Thoughts/ideas for 25ish tall tank?

[JenNewbie]

I am trying to make myself wait until school is finished before I tackle stocking the 25 gallon tank I have. I was planning on doing hatchets for the top layer, a mixed tetra school for the middle layer and a small group of corys for bottom feeders and a clown pleco as my algae eater. Well, going to all the lfs stores while pondering what to put in my 6 gal tank (I settled on a school of blue tetras), I once again fell in love w/ the discus. I am nowhere near ready to take the plunge and try a saltwater tank, but the fish are so gorgeous! The discus and gouramis are about the closest you can get to the saltwater colors and stay with saltwater fish. The guy that was helping me at the big lfs used to breed discus and he said I could do one for sure in a tank that size. So, what are everyone's opinions on doing a discus and a couple gourami for my middle layer fish? Will they get along with hatchet fish? It's almost as much fun just window shopping for fish as it is actually setting the tank up...

 

[JenNewbie]

I forgot to add another question: I'm moving to Davis, which is notorious for having mineral-laden tap water. This stuff will eat thru PVC pipes! I don't drink the water and I don't even let my pets drink it. Discus are soft water fish, so which is the best option: chemical water treatment, filtered tap water (either from the store or one of those filters attached to the faucet), or buying drinking water from the store? How sensitive are these guys to water conditions?

 

[Fruitbat]

JenNewbie...

Discus, Symphysodon sp., can tolerate a wider range of pH than a lot of people think but they will not thrive in water that isn't quite warm and relatively soft and acid. They are VERY sensitive to high nitrate levels. Many successful Discus keepers/breeders like Jack Wattley recommend that you do 40% water changes DAILY! One Malaysian breeder actually takes that a step farther and does 80% changes daily!

They are beautiful fish...but finicky. Yes...your 25 gallon tank will hold a pair of Discus but very little else. Along with being choosy about their water conditions they are also very choosy about their tank-mates.

Here is a link to an interesting U.K. based article on Discus that might help answer a LOT of your questions:

http://www.fishkeeper.co.uk/iv/discuss.asp

 

[medge00]

filtered is usually always better than chemicals....

discus are VERY sensitive to water conditions and i've read a lot that says they don't like to be alone. 25 gal is barely enough for one, let alone two... i'd check out cichlid and discus pages

 

[Allivymar]

I tend to agree with medge; discus really aren't the best choice for a 25g. They do best in groups of at least 6; one or two discus would be pretty unhappy. I'd go with the gouramis; they would be happier in smaller numbers, and would require not quite as much water husbandry as discus anyway.

If you're really hooked on discus, is it possible to do a 55g instead?

 

[medge00]

yeah, a reasonable assortment of dwarf gouramis would be great in a 25 gallon. its not often you see tanks with just gouramis. as for color, you'd be surprised what you can find... some dwarf rainbows are gorgeous!... live bearers can be bright, though i've seen a lot in reds and oranges which i tire of.... rams can be picky with water, but sometimes you can stumble upon really pretty ones... killifish are harder to find but equally good looking

i don't want to discourage you from the hobby... get online and surf around. there are some really pretty fish out there that would be perfect for your tank.

 

[Fruitbat]

Now if you want a TRULY gorgeous 25 gallon tank with fish that will rival a lot of SW fish....get yourself a school of about 10 Tiger Barbs....then just stand back and watch them sparkle!!!!!