Discus Discussion

[greenmaji]

Question.. I was wondering if there was anything wrong with using a carbon prefilter to remove chlorine from tap water instead of using dechlorinator for discus?

Brian... When you answered the question about the drip method of doing water changing you said that the tank would have to be drilled to put in a over flow... with the low flow rates involved I would think you could construct an external overflow out of half inch pvc,( I would use a modified durso standpipe design ), to do the job.. am I wrong with this assumption?

 

[BrianNY]

Doing a little research here.........

Wild Discus. www.belowwater.com Canadian company that imports from SA. He will ship to the US, but only through certain points of entry. There are only 2 species of discus in the wild. However, discus from different regions have their own distinct patterns and coloring. This site has some great pics of discus from various regions.

Tank plumbing. My one drilled tank (a 29g currently not is use), has a 1 inch pvc stand pipe for the overflow. Probably the best source of info, and the best pricing for anything related to plumbed tanks can be found here. www.jehmco.com

 

[macman7010]

Brian,

How long do you leave your lights running on your non planted Discus tanks. This is an area of debate, I was leaving mine on 12 hours plus but a person reocmmended cutting back to 7 or so hours.

Also do you add salt to your water?

 

[BrianNY]

Good questions macman. Some tanks are lit for 18 hours. The tanks containing breeding pairs aren't lit at all. IME, the fish adjust to whatever light is provided. I have yet to suspect lighting as a source of discus stress. I realize some will disagree, but that's my experience.

I only use salt as a medicine. Nothing suspicious about the discus then no reason to use salt.

 

[macman7010]

Thanks Brian. I dont use salt either. I really wish I could get my Discus spawning although I am unsure if they are of spawning age. My largest discus are about the size of a medium sized saucer, maybe 3 inches round possibly four. I dont know thier exact age but I acquired them at about this size.

 

[macman7010]

by the way your white dragon discus is really awesome.

 

[africamonk]

http://www.discus-hans-usa.com/

 

[greenmaji]

macman... do your discus shoal in your 75? I was wondering if you got them all at the same time if the young would have shoaled since only 2 are the same color... Are the 2 Pigeon Bloods starting to pair off from what you can tell? How much and how often are you doing your pws's? It sounds like they are small for spawning right now.. they still have from, what your saying, four to five more inches to grow before there full size. It sounds like they still need time to grow.

 

[BrianNY]

Thanks for the comment on the dragon macman. He's my favorite fish. Oddly, he was given to me as a cull because he has a damaged eye and was considered unsaleable by Edgewater Discus.

When discus pair off and spawn, it has more to do with age than size. When your discus reach that age (around 12-18 months), and if your discus are healthy, you won't be able to prevent it. The males take a bit longer to mature than the females. I've noticed that it's often the female that becomes the initiator. Perhaps it's because I had so many young discus.

The strain (or color of the discus), has no impact on which fish will pair off. A pidgeon blood doesn't know it's a pidgeon blood. It only knows it's a discus and is likely to pair off with any other discus in the tank. One of the reasons there are so many discus strains is because it's quite easy to force pairing.

 

[TankGirl]

To answer the question about the carbon prefilter, it won't remove 100% of the chlorine, only some of it. Even a plumbed-in water filter that you might mount under the kitchen sink, the kind that takes cartridges, won't remove 100% of the chlorine, according to the labels I have read.

 

[greenmaji]

A pidgeon blood doesn't know it's a pidgeon blood.

LOL.. that makes sense..
I wouldnt think people would want to cross such distinct looking color strains.. I would guess that happens unintentionally sometimes.

Im curious how breeders that use the dripmethod of changing the water remove the chlorine from there feedwater.. Ive seen a web-site that had a angel fish breeder that was using prefilters and carbon to remove it from his. I have also seen resin canisters that are suppose to remove chlorine, in SW setups.

 

[BrianNY]

The water is treated before hand Bill. It is aged and heated in holding tanks.

 

[greenmaji]

BrianNY... do you make your own discus food? If so what is the mix you use?
I was also wondering what your recommended pwc % and frequency for discus based on the age of fish..

 

[BrianNY]

I know plenty of people that make their own beef heart mixtures. I don't do that for two reasons. I put enough time and enrgy in with these fish already, and I hate feeding beef heart. It usually leaves the tank a mess.

My discus get mainly live CBW. I fly 2 lbs in from California and that usually lasts me about a month. They also get Tetrabits, frozen blood worms and shaved spinach.

As far as pwc% and frequency relative to the age of the fish..... I change 50% in my grow out tanks daily. When the discus stop growing, I reduce it to 30% every other day. Much depends on how heavily the tank is stocked though.

 

[macman7010]

Brain,

what would your recommendation on partial water changes for this tank be...

80 gallons
8 medium to large juvenile discus
1 clown loach
6 tetras
2 plecos
Various Cory Cats

Currently I do 30% every other day. This is the tank that got cloudy on me. I finally got it cleared out.

 

[BrianNY]

Well changing more water maximizes the growth potential of the fish. It should work to keep their appetite stimulated while removing DOCs. If it were my tank and the fish are still juveniles I'd be changing 30% daily (or at least 5 times a week).

One thing about discus is they tell you when things aren't right for them. They may stop eating. Their eyes may become cloudy. The stress bars might become more predominant. They may shrink in a corner and get generally darker. Any of these is a signal that the water changing should be increased. That's just based on my experience with the fish, and my sense of logic.

But macman, if all seems well to you it probably is. Trust your instincts before you change a routine that works for you.

 

[greenmaji]

BrianNY..."CBW"?

 

[TankGirl]

California Black Worms (TankGirl speaking for Brian - how presumptuous!! )

 

[BrianNY]

Right! Thank you TG

The advantages of CBW are many. They are much like tubifex worms except grown in clean conditions. They can be kept alive for weeks if properly rinsed and refrigerated. They're a very high source of protein. You don't risk overfeeding because (if fed in a bare bottom tank), the worms will remain alive for days and can eat at their leisure without degrading the water quality. The perfect discus food IMO.

 

[TankGirl]

I feed them myself for treats for my various fish, and believe me, when those fish see them hit the water they go nuts over them!

My husband has a minor problem with them living in the refrigerator, though, so before too long I imagine I will be receiving a tiny dorm-room sized refrigerator as a gift. (He can't even stand having the frozen food in the freezer, tucked away in a zip-lock, or the plant fertilizer bottle in the door of the fridge. What a prude!)