SereneReyn

i've kept tropical fish before, quite successfully. my angels even had a few batches of babies (in a community tank) before i had to give them up due to a move... it has been a long time, however... and i'm planning on buying a new set up in the near future.

i've always loved discus. i've always wanted to try them. but frankly, i'm intimidated. how tough are they, really? i've heard all sorts of bad things about how difficult they are to keep. and i know they're expensive, but honestly it wouldn't matter if they were cheaper, i still wouldn't want to wind up responsible for killing such lovely fish. i've read up on them, alot. and i'm still intimidated, so if anyone has first hand experience, let me know just how fragile they are in reality.

thanks!

MasterShake2003

Hi!!!

I have been keeping a few discus for about a month now and they seem very happy and health in my tank. My water in Central Indiana is VERY VERY hard, which I'm sure you know is not ideal for discus.

I keep my temp at 82* F, feed frozen blood worms twice a week and the rest of the time feed them Cyclopreeze Micro Crabs. I also only do water changes once a week. So, in my first hand experience, they don't seem to be very hard to care for at all. But, this is just my experience and I'm sure there are many more here who would disagree.

I acclimated my fish slowly to their new home, which helps significantly. I try my best not to overfeed the tank and keep up on my water testing and water changes. I would say go for it. I would recommend buying all the discus you want at once, however, because they are cichlids and can become territorial if introduced to the tank at separate times. I had a hard time getting eeryone in my tank to get along, but thing are going well now

Don't be intimidated!!!! Just keep an eye on your water conditions and at the fist sign of trouble, water change!!!!! Always keep up on your weekly changes, of course

susitna-flower

Some of the changes that are just part of the hobby now include water testing. At least it was new to me, since I had fish 25 years ago....The first equipment even before your tank should be an API Freshwater Master test kit! Be sure to get the API kit, most here recommend it!. It will last through hundreds of tests, and especially if you want to keep discus or angels it is important to keep track of your water parameters.

Any fish should be researched, just as you are doing. Buy the tank to fit the fish that you want to keep. Cycle your tank before buying fish, and especially some fish like discus should be in completely cycled tanks, if there is anything you should be careful about it is that. ALSO discus need clean water, the ammonia and nitrite should be 0 but even as time goes along your nitrates should be down around 5. If Nitrates get up as high as 10 you need to do water changes to bring them back down. 25 % changes every day till the nitrates are where they need to be.

Some people say you should use RO water for discus, but this should only really be necessary if you have exceptionally high pH, or if you are breeding.

There are several discus owners on the forum, and they should join in to help you...... Good Luck with what ever you decide!

SereneReyn

thanks alot so far... the test kit is #1 on my list - figure i should see what the tap water's like before i even decide for sure.

i'd like several discus (4-5?), but a few other fish as well... some mellow type of (non-suckermouth) catfish or loaches? neons? i'm leaning toward a 72g bowfront - big enough for what i have in mind?

capekate

Hello and welcome to fishlore!
I have kept Discus for about 8 months and will help you with what I can.
Please take the time to read up on Discus in the Discus Care Sheet, under the species section, Discus. It will answer some first step questions for you.
And then... ask away! We are here to help if we can....

~ kate