Beginner To Discus

So I'm looking to start my first discus tank. Will be using a 65g tall 36x18x24.5. Few questions. I plan to run 2 aquaclear 110 on the tank and do at least 30% wc weekly. Should this be enough to keep water clean enough for them. I plan to do a bare bottom tank. How much flow in the tank. Do they like a lot of current or no? What's the best food to feed these guys. I see a lot of options just want the best choices health wise.

Right now I have a 120 gallon with a STD flowerhorn about 7.5" I use 2 aquaclear 110 and 1 aquaclear 70. And my water is amm. 0 nitrite 0 and nitrate below 5. Temp is at 87. Ph around 7.7.

I hear flowerhorns produce a lot of waste and been told he will match about 5-7 discus so generally speaking I should be alright in the 65v with these parameters? I plan to have the discus around 85degrees and not 87.

Also what is a desired size to get them? I know juivies are hard to care for so I can go bigger

 

I’d try to get at least 4 inches, however, 65 tall isn’t long enough for them, I’d say 4 foot long tank is the minimum for a group.

Also, why are keeping the flowerhorn so hot?

 

That's definitely enough to keep the water clean.
They like a lower-moderate current.
I'm not sure about the bare bottom since they do like to have plants.
Nitrate and nitrite are good, but it would be best to have the water at or below neutral (for the flowerhorn too) and make sure the water is soft. 85 is good too.
Oh also I got mine at around 2"

 

This is one of the sites I turn to for answers. Hope it helps.
Discus: The whole truth and nothing but...

 

I'd recommend you go for a 4 footer, perhaps an 80 Gallon?

They are timid fish and prefer low current. They love branches and plants. I'd recommend you get a nice branch of manzanita wood, they'll love it.

 

This is one of the sites I turn to for answers. Hope it helps.
Discus: The whole truth and nothing but...

That is mostly a good article, but some of it is just plain wrong.

 

That is mostly a good article, but some of it is just plain wrong.

Can you be more specific?

 

Such as beefheart is perfectly fine to feed them because it's been done for years. Something being done for a long time doesn't change the fact that it's not good for them and not a natural food.

It also says one discus per 20 liters so...

 

I see what you mean about the beef heart. I read that in the wild they are practically detrivores, surviving by picking through leaf litter.

The author also suggests no less than "eight or ten," being that they're shoalers. So with 5 gallons per fish that would be 40-50g.

 

Yeah the beefheart thing really bugs me, and the tank size given is a little tight, but other than that it seems pretty good.

 

Keeping 4 discus in a 65 would be fine. They need more vertical than most fish.

Diet kind of depends on stage of the fish. Check out a lot of what stendker has been doing with these fish. Ph is negotiable, but only to a certain extent. Cleanliness will also depend on stage of the fish. Adults are less needy, but they still need pretty clean water. I would look for someone in your area that raises them to take you under their wing if possible. They aren't crazy hard to keep, but they do demand more work than most other fish. Even with adults, you will probably need to do a minimum of 2 30 percent water changes a week.

While they do enjoy plants, some people have trouble meeting the demands of plants and the fish at the same time. A mature, full fully cycled tank would work best, if you can accomplish it before adding the fish. This will help you with keeping. Nitrates down also and gives you more wiggle room with water changes.

I haven't seen many fully grown discus for sale, but they command high prices. 2 to 3 in discus in my area are generally 10 dollars an inch, sometimes more. Adults are closer to 20 dollars an inch when Ive seen them, much much more for confirmed breeding pairs.

Ive kicked around the idea of keeping them for over a year now. The problem is, everyone will tell you to get a huge tank and then stock said huge tank with a large number of discus. Changing 180 gallons a week isn't for me, an likely never will be.

On to the beefheart controversy. Its kept discus for a long time for full lives of the fish. Again, look into what stendker does. That guy is no nonsense and has tried a lot of things in order to get the fish he has where they are. If I were to get discus, they would likely be from his company. He is the kind of guy that will tell you not to worry about ph, but in the same breath tell you above 8 they will be uncomfortable, and above 8.5 they will die. Those are HIS discus, that he breeds. Many others won't survive 7.8 with their breedings.

I researched discus a lot, including nutrition, and decided they will likely never be a fish I will own. I'm a lazy fish and plant keeper. Until discus are as hard to kill as a cichlid, they will likely never be in my tanks. Not to dissuade you though. If you want to do the work, do the research first. If its still worth it to you, dive in!

 

They are very hard to kill, nowhere near as sensitive as people say they are. They also don't get sick easily at all and the only time mine have was when something came up and I skipped quarantine. They got ich but none were lost.
They don't need a large to full water change every day or even every other day. A simple 25-50% a week will be perfectly fine.
And like I already said about the beef heart; just because people do it and have done it for a long time doesn't change the fact that they would never once come across it naturally and it certainly doesn't mean it's healthy for them.

 

It’s funny because they wouldn’t come across pellet or flake food in the wild, nor would they come across pretty much anything we feed our fish LOL.

 

I feel like pellets and flakes have just been accepted at this point, and I don't know why but for some reason beef heart plus discus makes me scream inside.
That is a good point though, it would cost a fortune to perfectly simulate their environment including food

 

A lot of top quality Discus breeders feed beef heart. I feed beefheart to my Jaguar Cichlid and he’s a monster. Humans weren’t meant to be meat eaters, but we still do it.

 

Seems like a lot of conflicting info /opinions here ?
Feed the discus black worms either live or freeze dried .Beef heart was established since it would have cost a fortune to get sea food to the middle of the country back then..
I would definitely find another food and if I used beef heart I would not be delusioned enough to think the tank doesn't need large water changes ..Many discus breeders use a blender and a fish shrimp mixture that can be just as rich and not as rotten as beef heart..Beef heart came about due to price not being proper ..WAY BACK !! Different century ….
If you get less then adult discus and plan on 30% weekly water changes don't plan on seeing full grown healthy discus IMO ..If you feed beef heart and plan on not needing large and frequent [more then weekly] water changes you are going to run into trouble ..Just my take on discus from a guy who knows and talks to lots of discus breeders...

 

OP, your tank's footprint is the same as a 40 breeder so I think though a bit small lengthwise, you could do 5 3-4 inch discus by themselves. I think one HOB is plenty enough. Weekly WC is fine but since it's not a huge tank I'd do a 75%. BH mix is my fish's favorite food so they get that 3 to 4 days a week. Rest of the time they get flakes and pellets. I don't get commercially made BHM because it looks like . I get home made BHM from a local discus importer. I know it's properly fortified and made with fresh, quality ingredients. IMO, discus is easy, very easy to keep. You just have to stick with the maintenance routine. Once you start skipping WCs or clean the filter, that's when you run into trouble. Another is lack of QT and not following strict non cross contamination procedures. Check your nitrate level daily in the beginning months and let that guide you on how frequently and what % WC you have to do routinely. Once your at weekly steady state, that's your routine you have to follow and it's based on your tank and bioload. Good luck.

 

I started from 65gal as well having 110 and 406 filters running and that was plenty. So with two 110 you should be good.

IMHO, bare bottom tanks for keeping discus are easy to keep clean but not a must to keep discus happy. I have 5-6in multiple discus in 125gal community tank with gravel bottom, plants just like any other tank and 8 other 4-6in fish. Three large filters (110,406,406) and 25% automatic daily wc does the trick to keep no3 low to let discus thrive and stay healthy. Goodluck.
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I’d try to get at least 4 inches, however, 65 tall isn’t long enough for them, I’d say 4 foot long tank is the minimum for a group.

Also, why are keeping the flowerhorn so hot?

Any fish that can thrive in the warmer temps it's good to do. Never will get ick lol.

 

I still think that's too warm, they're reccomended between 78 and 82; and 82 is warm enough to stop ich.
Also, excuse me if I misunderstood, but no, not any fish will thrive/benifit from really warm water.

 

I still think that's too warm, they're reccomended between 78 and 82; and 82 is warm enough to stop ich.
Also, excuse me if I misunderstood, but no, not any fish will thrive/benifit from really warm water.

3 months. That's thriving lol.

 

Well yes, higher temp=higher metabolism=faster growth. I would lower it once the flower horn is full grown as it won't be helping much at that point.

 

You’re just making it grow faster and reducing it’s lifespan. Sure you don’t have Ick, but I have 12 tanks running anywhere from 72-86 degrees, never had Ick either.

 

I still think that's too warm, they're reccomended between 78 and 82; and 82 is warm enough to stop ich.
Also, excuse me if I misunderstood, but no, not any fish will thrive/benifit from really warm water.

80-86 for flowerhorns to my knowledge. So ideally keep them at 82-84.