Discus Tank Questions

[iheartmyed9]

Hey everyone thanks for your past help but I have a new idea. I am moving here in February and want to rehome or trade for discus setup accessories or discus themselves. I have a 60 gallon tank to house them in and two filters a Top Fin 40-60 and a Marineland Emporeror 280. Currently sand substrate and rocks and caves for Africans. I want plants. I read discus are carnivorous so I could have plants correct? Any and all details will help. Thanks.

 

[paytertot]

Yep I have lots of discus and they live in a tank with plants, never do anything to hurt them. In fact, they like the cover when they're small.

 

[paytertot]

I don't like to keep my discus with sand tho because when they eat, they stir up the food so they can get to it, which means they'll also be stirring up sand all the time and I'm afraid it could irritate their throats and whatnot to be sucking in sand. But idk that's my thoughts. What fish do you plan to keep them with?

 

[iheartmyed9]

Its a 60 gallon aquarium so I'm thinking max 4 discus and maybe some tetras maybe 8 of them then maybe some corys. Hows that sound?

 

[BHead707]

stocking sounds good to me just stay away from nippy tetras

 

[iheartmyed9]

The tank is going in the living room so its the centerpiece aquarium. I want good lighting. I want to switch to a one filter canister filter instead of the two I have and build a decent canopy for it. I'm not quite ready financially for saltwater but I want the best looking discus tank I can afford. Could I find large bags of small river pebbles in various colors for a substrate? I'd like a large patch of micro sword somewhere in the tank. I have that in my community tank at my moms and I love the look of it.

 

[BHead707]

The tank is going in the living room so its the centerpiece aquarium. I want good lighting. I want to switch to a one filter canister filter instead of the two I have and build a decent canopy for it. I'm not quite ready financially for saltwater but I want the best looking discus tank I can afford. Could I find large bags of small river pebbles in various colors for a substrate? I'd like a large patch of micro sword somewhere in the tank. I have that in my community tank at my moms and I love the look of it.

like a natural look of gravel or like neon ?

 

[iheartmyed9]

stocking sounds good to me just stay away from nippy tetras

I'm I close to over stocked or what? Could I get some species of apistos? Rams? Here's a new addition to the possible stock list.

2x Gold Ram
2x Cuckatoo Apistos

What's some good tetras to get? I'm planning to order most fish outside the corys and discus my lfs sells very pretty discus but for a pretty price. Oh and no neons or cardinals or similar. I've got those already.

 

[iheartmyed9]

like a natural look of gravel or like neon ?

Natural as possible.

 

[BHead707]

i dont have many tetras but i know that black skirts and serpaes are nippy, but dont quote me on it. imo i think you could do the rams or the apistos im not sure about both cause you will already have cories on the bottom as well

 

[iheartmyed9]

Natural as possible.

The rocks I got in my mind I'm thinking of us like lil river rocks like at a local stream whites, light browns, browns , tans you kinda know what I mean? Its hard to explain.

 

[iheartmyed9]

i dont have many tetras but i know that black skirts and serpaes are nippy, but dont quote me on it. imo i think you could do the rams or the apistos im not sure about both cause you will already have cories on the bottom as well

I don't have to do the corys that was more or less a space filler idea

 

[iheartmyed9]

How about the X Ray Pristella tetra? 8 of those in my tetra school?

 

[iheartmyed9]

This is what I'd like to stock in my 60 gallon.






X Ray Priscilla Tetra - 8 to 10





Assorted Apistogramma - 3 or .maybe cuckatoo apisto but I don't have 60 + to spend on all these fish.

Photos by live aquaria.

 

[BHead707]

This is what I'd like to stock in my 60 gallon.




View attachment 73187

X Ray Priscilla Tetra - 8 to 10



View attachment 73188

Assorted Apistogramma - 3 or .maybe cuckatoo apisto but I don't have 60 + to spend on all these fish.

Photos by live aquaria.

i dont see any problems there

 

[Discusapisto]

Diamond tetras or lemon tetras they love warm waters like the discus do. I have them plus cardinals with mine. Deff pick only one pair of ram or apisto not both trust me I've kept dwarf cichlids for years you'll thank me lol!

 

[iheartmyed9]

Diamond tetras or lemon tetras they love warm waters like the discus do. I have them plus cardinals with mine. Deff pick only one pair of ram or apisto not both trust me I've kept dwarf cichlids for years you'll thank me lol!

so i can only have rams or apistos? what if i only got a pair of each?

 

[iheartmyed9]

For plants i want micro-sword in the front, patches of java fern on a large center driftwood piece, some crypts placed around the driftwood. The piece i have in mind in the ones that look like hollowed light brown tree stumps. Some kind of African wood but i cant remember the name, pretty pricey tho at my lfs around 45 for a decent piece. Place some red Myrio in the corners of the tank in the back. then fill the back with spiralis. Id also like to use some of my stones i have for possible spawnings and babies from the fry.

 

[Discusapisto]

so i can only have rams or apistos? what if i only got a pair of each?

Well if you had a tank with a large footprint for more territory you could do both but from personal experience of breeding both species in question for 15 years you'll get better results picking out one or the other. I'd go with rams in the discus tank they appreciate the warmer water breed some apistos in a 10 gallon or 20 long tank. If you choose any species of apisto (well most anyways) you'll need to include caves for spawning for each pair where as rams are open spawners they'll spawn on flat surfaces. You can keep them together but you'll have to break up sight-lines of each territory but the males still will squabble unless it's a really big tank.

 

[Discusapisto]

I've kept 6 apistogramma macmasteri with two pairs of rams before in a densely planted 75 gallon with no trouble but I built the tank with their territory needs in mind.