55 gallon planted discus possibility
- Thread starter PoopSmart
- Start date
He changes water everyday 
wow thats gorgeous. I love discus so much, and mine deserve a better home.
I am looking at this substrate called Eco Complete planted tank and I think I am going to use that. Is this a good move? Do you have to gravel vac this stuff as much if you fully plant it before you add fish? Its supposed to turn the waste into like plant food or sumthin, but I am skeptical.
Also it says it creates a blackwater buffer, isn't that a more ideal discus condition?
AND, I have a large, one medium, and 2 small pieces of driftwood that I think were presoaked, but are dry now, if I add these straight to the aquarium will that too buffer the pH to around 7 or so?
And as for bottom feeders, is it necessary? I thought a school of julii corydoras would be neat, but it is it optional?
thanks in advance
I am looking at this substrate called Eco Complete planted tank and I think I am going to use that. Is this a good move? Do you have to gravel vac this stuff as much if you fully plant it before you add fish? Its supposed to turn the waste into like plant food or sumthin, but I am skeptical.
Also it says it creates a blackwater buffer, isn't that a more ideal discus condition?
AND, I have a large, one medium, and 2 small pieces of driftwood that I think were presoaked, but are dry now, if I add these straight to the aquarium will that too buffer the pH to around 7 or so?
And as for bottom feeders, is it necessary? I thought a school of julii corydoras would be neat, but it is it optional?
thanks in advance
I don't envy your tapwater parameters. I would find it discouraging to need to use as much RO water as would be needed to lower the hardness to adjust the pH down and stabilized. Never even tried keeping Discus in tapwater of more than 450 ppm TDS and pH 7.6 although I did just realize my Heckel Discus have been living in water with a pH of 8.0 and hardness of 450 ppm. Turns out that my favorite substrate that I sieved at some effort from a local streambed was elevating the pH and TDS. Baseline tapwater is pH 7.4 and 340 ppm TDS. So I made a change for the first time since I set this one planted discus tank up and removed my substrate. It took a week for the Heckels to get over this drastic change in the scenery but it's like it never happened now. I only did this because these discus are a special project, my first serious attempt to breed Heckels. I have been close but never as a dedicated project. I am going to begin adjusting the water to very low TDS, ~50 ppm and a pH of 6.0 or less plus peat filtration. This is to be in preparation for their maturing over the next year. They take much longer than domestic discus to mature, perhaps 2-1/2 years vs 15 months for most domestics.
I have raised two batches of Discus in this tank, ten turquoise and presently ten Heckels. The discus never seemed to be bothered by it but I do change 75% of the water twice a week. Apparently my color vision is off enough to make reading color test results inaccurate for the pH. I now use all digital metering equipment.
It never hurts to age replacement water but I have never bothered to do so with my discus. I always refill directly from the faucet by hose after adding Prime to dechlor/dechloraminate the aquarium. The pH of tapwater does sometimes change after aerating for 24 hours. Usually the pH goes up rather than down. That is usually the result of the off-gassing of dissolved CO2 but I suppose it could go the other way as well but what difference would that make in practical terms? You are going to still use the same water and it will end up being what it will be and the fish will take this in stride. You might be surprised how much the pH varies in well planted tanks between the night and day. It is more important that you have a schedule and volume of water changing regime and stick with it. I cannot argue against the merits of daily water changes. In the ideal aquarium there would be a constant flow of fresh water in and old water out. It just seems like too much work when the end results are equal with just a couple of large changes/week as the regime of less/day. Like there is a life to live outside of discus, right?
I have raised two batches of Discus in this tank, ten turquoise and presently ten Heckels. The discus never seemed to be bothered by it but I do change 75% of the water twice a week. Apparently my color vision is off enough to make reading color test results inaccurate for the pH. I now use all digital metering equipment.
It never hurts to age replacement water but I have never bothered to do so with my discus. I always refill directly from the faucet by hose after adding Prime to dechlor/dechloraminate the aquarium. The pH of tapwater does sometimes change after aerating for 24 hours. Usually the pH goes up rather than down. That is usually the result of the off-gassing of dissolved CO2 but I suppose it could go the other way as well but what difference would that make in practical terms? You are going to still use the same water and it will end up being what it will be and the fish will take this in stride. You might be surprised how much the pH varies in well planted tanks between the night and day. It is more important that you have a schedule and volume of water changing regime and stick with it. I cannot argue against the merits of daily water changes. In the ideal aquarium there would be a constant flow of fresh water in and old water out. It just seems like too much work when the end results are equal with just a couple of large changes/week as the regime of less/day. Like there is a life to live outside of discus, right?
My water is awful for this, but I talked to someone in my area who has a 150 gallon discus tank, and he uses only RO water and then he has to add equilibrium and he mixes acid buffer and alkaline buffer. I got so lost though, because I was hoping he would have a suggestion to help me, but he didn't.
So far I am just trying my best to create blackwater conditions by putting in some half boiled driftwood to release humic acid and then using peat filtration, but I don't think I have gotten my water any softer so the pH is just going to bounce back up once I do a water change.
I need to find something that will soften my water so then it (pH) will stay down.
But really, if I just want to keep the discus I think its possible in water that is slightly basic. I don't plan on breeding discus...At least until I move out to a place with better tapwater conditions.
So far I am just trying my best to create blackwater conditions by putting in some half boiled driftwood to release humic acid and then using peat filtration, but I don't think I have gotten my water any softer so the pH is just going to bounce back up once I do a water change.
I need to find something that will soften my water so then it (pH) will stay down.
But really, if I just want to keep the discus I think its possible in water that is slightly basic. I don't plan on breeding discus...At least until I move out to a place with better tapwater conditions.
this pertains to eco-complete and driftwood - my friends and I have used eco-complete and we are very satisfied with it... but it is expensive. we have also used something called laterite, but I would definitely say that eco-complete works better. and it looks really good as substrate - brings out color. my plants loved it. as for the driftwood, I would soak it before I put it in the tank, its just what I was told to do way back when and I have always done it, but I'm not sure why. that being said I have never had any problems with putting driftwood in my tank after soaking it.
PS - driftwood will lower your pH, and it will not stop lowering it when it gets to 7.0. it can also stain your water, so be careful and monitor your pH, but you probably will not have problems with it - I never have, but my pH has been as low as 6.3. I hope I have helped
PS - driftwood will lower your pH, and it will not stop lowering it when it gets to 7.0. it can also stain your water, so be careful and monitor your pH, but you probably will not have problems with it - I never have, but my pH has been as low as 6.3. I hope I have helped
thank you, my water is tea colored right now becasue I didn't soak the driftwood enough. It looks neat though, but ill have to do a couple water changes to get some of it out.
One of my discus just passed this morning...I was very impatient and bought one from a pet store that had a bunch of horrible looking discus in the same system as it (one was dead I think), and it came home with internal parasites... that is why from now on I am only buying discus from reputable breeders. I heard Discman, on aquabid, lives near me (in st charles) and he has nice discus, but I can't contact him.
thanks for all the help, the tank is looking pretty good so far.
One of my discus just passed this morning...I was very impatient and bought one from a pet store that had a bunch of horrible looking discus in the same system as it (one was dead I think), and it came home with internal parasites... that is why from now on I am only buying discus from reputable breeders. I heard Discman, on aquabid, lives near me (in st charles) and he has nice discus, but I can't contact him.
thanks for all the help, the tank is looking pretty good so far.
