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well, I will be getting a used 29 gallon tank in a couple days from a friend. I will have to remove the undergravel filter and do a thurough cleaning of it. I have several questions...first off...he has a bracish fish that he is currently keeping in the tank, he has the aquarium set up as freshwater with no salt.

I keep my current 10 gallon low ph, but im not sure how the discus will do in it. also, will he get along with my 5 barbs,bristlenose pleco,my "unknown" catfish(bottom feeder, i need to barrow a digital camera so i can get a pic up here so i will know how big the lil guy is going to get,he(or she) is a bottom feeder and only 2" right now, skinny like a loach, but with catfish features, a wide mouth,grey with orangish striping, looks nothing like a cory, looks more like a really skinny small brightly colored talking catfish. also very outgoing,loves swimming in circles on the glass. hides if disturbed by the barbs though), and my cory.

i dont know much about discus, but i am afraid he wont last long in a freshwater tank, even with low ph, and im afraid my curious barbs will annoy him to death. any thoughts? should i just tell my friend i am keeping him and give him to my local pet store or someone who can keep him in a brackish tank?

next question, how long will it take the tank to cycle after a complete water change? should i change the filter right when i set it up, or should i leave the old dirty filter in there till the water cycles?

also, can i use the bacteria starter stuff like "cycle"...its a liquid "starter" that helps speed up the water cycle process. or would this be bad for the tank?

i also have a piece of driftwood i would like to use, but it discolors water horribly. i have tried washing it, soaking it, ect, and cant seem to get it clean, the water always gets that lovely tea color. the only thing i havent doen is throw it in the dishwasher, because i dont have one, i have soaked it in a very mild soap and water solution for several days then in regular water, and still the lovely tea coloring occurs. any ideas?

also, any other hints any one thinks might be usefull for a idiot like me would be greatly appriciated!

Discus aren't brackish fish . Discus prefer soft acidic
water, and do best in shoals. I would not recommend
adding a discus to a community aquarium, and 10G is way to
small for discus for any length of time, they like stable
water parameters. If you are unable to provide the Discus
with a good home, then you should not keep him.

As for the cycling question. A tank will not cycle unless
a source of ammonia is provided. Using an old filter and
cycle products will simply help by adding beneficial
bacteria, but even these will die if no ammonia is being
supplied to the tank.

The Driftwood is leaking tannins and the only way to get
rid of them are to let the driftwood leak them out. The
tannins will soften the water and bring down the pH. There
is no reason why you should be washing it with mild soap as
the tannic acid is trapped in the wood and is not dirt on
the surface. I would soak the driftwood for several days/
weeks, to get most of the tannins out, and also now that
you have used soap, to get out any residue that may be on
it.

HTH,
Megil.

P.S. Discus are not recommended fish for beginners.


Last edited by Megil Tel'Zeke at 10-Nov-2005 17:44

Discus are one of the most difficult freshwater fish to keep and a full grown discus is not only fairly large but worth quite a bit of money. A 10g is definitely not a good home for one.
If I got a piece of driftwood anywhere near soap I'd probably throw it out. Driftwood soaks things up and it's hard to get chemicals back out of it. It may leach the soap out(along with the tannins that color water) for quite a long time. It sometimes takes months of soaking driftwood to get it to stop discoloring the water and to sink. Some driftwood will always discolor the water a little. Boiling it for a short amount of time will help but if you boil it too long the wood will start to break down.
You kinda lost me on your cycling questions.. It takes about 1 month to cycle an aquarium without adding an outside source of bacteria such as from liquid sources like Cycle or things used in another cycled tank like filter media and gravel. Bacteria are not found in the water so using water from another tank or just changing water on a cycled tank won't have any effect. Too many water changes on a cycling tank will remove the bacterias food source and slow the cycle. If you add some gravel or used filter media it can shorten the cycle down to as little as 1 week depending how much you are stocking the tank and how much bacteria you manage to move. Products like Cycle provide minimal help but do no harm. Biospira is a better product but still might take a week or 2 to cycle the tank. Bacteria will die within about 24hrs if you do not provide a source of food for them such as fish waste or rotting fish food.

again, my apoligies for being an idiot. he told me it was a brackish fish that needed low ph. i have done no research on them whatsoever. again, i am new to this, so i apoligise for my stupidity.since i cannot provide a good home for this fish i will not keep it, i will give it to a friend that runs the local pet store and has plenty of extra tanks, who has both the space, and the knowlege to care for this fish.

in regards to the water cycle, i will let it go for a couple weeks and begin checking ammonia and ph levels.

as far as the drift wood, a friend had told me to throw it in the dishwasher with a small amount of soap, hence why i used a light soap solution when soaking it. since i had soaked it in the soap, i have since soaked it for several days twice. i will attempt to soak it again.

sorry if i seem but some of us have only had an aquarium for a very short time and are struggling to keep their fish happy and healthy. the way I learn is by asking on forums and reading books. it may be annoying, but, i guess if it bothers you too much dont reply?

Don't clean the Driftwood with soap. Do not use any ammount of soap with the tank ornaments or the tank itself.

Just leave the Driftwood to soak in a bucket & use it when it's water logged.


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yeah, i tossed that piece of driftwood, for fear there might have been some residue. i will purchase another, but this time i will soak it in plain water for a week or so.

thanks for the help.