save some money and get a new tank and all the equipment necessary to make sure my discus would be ok.I am not trying to dissuade you from keeping discus.What the others are telling you, is from either their past experience or from what they also have learned from others mistakes. I dont know if you have the space available for another tank, but if you do not want to tear down your planted tank, I would follow the advice of the others and get another tank and keep it bare bottom. I also know that money is not easy to come by, but be patient , save some money, read all you can on here and in the long run everything will work out better. Not trying to tell you what to do, just what worked for me.

Ruben

[flyhawk]

thanks so much for your help!!
im not ripping up my planted tank,
as i have spent 3 years getting to this point!!!

i will get discus someday, but not this year


i thank you again so much, you guys really saved me a probable heartbreak!!