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Pet Forum / Aquaria / Cichlids / October 2005Still Have Discus 'Cold Feet'
Hello Folks. I have a few concerns about keeping discus. My tank is a liveplant 55 gal pH 6.8 to 7.0 CO2 injection. KH about 3 to 4, very low GH with a Marineland 350 BioWheel and a Rena/Filstar XP 2. Temp at 85F. 4 Cardinals, 11 Black Neon's, 3 Juli Catfish, 5 Oto catfish 1 pelco and 1 pair blue rams. I'd like to get 5 small baby discus 2 to 3 inches. My concerns: 1) Should I worry about the Pelco attacking the slimecoat of the Discus? I've read about this but my LFS said not to worry about it. If I need to get rid of him how the heck do I catch him? (I almost never see him as he's hiding in the driftwood.) 2) Is the water flow to high ? I understand Discus like still water. Mine isn't, but with the two filters going and 3 weekly water changes my nitrates/nitrites are close to 0 and the water is crystal clear. 3) I'm not home for 12 hrs a day. Should I get an automatic feeder? I've read that young discus should eat 5x a day. 4) Should I buy mail order? Any recommendations? Thanks for all your help. If I were only going to get one discus I'd just give it a try, but I'd like to buy 5 as I've heard they do better in a group. I want to do it right and don't want to lose any fish. (It hurts financially and emotionally!) I'm not interested in breeding, just a show tank. By the way, CO2 injection is THE WAY to go, and it's less work then I thought. I just add a couple of teaspoons of Baking Soda w/ the water change, and keep the bubble counter at 1 per second day and night. No problems, and my plants are lovely!! (I also add a bit of Potassium nitrate and Potassium Phosphate once a week.) Thanks again. Jim > Hello Folks. I have a few concerns about keeping discus. My tank is a > liveplant 55 gal pH 6.8 to 7.0 CO2 injection. KH about 3 to 4, very low [quoted text clipped - 7 lines] > get rid of him how the heck do I catch him? (I almost never see him as > he's hiding in the driftwood.) Keep in mind that many plecs are opportunistic omnivores who might discover the digestable slime coat of slow moving fish. Some plecs are not even herbivores, so there is a hazard, but no guarantee one way or another. To get rid of him, drop in a suitable hiding place (black plastic pipe, capped on one end, with an algae wafer inside) and when he is inside, block the opening and remove the pipe. > 2) Is the water flow to high ? I understand Discus like still water. > Mine isn't, but with the two filters going and 3 weekly water changes my > nitrates/nitrites are close to 0 and the water is crystal clear. There is nothing wrong with high water flow. Large flat fish don't like turbulence. To have high water flow and low turbulence, just break up the flow, with rocks, driftwood etc. You could even pipe down into an RUGF to dissipate the flow. > 3) I'm not home for 12 hrs a day. Should I get an automatic feeder? > I've read that young discus should eat 5x a day. 4) Should I buy mail > order? Any recommendations? The challenge is to get them to eat the dried foods which come out of an automatic feeder ;~). Most people baby their Discus with treats (ie: bloodworms, beefheart, turkey etc) so when faced with a dried pellet or flake, they simply turn their backs on it. It is true that baby fish should be fed frequently, so do your best. There are many autofeeders on the market. I have a couple from Hagen, one black basic digital model and one green programmable model and they are ok. You can also try freeze-dried foods chopped to come out of the feeders. > Thanks for all your help. If I were only going to get one discus I'd > just give it a try, but I'd like to buy 5 as I've heard they do better in > a group. I want to do it right and don't want to lose any fish. (It > hurts financially and emotionally!) I'm not interested in breeding, just > a show tank. Five is a nice number for them, for many reasons. > By the way, CO2 injection is THE WAY to go, and it's less work then I > thought. I just add a couple of teaspoons of Baking Soda w/ the water > change, and keep the bubble counter at 1 per second day and night. No > problems, and my plants are lovely!! (I also add a bit of Potassium > nitrate and Potassium Phosphate once a week.) CO2 is cheating ;~). Actually, a routine which includes baking soda is generally considered a little risky, especially for beginners. You seem to have your routine nailed, so I don't know if the risk is the same. Beware of old tank syndrome, which gets worse while your baking soda masks its effect.  Signaturewww.NetMax.tk > Thanks again. > > Jim Well thanks very much for the advise! I bought a fish trap w/ some algae wafers, as soon as the Pelco is gone to my LFS I'll pick up 5 baby discus. Yes, I've pushed up the outlet tube of the canister filter near my heater and the side wall of the tank, that breaks up the flow I think. I also bought an Ehim auto feeder. I guess the fish are like my cats, if you just give them wet food they'll give you a dirty look when you try dry! So, they will have to do with dry fm the auto feeder when I'm gone. Thanks again for the help and I'll stop back in a few weeks to bore you all with my (I hope) progress. Jim >> Hello Folks. I have a few concerns about keeping discus. My tank is >> a liveplant 55 gal pH 6.8 to 7.0 CO2 injection. KH about 3 to 4, very [quoted text clipped - 61 lines] >> >> Jim discus are a relativly easy fish to keep, just like all fush they have their pros and cons. their really adaptable fish as to food, water flow and stuff, but their real sticklers when it comes to water chemistry. just do alot of research and invest in some good test kits, (sounds like you already have) as for a good scavanger, replace the pleco with some bristle nose catfish, their much small and less predatory. i suffer a problem with a 12" pleco (they actually become carnivores as they mature, it aids in their growth apparently) trying to eat a pair of 5 " severums, luckily one is a wild caught fish so is mean as hell and can fight the catfish off pretty easily. good luck, and dont worry about te discus, they arnt as flimsy as their made out to be (especially the less colourful versions such as the browns) http://www.cichlidfish.com/portal/forums Thanks,I'm still trying to get that dXXn Pelco out of my tank. Everything is ready for my foray into discus except him! I just might have to tear up the tank a bit to get him!! > discus are a relativly easy fish to keep, just like all fush they have > their pros and cons. [quoted text clipped - 20 lines] > Posted via CichlidFish.com > http://www.cichlidfish.com/portal/forums |
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