Quarantine tank size

[Offpath]

Hi,

I'm new to discus, and I'm trying to do as much research as possible before actually taking the plunge. My eventual plan at this point is to have 6-8 discus in a 120 gallon tank, so I'm looking at getting 8 juvenile discus.

What size quarantine tank is necessary, assuming I'm doing a 4-6 week quarantine and am doing regular water changes? Everything I've read recommends 10 gallons per adult discus, but I don't know if that number applies to juveniles, as well. I'd rather not purchase a 60+ gallon tank/filter/heater that I only use for the initial quarantine.

Also, would it be reasonable to get the discus in two batches of 4, instead of all at once, in order to decrease the size of the quarantine tank? Or would the 6-week difference in age cause problems when I add the second batch?

Thanks in advance!

[Eddie]

I'd get them all at the same time. Depending on their size (3" or greater), you could get away with a 40 breeder or 55 gallon for QT. If you get 8 that are small, around 2 inches, a 29 would work for QT.

Eddie

[Ed13]

I'd get them all at the same time. Depending on their size (3" or greater), you could get away with a 40 breeder or 55 gallon for QT. If you get 8 that are small, around 2 inches, a 29 would work for QT.

Eddie
What he said!:D I def think 40 breeder or 55g are the best sized for Qt

[waters10]

Do you have that 120g tank running, with fish already? If not, and it's a brand new one, you could just do a fishless cycle, buy your discus and put them in there. That will be your QT tank.

If it's not setup, but it held other fish before, you could remove everything, bleach it, then do a fishless cycle and add discus.

If it's setup and running, then you need to QT .... But, if you have only a few fish there, like tetras and coryes, you could move them to a smaller tank, like a 29-40g, bleach the 120g, do a fishless cycle and add discus straight to the 120g.


You didn't say what size of discus, but even smaller ones, I think they would be fine in a 120g by themselves ... Some people prefer to grow them out in smaller tanks, but not sure if it's crucial to do that.

[Offpath]

I'm doing my planning well in advance and haven't even purchased the 120 or any of the gear for it yet. However, I'm planning on making it a planted tank, so I thought it'd be easier to setup the plants and an algae clean-up crew at the same time as the discus are in quarantine. I also figured it'd be better to quarantine in a bare-bottom tank, and if there are any problems, 120 gallons seems like a lot of water to medicate.

[waters10]

I'm doing my planning well in advance and haven't even purchased the 120 or any of the gear for it yet. However, I'm planning on making it a planted tank, so I thought it'd be easier to setup the plants and an algae clean-up crew at the same time as the discus are in quarantine. I also figured it'd be better to quarantine in a bare-bottom tank, and if there are any problems, 120 gallons seems like a lot of water to medicate.
You can tackle this in multiple ways. It seems like you're planning to raise juvies on a planted tank. It's possible to do that and you can find many success stories around here. But it's harder and usually requires experience to avoid stunted discus, or even death/disease. Bare bottom grow out is the usual recommendation for new discus owners.

Other options:

1) You could set up the 120g bare bottom and turn it into planted when they reach 4-5".

2) You could get a smaller tank, 40-55g bare bottom, grow them out, while working on the 120g planted at the same time.

If you go with option 1, get a 20-30g tank to act as hospital, so if you do need to medicate, transfer the sick fish to that tank.

If you go with option 2, you have the chance of learning both planted (maybe you know a lot about planted tanks already) and discus at the same time.

You said you're new to discus, but how new are you to keeping other fish? If you decide to raise juvies on the planted tank, read a lot to compensate for your lack of experience with discus.

Good luck either way!

[Darrell Ward]

I strongly feel it would be a mistake for a novice to try to grow out discus in a planted tank. I won't even attempt to do this, and I've had discus for years. I'm not a big fan of discus in a planted tank anyway. I would also suggest you grow them out first before throwing them into a planted tank. It'll be much easier, and chances are your fish will grow much faster and bigger as well.

[Offpath]

Hi waters10,

First of all, thanks for your feedback and suggestions. I'm reasonably experienced with planted tanks and with fish smaller and less sensitive than discus. In my experience, planted tanks take a while to stabilize and require a bunch of fidgeting with fertilizers, lighting, etc., at first, so I'd rather not subject the discus to that. I think this rules out option 1.

With option 2, how long could I keep 6-8 discus in a 40g or 55g? I keep hearing the 10g/discus number tossed around, so I assumed such a tank would be way too cramped long before they reached adult size. If a 40-55g QT + grow-out tank would really work, then maybe that would be the safest option.

[Darrell Ward]

I'm obouisly not "waters", but 10 gal. per discus is only a guideline. Provided you maintain good water quality, you should have no problem growing 6-8 fish to 4-5" in a 55. Many have done it. It should be noted that far not much more money, a 75 gal. makes a better grow out tank, primarily for it's greater width.

[waters10]

Hi waters10,

First of all, thanks for your feedback and suggestions. I'm reasonably experienced with planted tanks and with fish smaller and less sensitive than discus. In my experience, planted tanks take a while to stabilize and require a bunch of fidgeting with fertilizers, lighting, etc., at first, so I'd rather not subject the discus to that. I think this rules out option 1.

With option 2, how long could I keep 6-8 discus in a 40g or 55g? I keep hearing the 10g/discus number tossed around, so I assumed such a tank would be way too cramped long before they reached adult size. If a 40-55g QT + grow-out tank would really work, then maybe that would be the safest option.
If you wait till the discus are adults, they can go through the process of switching from bare bottom to planted. Some have done it here. I'll be doing it soon. As long as you keep water quality, they'll do fine.

Like Darrel said, the 10g/discus is a guideline, not a hard rule. But more importantly, it's usually applied to adults. With 2" fish, you could grow them out on a 40g. You will have to move them out when they are around 4" or so. A 55g would be much better though. Easier to maintain water quality and you could extend their grow out period.

[Offpath]

Ok, thanks everyone for the advice. I'll see what I can find that will fit within both my budget and my house. One last question: how long can I expect it to take for discus to go from juvenile to 4-5"?

[waters10]

Ok, thanks everyone for the advice. I'll see what I can find that will fit within both my budget and my house. One last question: how long can I expect it to take for discus to go from juvenile to 4-5"?
That depends on a lot of factors, like strain, genetics, water quality, food quality, etc. Discus are capable of growing 1" per month for the first 3 months then it goes down to 0.5" per month after that.

I personally never was able to reach those rates. I think those rates require a ton of food (6-8 feedings/day) plus massive water changes. If your using those rates to calculate when you'd be moving fish around, keep in mind that in a group of 8, they won't follow the same growth curve, even if they are siblings. So consider some type of fudge factor!

[TacoLoco7]

Hi all, I'm new to this new forum thingy. I just need some help on getting opinions. So I'm planning to get discus and I only have a spare 10 gallon tank. I'm 15! My parents wont let me get a larger QT tank because I live in an apartment and there is no more space for a larger one. I have a lightly planted 55 gallon tank and planning to get 5 2.5"-3" discus. Will the discus be fine in a 10 gallon QT tank for 4-6 weeks?

[coralbandit]

Are there other fish in the 55 that prevents you from just putting them right in it ?
I would think the ten gallon will present several problems .
Welcome to the forum thingy !

[peewee1]

Hi all, I'm new to this new forum thingy. I just need some help on getting opinions. So I'm planning to get discus and I only have a spare 10 gallon tank. I'm 15! My parents wont let me get a larger QT tank because I live in an apartment and there is no more space for a larger one. I have a lightly planted 55 gallon tank and planning to get 5 2.5"-3" discus. Will the discus be fine in a 10 gallon QT tank for 4-6 weeks?

I bet that if you got a 15 gallon tank and tell mom and pop that is was 10 gallons they would not know the difference. Five in a 15 at 3 inches would be okay with water changes and filtration. Or create a diversion. Get the 15 and tell your parents that you are 10. Bait and switch. Seriously, Tom asks a reasonable question regarding what is in the 55? If no other Discus why would you quarantine?