Are Discus really that hard?

[baron1282]

Hello everyone.

I wanted to do a Discus tank for a while now, I thought a 55 gallon tank would be really cool. I thought about six Discus in a 55 would be Ideal, maybe a few more.

The only issue I had with the Idea is people on other forums tell me that they are extremely hard to take care of. They require up to five feedings a day and a bar bottom tank to grow them in, and almost 90% water changes a day to get them up to a healthy size. Once to a healthy size, they still say that feeding should be at least three to four times a day with every day water changes. I don't know what to believe. Every website I had seen says their care level is moderate and don't require that much attention.

I would love to have some Discus in the future, but I am scared away due to what care level everyone says they require. How can anyone keep up with that kind of care?

I would have my 55 gallon tank with a white rocky bottom, with a lot of silk plants for shade from the light and a lot of drift wood. Also I would leave a lot of swimming space for them. I was going to get the Fluval canister filter for them and a skimmer. I planned on feeding them blood worms and a few other good things for them. Just was wondering how hard they really are to care for?

 

[Aprilsaquarium]

Hello there. I've kept, raised, bred, and I,ported for resale for 15 years now.

Discus want one thing. Simple and clean and stable ph. Don't try change your ph. Keep it stable with whatever your oh is out of your tsp. also high temperature 84 to 86 to grow.
keep your bioload down , and your nitrates below 5. How do you keep nitrates and bioload down? Water changes. As very small babies yes you need many small feeds a day and lots of wcs . If you start with a bit bigger discus you can do less but ultimate growth and shape comes from doing the work. Otherwise they runt out, get a big eye .
First get from a good source. I would suggest a sponsor from simplydiscus forum. They have to have good customer relations, and not sell sick fish to remain a sponsor.
There's a few very reliable sellers. Discus Hans USA for big strong German discus and Kenny's discus for Asian quality discus. Both these guys would make sure you got good discus to start with.
Petshop discus are usually already complimised as they have been transferred too many times..low care, etc.
to have a good experience start with healthy fidh that come running to the surface asking for food.
Canister filters aren't necessarily th best as all the mulm and uneaten food etc is still in the canister. Thy don't like bioload.
An aquaclear hang on the back and sponge filter will do. Easier to rinse when it gets full.
In short..discus are worth the effort. Bit of a learning curve but if you keep it simple. And keep your water clean you will succeed. One of the best foods is freeze dried black worms and a good flake or pellet like omega one , ocean nutrition, new life spectrum,tetra bits . Bloodworms are good for a treat but not that nutritious.
The most important thing is to be sure to get all at once from the same source , same time and try to get them all the same size. No less than 6 or they push each other around too much.
Start simple and get them growing well and learn discus traits. When they are happy, when they aren't then add your plants etc once you get the growing and settled into their routine.
There's easy ways to change water. An eheim pump on the end of a hose pumping into the sink or toilet is fast. Hose the water back in or pump back in from a storage container.
Discus are very rewarding and most don't look back.

 

[hpiguy]

Here's a nice fully planted discus tank with other fish as well. Looks great to me.

450 Gallon Discus Aquarium - YouTube

 

[Jesselav1233]

They are the absolute best fresh water fish ever I think you should try it. I did and they are doing great I have 7 in my 55 gal tank I will never want any other kind of fish again they interact with me more then any other fish I've had and the colors just get brighter and brighter as try grow you'll love them

 

[paytertot]

When mine were at about 2 inches I would feed 3-4 times a day and do twice weekly water changes. Now they are all around 5-6 inches and I feed once a day with once weekly water changes. They are really great fish and aren't as hard as made out to be.

 

[tamtam]

Do you really need to use RO water?? I'd kill for a discus tank in the future but as mentioned, they are made out to be so hard and the thoughts of an RO system had basically killed that idea for me.

 

[paytertot]

I don't have one

 

[Aprilsaquarium]

No you don't need to. If you want to breed and you have hard water then yes maybe. Keep your ph even and get them used to what comes out of your tsp or well. I know a successful breeder in Kansas City who grew his fry out at 10 ph.
I've know a lot on wells with 8 to 8.5 ph and grew very healthy discus. Even is the key. If you start softening and you get bounces they won't be happy.
That big planted tank is beautiful. More emphasis on plants then the fish.
I like a tank full of big discus swimming .

 

[Laser]

I have often wondered this myself. I hope this discussion goes further.

 

[Teakwood]

Ah, things like people saying they are not so bad makes me reconsider writing them off as an option. I decided to go with a community tank as my first big tank and get a slightly smaller one in the future for a pair of discus. (Ideally, not sure how it will go)

 

[Aprilsaquarium]

For a new discus owner your best to get a group of six about 3 inch size and learn their personality and moods. You can always sell off a couple and end up with a pair. Remember the word pair means compatible pair that breed and raise fry.
Best if they pair up themselves . Two adults may not get along if force paired.
Signs of pairing is bowing , shaking, stoking out a corner .
You can buy a pair . A pair , the water changes can be less often.
They are well worth the extra work. They are the king of the aquarium.
They are amazing fish and interact with you. Years ago I fed worms from the freezer. They could see my freezer from their tank and when they saw the door open they all came flying to the top waiting. They recognize their owners. They know if a stranger is looking at them. They sit back and act shy.
I had a Dalmatian who would run by all the time. They knew her. A sheep dog was visiting and it went by and they freaked out. Strange dog.

 

[NeMox69x]

They are the absolute best fresh water fish ever I think you should try it. I did and they are doing great I have 7 in my 55 gal tank I will never want any other kind of fish again they interact with me more then any other fish I've had and the colors just get brighter and brighter as try grow you'll love them

You are absolutly right my friend discus are THE most colorful freshwater* fish out there

 

[Kingcichlid87]

ive want a discus tank also but i have been told diffrent as ro water goes .. i was told use 50% ro water and 50% tap water.

but everytime you do a water change you gotta refill with ro or tap water ?? im confused noone seems to know online i cant find anything about the water for some reason. can anyone help .?

thanks guys i currently have a jewel trigon 350 with bumblebee cichlids but i also have a jewel trigon 350 that is empty in which im hoping to stock discus

 

[Discuss]

I use regular sink water and use conditioner after my water changes and have never had a problem.

 

[Jesselav1233]

I use regular sink water and use conditioner after my water changes and have never had a problem.

+1 on this I do the same my fish are happy little campers.

 

[Kingcichlid87]

ok ill get a couple discus in couple weeks and let you guys know how they get on and ill also keep a weekly diary of there progress

 

[NexVobis]

+1 on this I do the same my fish are happy little campers.

Same here. Tap water, stable ph and temp. With a wc ever 3rd or 4th day.

 

[Jesselav1233]

I would test my waters ph just to see what it's at

 

[zparticle]

I had discus for a while they did great and then inside of a week or two they were all dead. My tank conditions were excellent. Frankly I think it is the luck of the draw. Others with more experience with them may say different but spending a few hundred on fish just to have them go belly up is a drag when you could get any of these beauties and have much better odds:

Rainbow sharks
Red Empress
Bi-Color 500
Benga Yellows
Venustus
Red Zebra
Cobalt Blue Zebra
Fuelleborni
Yellow Labid
swallowtail peacock
Pollini
demasoni (these are smaller)

Obviously if you really want them give them a try, you might have success like these other folks.

 

[Jesselav1233]

Yeah the transition period of a few weeks is the sketchy part. If u get them to live past that though they are relatively hardy fish. Most of the myths of discus being super finicky come from when people were taking care of the wild ones. Now that they've been bred for so many generations in tanks they are much hardier then people think. Not to say they're not harder to care for then some others but I think it's worth it. Try Hans German bred discus I have some they're hardier then the Asian bred discus you also commonly find around and withstand higher ph levels.