Posted by daddyg70 on January 15, 2003 at 02:05:20:
In Reply to: Buying a Discus posted by odonusniger on January 08, 2003 at 14:00:12:
:Hello again,
:I have more questions about Discus. What size tank is recommended for full grown adults and how long do they take to reach full grown? What sorts of fish do they do well with? I have 2 pictus, 1 pleco, 2 bala, & 2 gouramis and plan to add some other things later.
:Any variety of Discus particularly hardier than others?
:What do you feed your Discus? I know they like live food, but have heard of dried or frozen alternatives. (I hate worms!)
:I asked prior to this about pH. I know discus like low pH. For some reason I can't get my tank above 6.4, I think that's about the level for Discus. Amazingly enough the fish in it have adjusted to it. I've kept fish for years in it without problems, but even after treating and treating it to bring it up it stays at 6.4. Odd thing is water changes don't help. My tap water is 7.6 and still doesn't bring pH up. My smaller tank stays about 7.4 and doesn't come down. Go figure!
You need 10-15 gal per discus. The size depends on how clean the water is and their diet. I have a 60g tank with 3 red turquoise 4-5", 2 Wattley Red Panda 3", and 1 3" Blue Diamond. The only other tankmate is a gold nugget plec. 6.6-6.8 is desirable but can tolerate 7.0. I do 50% deionized water and 50% tap water. I do 15% water changes 2-3x a week. Temp should be at 84-86 degrees.
The fish you have are horrible with discus! The only tankmates I recommend are a school of cardinal tetras or rummynose tetras and apistos(dwarf cichlids) They can handle the heat and the lower pH. If you want discus, get rid of those fish.
ONLY BUY DISCUS FROM A BREEDER. Dont buy low grade discus from your LFS. Try to find a breeder that is local doing internet searches. I am from Los Angeles and was able to find only two.
DONT BUY ONLY ONE. You need to buy at least 4 that are the same size.
Good luck
Check out this link. It has helped me considerably
