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i bought a 55g a while ago and i would like to put about 4 discus, either green peruvians or royal blues, in it with 4 blue rams, 5 albino corys, a bushynose(maybe)and 10 cardinals.i have been in the aquarium hobby for about a year and a half now and i think im ready to keep them.
we own 2 large rain water tanks wich are suited to the water chemestry that discus live in.
will this work out?
do you have any sugestions to improve it?

Possibly a bit small for 4, could probably fit 2 in though although they like to be in groups.

Key to keeping discus is not pH or hardness but clean water! Traditionally, the rule of thumb for adult discus is 10 gallons of water per fish. The rule of thumb says that you could have 5 adults in the tank.

However, the fish have a large body mass and their food, wastes and respiration will not only require good filtration but also a great water change regimen. Minimum water changes that I recommend would be 30 to 50% every 3rd or 4th day. Keep the nitrates under 20 ppm!

A second key to discus is quantity. You should have a minimum of 5 fish to spread the aggression within the loose shoal that discus form.

Mmm, I envy the cisterns. The fish will ove you!



__________
"To steal ideas from one person is plagiarism; to steal from many is research."
researched from Steven Wright

hmm with 30-40% changes wouldn't you end up having to match the paramaters of the tank precisely? so then pre-condition the water? Just thinking about stress on the discus.

i went to one of the LFS's today(the only one that sells discus) and the specific ones i like were of course the most expensinve, the only other 2 types were a couple of unatractive blue diamonds and these weird looking ones that were bright red/orange with lots of tiny black dots all other them. i dont think i will be able to keep them mainly because i live in a farming area and we are having a drought over here in Australia. I usually do a 25-30% water change every week or 2. i do not condition the water because there is no contaminents in it at all. the blue rams don't seem to mind.
i'll have to think of another plan.
thanx for your help.

Veteric,

hmm with 30-40% changes wouldn't you end up having to match the paramaters of the tank precisely? so then pre-condition the water? Just thinking about stress on the discus.

It has been my experience that large, frequent water changes assure a minimal change from tank parameters. My water changes always have the same source, tapwater, with reasonably stable conditions. Water is tempered to match tank temperature.

By not performing large, frequent water changes you may have continuously deteriorating water parameters due to fish size, stocking and maintenance. A small weekly water change (20% or less) may not bring back the clean conditions that discus need to thrive.

Are the discus "happy" about the water change regimen. Initially no, but 8 out of 10 now play in the incoming water... go figure!



__________
"To steal ideas from one person is plagiarism; to steal from many is research."
researched from Steven Wright

Coop,

The orange/red fish with the black spots are called "pigeon blood" discus. The black spots are the stress bars of the fish that have diffused into the spots.

__________
"To steal ideas from one person is plagiarism; to steal from many is research."
researched from Steven Wright