water smell

[vandiscus]

Hello everyone,

I have a 25 gallon aquarium with 6( 1 inch) discus. I do a 10% water change only because I got a waterline connect to a cold water pipe so I only do 10% water change to prevent dramatic water temperature different. The water seem to smell a little but its clear. Is that a sign of bad water quality? Thanks for your help.

[Willie]

If the water smells, you've got to change it.

You can take out all but the last inch of water and 2.5 gal, wait for it to warm, then add another 2.5 gal... But in the long run, your system is not sustainable.

You need to make large water changes every day or every other day to get 1" discus to grow. Either get another system or try African cichlids. This is not going to work.

Willie

[vandiscus]

Thanks for they reply. Okay I think I am going to have a container to cycle my water to have the same temperature as the tank so I can do large amount of water change and place near the tank and just pump it into the tank when needed. Is that a better idea? Yeah I notice my discus haven't grow all that much. Thanks.

[LizStreithorst]

That'll work!

[tcyiu]

... The water seem to smell a little but its clear. Is that a sign of bad water quality?

I agree that WC is a key element to good health.

As for the smell, it depends. Mine has a faint smell reminiscent of lake water. That's just natural. If your tank water smells like an old musty aquarium store then you need to act.

Tim

[vandiscus]

My tank water does not smell using my nose to sniff it but when I touch it with my hands then I can smell it, but now with 40% water change daily it do not smell anymore. Looking good and discus don't seem to be hiding in the corner anymore.

[DiscusOnly]

Saw pictures of your auto WC and discus. You need to do a lot more WC for those discus. Doing 10% daily isn't going to cut it for 1" discus. Those discus look like they are in very poor environment. Forget the auto wc for now and do at least 50% wc daily.

[vandiscus]

Yes you're right! I took out the auto system and just using the manual valve to add water to the cyclying container. Now I am doing 40-50% water change daily. I will also adding an auto feeder so I can feed them more often. Thank you vlam.

[Harriett]

I have a dozen 1" baby scribbelt discus [from Bill Palumbo] in a 20g right now until they get a little bigger. I am chiming in about the water changes to add that keeping the water pristine not only to protect them from falling ill, but because the more water you change, the better they grow--I change 85-90% every day or two for this tank.
Best regards,
Harriett

[DiscusOnly]

I have a dozen 1" baby scribbelt discus [from Bill Palumbo] in a 20g right now until they get a little bigger. I am chiming in about the water changes to add that keeping the water pristine not only to protect them from falling ill, but because the more water you change, the better they grow--I change 85-90% every day or two for this tank.
Best regards,
Harriett

Agree. I have juvies that are in 20 gal tank with 2-3 times daily WC versus others that are in 75gal with daily WC. With the combination of genetics, food and WC, their size differences is night and day. I have 3" pigeon that have almost no color to them cause they are not even 3 months old.

[vandiscus]

Agree. I have juvies that are in 20 gal tank with 2-3 times daily WC versus others that are in 75gal with daily WC. With the combination of genetics, food and WC, their size differences is night and day. I have 3" pigeon that have almost no color to them cause they are not even 3 months old.

wow!3" and less than 3 months old, that's amazing. I guess I should increase my wc to 80-90 percent.

[Jhhnn]

Young discus need enormous quantities of food and very good water quality, all at the same time, if they're to thrive, and to grow out properly. It's almost a contradiction in terms.

That means changing a lot of water, siphoning away a lot of detritus. There are ways to reduce the need to change water- ozone, live plants, algae filters, lots of space per fish, but the need for it is still there.

For those of us who live where water is inexpensive, the best answer is to develop and invest in a water changing system, a method that makes the process quick and easy. If we don't, then we don't do it consistently over time, and we don't, can't, get the results we want.

At least, that's been my experience so far. My own system is fairly elaborate, even by discus keeper standards, but I stay well into the safe range wrt water quality, feed a lot, and my fish thrive...