discus tank

[Neervana]

hey guys

its going to be my 21st bday soon! my dad has promised me tank of my choice, so we are going to get it on my birthday. i would reallllllly love to have discus, but i know they like soft water, and the water in london is rock hard! is there anything i can do about this? i initially thought adding large pieces of bogwood might soften it, but i dont think it will soften it to make them happy enough in there. also, was thinking what to do when i have to do a water change - i mean it will be trouble if the pH keeps on buffering from hard to soft. if you guys do think there is a chance of me keeping the discus, then let me know what size tank i need to get, i have a spare room in my house that was my old bedroom that has a lot of space!

so i need to know the size of tank and also if i could keep discus with water chem here, but what do i do about the pH

 

[frasertheking]

with captive bred discus hardness and ph do not really mater.just do not try to mess with it ,a stable high ph is better than a fluctuating low one . i would say a planted 90 would be your best bet for 6 full grown discus .

 

[408smokin]

I say go with 100 gallon that is wide and tall. For the water change, pre-treat the water before doing the water change. I have a barrel that is about 60 gallon, i fill it up and adjust all my ph to make sure it the same as the the tank. I use a power head to pump the new water in the tank.

 

[Neervana]

I already have a juwel 400L tank in my room, i was thinking about getting another one, if you guys are saying that 100g is good - does this seem good? it is wide, and fairly tall too.

 

[Neervana]

so if i have a 100 gallon tank, how many discus can i have in there?6?

 

[408smokin]

100 gallon.. up to 10 discus with no prob.. I've seen much smaller tank with way more discus. The key is to keep them happy.. warm water and water change...

 

[Neervana]

10 discus? wow that will look good with loads of plants! hmmm i'm gonna get the tank and a pair of discus then gradually add pairs slowly until 10 discus.

 

[408smokin]

sound good!!.. update us when you get your tank and your discus.. can't wait to see it..

 

[Neervana]

yep definitely!i'll be buyin the tank on the 22nd may then i'll have to "seed" it with a pump from another established tank etc. will make sure i post some pics up etc.

 

[408smokin]

For the water change, pre-treat the water before doing the water change. I have a barrel that is about 60 gallon, i fill it up and adjust all my ph to make sure it the same as the the tank. I use a power head to pump the new water in the tank.

oh yea.. this is a picture of the barrel that I use for my water change.. and I keep the water the same temp as the tank to avoid shock.