Discus tank stalking

[jacpaq2000]

I am starting a discus tank with a 60 gallon aquarium I have recently purchased. I am going to have 3-4 discus and 6 Bolivian Rams (tell me if that's to much) but I want some other fish that are compatible with the water temp. and the water parameters. Any help would be great.

P.S. No aggressive fish or aggressive eaters please I want this tank to be very peaceful.


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[Rpeinhardt]

I believe that's too many Rams for that size tank but I'm not sure.

Cardinal Tetras are classic dither fish for shy Discus.

Ancistrus sp. are also pretty good companions though I believe they are nocturnal and are primarily used for algae eating.

The limiting factors in choosing Discus tank mates are finding fish that like their higher temperature and lower pH.

 

[treemanone2003]

For starters the number of Discus should be 5-6 in order to have a very peaceful tank with them. Secondly, choose your supplier VERY WISELY. There are a few that are not trusted sources and shouldn't be allowed to own pet rocks. 6 rams is too many IMO, I would go with 4 at the most. +1 on the cardinals and ancistrus. Corydoras, GBR, (but they really require a mature tank) and glowlight/rosy/Pristella tetras.

pH is somewhat irrelevant with Discus unless you're getting true wilds as any of the domestics are tank bred/raised and will adapt to any pH if acclimated properly. Proper husbandry and stable conditions are the key in keeping them long term. Along with QT'ing ANY new fish introduced. If it's a new tank it's best to put the Discus in first and add others later.

Research, research, research !!! They're not impossible to keep but they do need pristine water conditions ALL the time and good Discus are not cheap as cheap Discus are not good. That's both opinion AND experience.


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[jacpaq2000]

For starters the number of Discus should be 5-6 in order to have a very peaceful tank with them. Secondly, choose your supplier VERY WISELY. There are a few that are not trusted sources and shouldn't be allowed to own pet rocks. 6 rams is too many IMO, I would go with 4 at the most. +1 on the cardinals and ancistrus. Corydoras, GBR, (but they really require a mature tank) and glowlight/rosy/Pristella tetras.

pH is somewhat irrelevant with Discus unless you're getting true wilds as any of the domestics are tank bred/raised and will adapt to any pH if acclimated properly. Proper husbandry and stable conditions are the key in keeping them long term. Along with QT'ing ANY new fish introduced. If it's a new tank it's best to put the Discus in first and add others later.

Research, research, research !!! They're not impossible to keep but they do need pristine water conditions ALL the time and good Discus are not cheap as cheap Discus are not good. That's both opinion AND experience.


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Ok great thanks for the help!!! But I have a question how many GBRs could I keep in my tank with the discus? I would assume around the same as the amount of Bolivians


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[ScotJudd]

Just a personal opinion but I wouldn't put anything in with discus apart from a shoal of dither fish. Discus can be really shy and get stressed but a small shoal of fish mid water gives them confidence. I would choose discus and cardinals and lots of upright plants (swords, valis etc).


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[Gillie]

The blue rams are definitely the better choice they like the same temps as discus, bolivians like it cooler. I wouldn't add more than 4 (2 pair) to avoid any territory problems. If you can find wild blue rams they will prove much more forgiving than german blues.

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[jacpaq2000]

Another question for anyone who is willing to answer. I will probably get juveniles so how many water changes should I do a week? I read to do it once a day on some sights and others once a week. Which is best in you experience


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[treemanone2003]

The blue rams are definitely the better choice they like the same temps as discus, bolivians like it cooler. I wouldn't add more than 4 (2 pair) to avoid any territory problems. If you can find wild blue rams they will prove much more forgiving than german blues.

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+1 on the group size. If you're going to go with wilds, then you would need to pair them with wild Discus. It can be done but is much harder than dealing with domestics. Simply because of the need to maintain constant stable parameters. Slight fluctuations are very drastic to them as opposed to domestics. I wouldn't recommend wilds for a Discus beginner unless you have the ability to stockpile large (200+ gallons) of perfect water weekly.

Another question for anyone who is willing to answer. I will probably get juveniles so how many water changes should I do a week? I read to do it once a day on some sights and others once a week. Which is best in you experience


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If you're intention is to start with juvies, then a 60g would be a bad choice for a starter tank because of the WC volume and frequency. The size of the fish will dictate the :
Size tank to grow out in
# of daily feedings
# of daily WC's
Volume of WC's.
And skip everything you know about filters. Go back to the basics as sponge filters are the best option.

Also, a planted tank would be difficult to try and contend with as well. In pots, not so much but still an added stress factor for you to deal with. Plants are great in an adult tank where there is little maintenance. That's why 99% of growout tanks are bare bottom. Discus are like children or any other pets and generally very outgoing and sociable fish if raised properly and interacted with often. The only times I have noticed them to be shy and withdrawn is when there's a problem. Poor tank conditions, poor health and the leading cause is consistently poor water quality.

Research all you can. When you get done finding what info you can find, research it all over again and write down all the similarities and all the differences. This will help you figure out what to go back and do more research on.

Choose your supplier wisely !!! I can't stress that one enough. Way too many times have I seen quantity over quality be an issue.




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[jacpaq2000]

I've decided I'm going to stalk my tank with:

15 red rasboras

15 glo light

4 GBRs

6-8 Discus

1 rainbow shark

Do you guys think I should cut back on my school of glo lights or rasboras or do you think this will be ok? Also what algae eaters will be on with the temperature? Preferably ottos or Siamese algae eaters (no plecos)



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[treemanone2003]

I've decided I'm going to stalk my tank with:

15 red rasboras

15 glo light

4 GBRs

6-8 Discus

1 rainbow shark

Do you guys think I should cut back on my school of glo lights or rasboras or do you think this will be ok? Also what algae eaters will be on with the temperature? Preferably ottos or Siamese algae eaters (no plecos)



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Very volatile mix you have there. For starters somewhat overstocked. Rule of thumb with Discus is 10 gallons per adult. More can be done with double filtration and more frequent WC's but I wouldn't recommend it for just starting out.

Most likely the rainbow will enjoy munching on any of those small fish, as will the GBR's. 15 of both is also too many. Cut the schools back to 8 but beware they probably won't last too long as the heat will surely stress them both. That's why nobody mentioned them as tank mates. The shark, I wouldn't try it, too aggressive for any of the list IMO. SAE/CAE are a big no !!! Slime coat suckers. Oto's are really a 50/50 chance. Some say yes and others say no. I don't have one personally so I can't comment either way about them. Cory's as mentioned earlier. Bronze, Sterbai, Julii, Albino, all do well.

Here's a link to an excellent source for browsing through. Highly recommend it for attempting Discus.

http://forum.simplydiscus.com/forumdisplay.php?48-Discus-Basics-for-Beginners


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[Dallascowboys16]

That would be too much for the tank. Do

5-6 discus

10-12 cardinals

Pair of GBRs if you want

And call it good at that, Discus really need to be in a low stress environment and too many fish like what you just listed would be terrible for them. Also, most of the fish you listed would be stressed by the heat and the rainbow would be a terror with your fish. What I would recommend here is maybe not do Discus and start with the stocking I recommended but with angels instead and then you can gain some experience before diving in. Discus really require expert care and doing something like angels, cardinals, and Rams could help you gain the experience necessary to be ready for them. Just my 2 cents.