50 gallon Discus tank help

[Nightmyrrh]

Hey everyone! Glad to finally find a place where I can nerd out with other fish lovers!

Anyway, I have a 50 gallon long tank which I want to use mainly for discus. A friend of mine recently gave me her Eheim 2217 canister filter as she had upgraded. Now my assumption is that the bacteria already in that filter will greatly assist in the cycling of my tank.

So I purchased 12 neon tetras and im going to leave it at that for a few weeks to make sure things run smoothly. However the goal is to add discus. I also want to add live plants, I recently added new sand to the tank.

Currently I have fake plants to give the tetras someplace to chill.

I guess I have four main questions:

Was it right of me to assume I could rely on the bacteria in the filter to quickly cycle my tank?

How many Discus could I stock in this tank with the amount of tetras I already have?

When could I add plants to my tank? And what are some good plant choices based on the fish I wish to stock?

Thank you for taking the time to read this and especially for answering my questions! Any advice is helpful!

Sent from my SGH-I337M using Aquarium Advice mobile app

 

[Nightmyrrh]

On another note.. anyone think they can ID this catfish? If its even a catfish.. been trying to figure this out for weeks. Has a white stripe coming from its tail up its side.

Sent from my SGH-I337M using Aquarium Advice mobile app

 

[treemanone2003]

Hey everyone! Glad to finally find a place where I can nerd out with other fish lovers!

Anyway, I have a 50 gallon long tank which I want to use mainly for discus. A friend of mine recently gave me her Eheim 2217 canister filter as she had upgraded. Now my assumption is that the bacteria already in that filter will greatly assist in the cycling of my tank.

So I purchased 12 neon tetras and im going to leave it at that for a few weeks to make sure things run smoothly. However the goal is to add discus. I also want to add live plants, I recently added new sand to the tank.

Currently I have fake plants to give the tetras someplace to chill.

I guess I have four main questions:

Was it right of me to assume I could rely on the bacteria in the filter to quickly cycle my tank?

How many Discus could I stock in this tank with the amount of tetras I already have?

When could I add plants to my tank? And what are some good plant cjoices choices based on the fish I wish to stock?

Thank you for taking the time to read this and especially for answering my questions! Any advice is helpful!

Sent from my SGH-I337M using Aquarium Advice mobile app

Having kept Discus for many years, I'll give you my best advice.

1. If the media was kept wet, and not rinsed in tap water, yes it will help 100%. Be sure to perform water tests to make sure all is going well. Use a liquid test kit. You may wind up with a mini cycle.

2. Rule of thumb is 10 gallons for every adult Discus. They so best in groups of 5 or more because they form a pecking order and need this group to survive properly. It boils down to the size of the Discus overall, but I would not do more than 5. Get them all at the same time and from the same place. There are a few places I would STAY CLEAR AWAY FROM. Frequent, large volume WC's are a requirement for them to stay healthy. It's a must !!!

3 and 4. Yes plants at anytime. Here's an excellent link to your warm water plants.
http://forum.simplydiscus.com/showthread.php?23360-TAKIN-THE-HEAT!-PLANTS-FOR-DISCUS-TANKS

 

[Nightmyrrh]

Having kept Discus for many years, I'll give you my best advice.

1. If the media was kept wet, and not rinsed in tap water, yes it will help 100%. Be sure to perform water tests to make sure all is going well. Use a liquid test kit. You may wind up with a mini cycle.

2. Rule of thumb is 10 gallons for every adult Discus. They so best in groups of 5 or more because they form a pecking order and need this group to survive properly. It boils down to the size of the Discus overall, but I would not do more than 5. Get them all at the same time and from the same place. There are a few places I would STAY CLEAR AWAY FROM. Frequent, large volume WC's are a requirement for them to stay healthy. It's a must !!!

3 and 4. Yes plants at anytime. Here's an excellent link to your warm water plants.
TAKIN' THE HEAT! PLANTS FOR DISCUS TANKS

Thank you soooo much! This answered all my questions perfectly Cheers!

 

[treemanone2003]

Thank you soooo much! This answered all my questions perfectly Cheers!

You're very welcome. And welcome to AA as well. Anything else, just ask away !! You also have a message.