discus keeping

[hellstorm]

im plannin to get a 55 gal, 100 by 44 by 50cm and im gonna get a few discus, and clown loaches(do clown loaches do they same thing as corys?)
ppl say discus are very hard to take care of, is this true
im a beginner but i know the basics to keeping fish, cycling, pH, diet for fish etc. would i be able to handle discus?

they need a pH of 6.5-6.6 how do i mantain that pH? how do u change the pH from water changes?

all information on keeping discus is welcome

thanks

 

[wetwetwet]

Hey hs

Yes discus are a bit harder to keep - water quality needs to be top notch and stable. Likly to involve 20%+ water changes a week using RO water with additives (which really means getting your own RO unit - £200+) but the effort would be well worth the result B)

btw what do you meen by

do clown loaches do they same thing as corys?

 

[semper fi]

discuss are very hard to keep and would not suggest them for a beginner. they are very susceptible to any toxins in the water and require daily water changes of atleast 10%. many discuss keepers have bare bottom tanks to aid in keeping the debris out of the tank and the toxins down. no gravel for the food to get trapped in. their tanks are usually void of decor of any kind for that matter.

discuss are very beautiful and colorful fish. also very pricey. figure about 45.00 a fish for juveniles. you definitely need to have species only tanks with them and not mix they will crossbreed. i considered setting up a discuss tank and after speaking to a discuss breeder decided against it. you may want to start off with cichlids cause imo they are much hardier than the discuss.

jmo

maggie

 

[hellstorm]

thanks for the replys

about the clown loaches i mean that do they do they same thing as corys like go around and eat waste food from the bottom of the tank to combat tank pollution?

 

[cichlidmaster]

Clown loaches need to be fed on a regular basis as other fish. They will scavenge off the bottom, but this is NOT the only food they should receive

They also relish black, blood worms and brine shrimp and should be given regular feedings of this.

I would not recommend clowns with Discus as they are way to active for a Discus tank.

CM

 

[wetwetwet]

I would not like to disagree with maggie.......

....but on this side of the pond the discuss set-ups I have seen (unless a breeder) often contain a large shoal of neons and a plec of some discription with sandy substrate and well planted and look absolutly stunning - maybe things differ in the states?

where you from hs?

Though without doubt they would require a lot more work and maintenance to keep the water in prime conditition. especially compared to a 'normal' community set-up.

As maggie said probably not suitable for a beginner but that said if you're prepared to put in the effort and do the research then I believe it would be a worthy project and you wouldn't be dissapointed

jmho

 

[hellstorm]

im from nz
i want to try keeping discus but since u told me that use RO water and stuff i wouldnt be able to afford it anyway what is RO water>?

 

[wetwetwet]

RO is reverse osmosis

Have a look here

 

[hellstorm]

what does it do

 

[semper fi]

have seen some really beautiful discuss set ups. learned from a discuss breeder here that you really need to know what you are doing to have them though. me, don't have that much time to devote to just one tank. what i meant by having a species only tank is that you run a great risk of adding fish outside of the species as they can stress out the discuss and open them up to disease.

maggie

 

[mrV]

Discus are real beautiful fish, but everything has price...

Like other has said, they need a very good care, water changes once/twice a week.. They have they own disease too, like "discus plague" (http/home.nc.rr.com/hammerklavier/) and they get easily "hole-in-the-head" disease.. Or what the hell it's in english (sorry) And they suffer prasites often... etc... etc...

55gallones is quite small for discus and i do recommend to buy at least 70gallones tank. 55g is too small for clownes (botia macracanthus), it becomes so big as 30cm (12") and in aquarium usually 9-10". You should have aquarium which is at least 150cm long (60").

... as corys like go around and eat waste food from the bottom of the tank to combat tank pollution?

NO! They need food too - like every fish, not waste. There is food for bottom fish too in a store and in your refridgerator Like vegetables...

If you do not yet know how to change water values etc, you should go to the nearest library to find some basic books like Aquarium Atlas (Baensch). It's real good book, if youneed to find information about fishes and if i don't remember wrong, there is couple pages for beginners how to get start. Im planning to buy the whole series when i have enpugh money Sorry, but i don't know any good books for beginners in english - if only you could speak finnish

Wetwetwet, lucky me that i live in a country, in where we don't need any ro-system for fresh water tanks Im so poor that i wouldn't have money to buy any other equipment than basic. "It's good to be a student" Right!?!? Blaa...

 

[hellstorm]

my lfs are sad to discus they have like 10 in a 15 gallon
dont they care if they die or not?