# discus fish



## discusmaster (Aug 27, 2008)

I am new to discus fish and i have a 55 gallon tank. How many can i put in it and what is the hardys discus fish. what can i put at the bottom of the tank or nothing. How many water chages should i do a week and how much water do i take. What should the tempature be. will an underground filter be good or will it stres them. Discusmaster


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## Number6 (Mar 13, 2003)

and yet you choose the online name of Discusmaster... :lol:

my first name online was Discusman and boy did I quickly come to regret that one! LOL

Ok, so back to Discus... for beginners, the obvios place to start is all the articles at www.simplydiscus.com

After you've poured through those, you will soon realize that a 55g is not a great choice for a 1st time Discus tank, but it'll do.

Plan on 50% water changes every second day and buy 8 young Discus or a mated pair. Go barebottom for the tank and plan to feed 4 to 5 times a day if you get young fish. A mated pair can be fed 1 to 2x per day.

As they age, you will need a larger tank... a good large healthy Discus can reach 8 to 10 inches so a tank that is only 12 inches deep is not a good thing... I suggest a 125 or 135g 6 ft tank... these are by far and away the best beginner Discus tank... room for fish to avoid each other when needed, stick together when everyone knows their place in the pecking order.

Have a read, then post back with any questions... we may not be as numerous on here as simplydiscus, but I've not found the folks on here to lack Discus knowledge!

Hope that helps.


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## Dutch Dude (Sep 14, 2006)

Great info from Number6. :thumb: I'm new to discus as well. Recently there are more posts abouth discus so I suggest to also read those. Simplydiscus contains all the necessary info you need before taking the challenge of discus. If you start with 8 youngsters like Number6 suggested I recommend fish of 3 inch or larger. The fish smaller as 3 inch are more difficult to grow and for that not that great for someone who is new into discus. I also started with 8 in a 50 gallon tank (16 wide, 20 high and 40 long). I could not keep up the waste levels with 50% every other day so I switched to 50% every day. If the number of discus is reduced when they become over 4 inch or if they will be moved to a larger tank you eventually can reduce the number of water changes to 50% every other day (depending on waste levels and nitrates). For grow out a bare bottom tank is the easiest to clean. Some like apistomaster (Larry) use only a 1/4 inch layer of sand, just enough to hide the bottom of the tank. When the fish 8 fish reach the 4 inch you might want to reduce the number to 6. Of course you keep the best of them. I also think a 55 is to small for 6 of them. With a bit of luck the fish pair up. The volume of 55 gallon would be more as sufficient for a pair. They might breed for you! Or,...you can put in some tetras and other tankmates. If your tank does have proper dimensions of at least 16 inch wide and 20 high and 24 long, you will be OK. Most discus reach a size of +/- 6 inch.

An under gravel filter won't be a good idea imo. Discus need a lot of feeds and do produce a lot of waste. Thats why people do so many water changes on them. Basically every filter system is OK except the under gravel filters.

Domesticated discus are the easy once. No internal parasites (of they are from a decent environment), less picky abouth water parameters. Blue and brown discus should be less difficult and heckel is realy a challenging fish (wild and needs extreme clean soft water). Of the domesticated discus red turquoise should be a easy, cheap and good looking fish.

I keep mine at 28C.


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## discusmaster (Aug 27, 2008)

Can i put 2 to 3 discus in a 55 gallon tank. what is the best degrees for brown and blue discus


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## gordonrp (Mar 23, 2005)

have you kept fish before?

discus would be the wrong fish to start with....


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## Number6 (Mar 13, 2003)

discusmaster said:


> Can i put 2 to 3 discus in a 55 gallon tank. what is the best degrees for brown and blue discus


2 fish IF they are a proven pair of Discus... you cannot purchase 2 or 3 young Discus. It's pretty much a recipe for disaster.

All Discus need the same temps... warm. Two heaters are the best way to get a stable warm temp and I prefer to aim for lower wattages than may be normal.

Have you read the articles? I'm surprised you don't know what temperature range that Discus need as that info is in those articles repeatedly.


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## shef (Oct 3, 2004)

I'm pretty new to this whole discus thing too but I have already learned, the more the merrier. I started out with 6 and the biggest one was awful to the rest of them. I got a 7th one, and all seems better, everyone is eating, no one is hiding and not too much aggression.


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## gordonrp (Mar 23, 2005)

shef said:


> I'm pretty new to this whole discus thing too but I have already learned, the more the merrier. I started out with 6 and the biggest one was awful to the rest of them. I got a 7th one, and all seems better, everyone is eating, no one is hiding and not too much aggression.


not in a 55g tho, right?

I wouldn't suggest the OP keep discus if he doesn't know how to use the search button or google (see his posts), I doubt he is going to keep up with daily water changes...


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## shef (Oct 3, 2004)

They are in a 55, but I'm hoping to upgrade once they are a bit bigger (looking at a 90g or so). On the simplydiscus forum they seem to advocate a 55g for growing out juvies (probably easier for the water changes). I will admit that this being my first time to discus I did a few things wrong (one of them being buying stunted fish) and have had a few troubles. But I agree with you. I did a lot of research before buying the fish and I've been keeping fish for 13 years so although I'm new to Discus, I'm certainly not new to fish!


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## Number6 (Mar 13, 2003)

I'd agree with the advice Shef... a 55g is a great grow out, with a 90g or up to a 135g as their home at near-adults.

I've had smaller Discus (local pet shop Discus) and other than being smaller, they are nice little fish... I wouldn't concern yourself with the quality of pet fish... once you own them, if nothing changes in their envrionment (no new fish, no new plants without quarantine, etc. ) then they'll be fine.

If someone was going to go shopping for Discus, I'd vote quality as being the number one concern, but once the fish are owned, then the rest is up to their current owner.

Hope that helps!


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## Richie84 (Sep 1, 2008)

Hi all new to the site but not to Discus.
I kept discus for about 3 yrs and had great success.
One of the best bits of advise i can give is a mature tank about 6 months old.
Also good hiding places if the tank is in a high traffic area (humans).
I would advise a water change of about 30-40 percent a week.
A must imo is RO water nothing else and add the additives to either black water minerals or you can get the discus minerals for RO.
As others have said 3 discus is not a good number 5 is better but they dont seem too do well in even numbers imo untill they pair off.
Ph 6.5
Temp 28-30
And you should do ok.

Hope this Helps :thumb: 
Rich


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## Number6 (Mar 13, 2003)

Richie, that was certainly popular advise some time ago, but I've not heard it recommended in a very long time. Do you still find the old style of Discus keeping to work with the common domestic bloodlines out there?

I think I'd only recommend that older style of Discus keeping to someone ordering wild caughts...

P.S. welcome to the forum!


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## Richie84 (Sep 1, 2008)

I dont keep atm but i would certainly do that again it proved a success for me and managed to breed in that very situation. 
I had a friend who bought some a while back and all died and i believed this was due to the age of the tank.

Rich


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## shef (Oct 3, 2004)

Well my tank is for sure aged. And overfiltered. My Discus are active, alert and bright. My only problem is some just don't want to grow while others are getting pretty big.


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## Richie84 (Sep 1, 2008)

shef,

How old are the fish now age and size?
If they are 6 months + i would advise that you upgrade otherwise you may have more problems.
The smaller fish are the perfectly formed as you may have runts of stunted fish. just check that they are round and not slightly misshapen.
If you need any more help pm me.
Rich


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## shef (Oct 3, 2004)

Unfortunately some are stunted and because I didn't really know what I was looking for when I got them, I purchased them that way. I know better now but that doesn't really help me with the fish I already have. Hopefully I can get them to grow a bit more and keep them healthy. I know better what to look for for next time. I think mine spent too much time in the pets store where they only got 1 w/c a week and feedings only once or twice daily. Live and learn right?


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## Richie84 (Sep 1, 2008)

Thats a shame shef it unlikely you will be able to get much more growth there but good luck i hate stores that dont do good husbandry!
I used to work in a TFS for a couple of years so know a bit on the south american cichlids!

Good luck

Rich


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## shef (Oct 3, 2004)

Well I'm trying my hardest to get some more growth. They are still young. I don't know how long they spent at the store but it was at least a month if not more. I've been feeding several times a day and keeping the water clean. 3 out of the 7 have grown really well. The smallest are only 2.5" so I'm really hoping I can get them a bit bigger than that! I'd even be happy with 4"!


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