New to discus

[Jake1]

I am new to discus have had my for 3 weeks. I have 3 Blue Turq and 2 Red Turq. They are no bigger then 3 in right now. Have them in a 10 gal grow out doing 8 gal wc a day using ro with ro right. I have been feeding fbw and bh but they only eat the fbw. So I jest went out and got only fbw and pellet. They are doing good with that but last night when I put there food in they almost jumped out of the tank. Went to sleep not thanking much of it and this morning when I feed them they almost made it out this time! Any other time they are fine not trying to get out having fun swimming. Any ideas?

[Skip]

:idea:get bigger tank..way too small

[Jake1]

Got a 55 they will be going in I was only going to get 3 to do the grow out but the reds looked awesome so I broke down and got them

[Skip]

how long has the 10 gallon being cycling? why are they on in the 55 now?

PS.. welcome to SD!

[Keith Perkins]

:idea:get bigger tank..way too small

+1 Not sure that really has anything to do with them nearly jumping out of the tank when you go to feed them, but the old general rule of thumb is 10 gallons of water per adult discus. You're pushing the record for the most over populated tank in discus keeping history. It's only a matter of time before you permanently stunt your fish or worse keeping them in a 10 gallon tank.

[Jake1]

The 10 has been up and going for 5 months or so. As far as not being in the 55 I still need to get it to my house clean it and set it up do all the fun stuff. I been told by alot of really good discus keepers in Wichita ks that they will be fine in a 10 gal for no more then 3 months. It does not seem like the size is stressing them out they swim and play all day.. I have been keeping reef tanks for the last 2 years.

[rickztahone]

+1 Not sure that really has anything to do with them nearly jumping out of the tank when you go to feed them, but the old general rule of thumb is 10 gallons of water per adult discus. You're pushing the record for the most over populated tank in discus keeping history. It's only a matter of time before you permanently stunt your fish or worse keeping them in a 10 gallon tank.

that record my friend has to go to Derek which kept all his adult checkerboard offspring in a 100g tank i believe. i was trying to find the thread but i couldn't find it.

Still OP, you need a bigger tank, simple as that.

[rickztahone]

The 10 has been up and going for 5 months or so. As far as not being in the 55 I still need to get it to my house clean it and set it up do all the fun stuff. I been told by alot of really good discus keepers in Wichita ks that they will be fine in a 10 gal for no more then 3 months. It does not seem like the size is stressing them out they swim and play all day.. I have been keeping reef tanks for the last 2 years.

you will soon realize that advice you get from outside sources will not get you good sized, healthy discus.

[Jake1]

Ok so you are chalking the almost jumping out my tank ( they would have if I didn't have a cover on it ) due to the size?

[Keith Perkins]

I been told by alot of really good discus keepers in Wichita ks that they will be fine in a 10 gal for no more then 3 months...

You're absolutely not going to get agreement with this statement here at Simply. The 55 might be a little big for them at this point, but it's way way better than a 10. I'd at least have them in a 29.

[hedut]

get 90 gln is good enough for discus :)

[Skip]

3in fish are almost young adults.. keeping 5 in a 10 gallon for 1/4 year.. is no bueno! it should not take you 3 months to clean out a 55g..

heck, some of my fish almost jump out of the 55g! you have older juvies sized fish.. they get scared they dash! the bottom line is they are your fish! you do what you want... if you ask for advice.. you can either take it or ignore it.. in the end its your choice..

then again... if you go them from lfs.. they could be stunted adults that won't grow anymore.. you should take some pics and post them when your count gets up to 10..

[Jake1]

O ok now I understand what you Kent by count 10 I am going to make it

[Jake1]

1

[Jake1]

I have not had the 55 for 3 months I jest got it the other day found out my uncle wanted to sale his.

[Jake1]

The tank was sitting out side all winter long so it needs cleaned real good

[Jake1]

It will take a few days to clean it the way I want to. Bleach then alot of water going in it to clean it all out

[Jake1]

I thank I can post my pic next. In the pic one of my blues is not in it and I have made it a BB since the pic

[Jake1]

http://i1220.photobucket.com/albums/dd453/Jake140/Mobile%20Uploads/0319111817a.jpg

[Keith Perkins]

Well, these are probably good fish to learn with. They're on the lower end of the quality scale as the appear to be stunted already. You can tell that by looking at the eye size versus the space above and below it. If memory serves me correctly the ratio for non-stunted fish is 1 to 7 for that total height area, yours look more like 1 to 4. I don't want you to feel like I'm ripping on you, I'm really not. It's a learning curve everyone goes through.

[Jake1]

I got them from LFS who got them from a breeder in china. No clue why from china

[Altum Nut]

Hey Jake,

I would highly suggest you take the recommendations others here have offered you.
I see 4 discus not 3 which just adds to the problem.
Another note is that neither one is what they were sold to you as. No Blue or Red Turks in that pic.
The 2 blue ones are BD (Blue Diamonds) and the other 2 are ????????
Get that 55g cleaned out very soon.
You will have to transfer the 10g filter???? and all 10g water into the 55g.
If you can age your tap to top-off your 55g that would be great or test your tap and tank water to compare.
Don't forget the water conditioner!
Everyone is here is help you if you want it and it's free.
We all went through the trial and error phase.

...Ralph

[Keith Perkins]

Ralph, can you tell me when that trial and error phase finally ends? LOL On second thought, maybe I've moved out of that phase and into the still occasionally doing stupid stuff phase and just didn't realize it. :) You are definitely right Ralph about the fish not being what they were sold as, but I wouldn't worry about that Jake. The blues are definitely BDs as Ralph has said.

[Jake1]

I don't really care what they are I like them they are amazing looking fish! I am wanting to get my feet wet then move to diff ones

[Fishwhispererpam]

This thread is so entertaining! Jake, there should be a sign by every discus tank in every lfs that says visit SD before purchase!

With all due respect, I'm sure a lot of very experienced folks here on SD bought their very first discus from....??? So just try what they recommend, most of the time it will save your fish, and buy your next fish from a breeder. :)

[Keith Perkins]

That's true, if I had it to do all over again I'd order them from Kenny. It ain't cheap, but the fish are 10X nicer than yours. There nicer than most of mine too, all except for the one I indirectly got from him. :) Awesome fish. If that's too step for you or if you prefer, look at his fish on-line here to learn what awesome fish look like and then see if there are any breeders near you from here on SD and see what there fish look like. Pick up a cheap 29 for your current ones and put the new ones in your 55. You can't have too many discus. :D

[PAR23]

Welcome to SD Jake......

A lot of good advice here for you to think about. I would also get rid of the substrate to maintain highest water quality possible. Don't feed FBW for now until you can get them to accept flake/pellets first. Just keep feeding them a lot of good food and keep up the WC and these guys may reward you at the end. And yeah, get that bigger tank ready, soon.

Why are you using RO water?

Good luck

[Jake1]

My tank is bare bottom that was the 1st day I got them. I still had plants on the tank I was finding a home for. I use ro water for the fact that I jest have to put in a small amount of ro right and heat. Don't like messing with the water. I got some prime reef today tried to feed them and they love it. It's nice cuz my clowns in my reef love it too.

[Elite Aquaria]

Jake1,

Welcome to Simply Discus. I am one of the Moderators here so if you have any questions feel free to send me a PM. Looks like you are off to a great start with your setup. Bare bottom is the way to go with Juvie Discus. I am also a fan of Prime Reef and other Ocean Nutrition flakes and pellets. I agree with the other members here that you should move them into a larger tank.

[Keith Perkins]

Jake - Dan (Elite Aquaria) sells some very nice fish too. Some folks die for the body style he handles. Check them out too. Actually I'd try to check out all the sponsors fish to see what you like. Several sponsors carry different lines of fish with their own characteristics and then it becomes a matter of taste. I prefer Kenny's fish for there characteristics, but that's just me.

[PAR23]

I use ro water for the fact that I jest have to put in a small amount of ro right and heat. Don't like messing with the water.

RO water is not necessary especially if you are growing out your fish. They would benefit from harder water as they develop.