Getting new Discus (Possibly)

[Amicus]

I have a friend with a 250g freshwater and he has several discus. He has done very well as the fish are quite large. My friend is going to convert this tank to saltwater and is getting rid of everything. Last night he offered to give me two discus, some cories and maybe some other fish. He has also offered a 55 gallon tank, stand, lights, filters and some other stuff. He is concerned about the welfare of the fish afterwards so he wants them to go to someone he knows. I am up for another tank so I told him that I woud be willing to take them.
Will the 55g be ok for a while? In the future I would be willing to look for a 75g or something along those lines. Does anyone have any advice for me? I would be most appreciative.
Thanks

 

[phoenixkiller]

A 55 gallon will be fine. But be prepared to spend a considerable amount of money on your beloved discus. BE WARNED: these fish are not easy to keep and large and frequent water changes are a must.

But have fun with the "King of the Aquarium"!

 

[Amicus]

I know, my buddy has the tank set up to his water and sewer connection so there are two pwc a day. I do pwcs on my tanks weekly and I told him that there is no way I can do them daily. I thought that if I did a few a week on this tank for maybe a month I could slowly acclimate the fish to their new home. I am worried because they are going from a 250g home to a 55g one.

 

[severum mama]

I'd definitely go for it. You can't beat it for free. Multiple water changes per week would be great until you can get them used to the once weekly schedule. There's no reason why you shouldn't be able to get away with once a week IMO.

I'd offer a little cash and try to end up with 4 big discus rather than 2, though.

A 55 gallon will be fine. But be prepared to spend a considerable amount of money on your beloved discus. BE WARNED: these fish are not easy to keep and large and frequent water changes are a must.

But have fun with the "King of the Aquarium"!

Have you kept them before? Large discus really aren't difficult to keep. It's the juveniles that need most of the attention and effort. And as far as expense, with the tank and equipment being offered for free, the startup expense would be next to nothing. Continuing costs would just be water, food, dechlorinator, etc. There isn't anything inherently expensive about keeping discus, just the fish themselves can command a high price.

 

[Amicus]

Good idea about trying to get the other fish. I tried to get him to take cash for the set up but I guess I'm fortunate to have a friend like him. I'll try it, I'm going to get my aquaclear 110 running for the time being. Aside from the cories what are some other fish I could put in there? Maybe a couple GBRs? I have read mixed reviews about putting a pleco in there. Snails?

 

[severum mama]

GBRs should work fine. They do well in the high temps that discus like. Cardinal tetras would be a nice addition, they also do well in high temps. I'd let the tank settle for a while and get a maintenance schedule down before you add any more fish though, that is JMO.

 

[Amicus]

GBRs should work fine. They do well in the high temps that discus like. Cardinal tetras would be a nice addition, they also do well in high temps. I'd let the tank settle for a while and get a maintenance schedule down before you add any more fish though, that is JMO.

He has some albino cories that he wants to give me too. Should I pass on the cories?

 

[severum mama]

It's up to you. Was he keeping them together before? The albino cories really prefer cooler water IMO. Water temp is one of the reasons that people choose sterbai cories as tank mates.

 

[Amicus]

Yeah, he has the cories, clown loaches, flying foxes, pearl gouramis and maybe a couple others. I'm sure that he can get someone to take them. Getting more temperature tolerant cories is a good idea. Honestly, I didn't think of that.

 

[bs6749]

If they are adult discus I would recommend keeping them around 80 degrees. Two is a bad number in my opinion, unless you are getting a mated pair. Discus are a social fish and form a hierarchy. They need 5-6 at a minimum. You could do 5 adults in the 55g tank with a BN pleco and a very small school of tetras. When you remove the two fish from their current group and put them into a new tank you WILL notice aggression between the fish within a day, assuming that they have settled it and aren't scared still. This aggression needs to be spread out, so I would recommend 5 fish, all of the same size.

 

[Amicus]

I'll see if he'll do the ones too, I think he only has 4 total, maybe 5. I would have thought a 55g was too small. I know that at least three are the size of bread plates with the other not far behind. I was thinking of the cories because the discus have a heavier bioload.

 

[bs6749]

Cories won't do anything to eat algae off the side of the tank and that is a BIG plus with a BN pleco in my opinion.

 

[Amicus]

I was worried that a pleco would affix itself to the side of the discus. I was thinking a good cleanup crew would be snails and cories. I have a BN pleco that I could add to the tank after a while. Just not sure if its safe or not.

 

[Hobgob]

Do you have any other discus? They prefer to be in schools so I would get northern just two imo

 

[Hobgob]

It's up to you. Was he keeping them together before? The albino cories really prefer cooler water IMO. Water temp is one of the reasons that people choose sterbai cories as tank mates.

And they do look amazing!

 

[Amicus]

I asked him about the others today and he said he only has the two left. I'll have to wait a little to get any more. I also asked what temp he keeps his tank at and it is at 82-83 degrees. (concerning the albino cories) he's had them since they were babies so I guess they've acclimated.

 

[bs6749]

BN plecos are not know to go after the slime coat on discus, which is why they are so popular with discus keepers.

 

[Discusapisto]

Always keep adult discus around 82 young discus a bit higher. In my experiences sterbai corys can take the most heat out of the Cory family I'd pass on the albinos. I've kept sterbai's with discus for ten years without a hitch. Another great bottom feeder for the discus aquarium is the kuhli loach(not bio-tope ideal) but similar water quality ideal.