Size of tank needed to house discus?

[AaronPenfound]

I was thinking about getting a new tank and making it a species tank and discus caught my eye, im going to read up on them but i wanted a bit of inside advice from someone who knows or who has kept them before....

1) How many discus is it best to keep in a group?

2) What size tank would be best for them to be comfortable in?

3) Are there any fish that can go with them (in my lfs, i have seen some large pleco's in with them!)

.....Any other advice would br greatfully recieved!!!

 

[ryan]

It is generally best to buy a group of 4-6 young individuals and let them pair off or buy a proven pair or a lone adult. I wouldn't recommend anything less than 180L and preferable more. Providing their companions aren't to active and can with stand the high temperature of Discus live they should be fine. Examples are-

Small L-number Plecs
Cardinal Tetras
Rummy Nosed Tetras
Hatchets
Apistogrammas................

They do best in soft acidic water and a well established tank and good filtration and maintenace. The tank should be made to meet the Discus needs and they should come first.

 

[G_Sharky]

Just remember that an adult DIscus could reach 6 inch and you should give one adult at least 10 gallon for itself. A good size tank for raising 4-6 juvinilles would be a 55 gallon tank..They don't have to be in acidic condition is you have tank bred Discus they could tolerate high ph such as around 7.5 that's what i have...I would also suggest getting RO unit is your water parameter is pretty hard. Juvi's would do okay on hard water but they might prefer softer water as adult and for them to spawn...GOod Luck, Discus are a lot of fun to watch and are the best FW fish out there IMO....

 

[Doggfather]

click 'Look here' in my signuture, it will take you to my thread on Discus, where there is quite a bit of information

Also, G Sharky, you state that you keep your discus at a pH of 7.5 and they survive. I would strongly adive against this becuase it will be stressing the fish and making them more prone to Disease. If your tap water is natrually high try treat it with some blackwater treatment, or any similar product that will lower the pH. These products are avalibe from the lfs. If you prefer a natrual approch.

Good luck!!!

 

[G_Sharky]

hey Doggfather,
I would have to disagree with you cause i got my Discus from a breeder in my area and we have the same water parameters( ph, gh, kh) and all her stock is doing well with high ph and she's only using RO for spawning and breeding purposes...In case of wild caught Discus then I would agree with you that they must be kept in acidic and their their natural habitat condition to thrive.. In my experience having a clean tank and frequent water changes is essential to the Discus growth and health...I have my Discus for 3 months now and they are happy and is growing fast with plain aged tap water....

 

[Sky042]

Today I actually saw someone keeping Discus with angel fish.

 

[freshmike]

When I got my discuseseses...they were in a tank with malawi cichlids......

Stupid fish store....another rescue.

 

[ryan]

G sharky, Doggfather is not saying they cannot be kept at that Ph level it is quite possible but, but you should consider, low, acidic PH (below 6.5 or so) can help deter bacteria and leaves high ammonia levels more harmless. However, levels that low will cause your biological filter to nearly stop operating. You must rely mostly on water changes if you keep very low, acidic PH levels. Going the other way, for instance, increasing PH from 6.5 to 7.5 causes ammonia levels to be as much as 10 times more toxic to the fish. However, at the higher level, biological filtration becomes much more efficient. In consideration of these factors, most keepers choose, about 6.5 to 7.2, with good reason.