Setups

[Del]

Just wanting to check if I am doing it right... if there is such a thing!

How many waterchanges a week and how much (percentage) are required for a planted 3ft tank (no Co2) with 4 discus (3 small) and assorted tetras, corys?

Plants are - Anobias (sp?) on driftwood, wisteria and corkscrew val.

Currently adding excel, excel trace, discus trace and stability at each waterchange...

Hardware - Eheim 2213 and three fluro lights on for 9 hours a day, eheim air pump running at night.

Any advice or suggewstions would be greatly appreciated... :)

DEL

[ryan]

I would be looking at ~10-15% once a week if i was you - with the small number of fish in the tank I wouldnt suspect you would need much more.

how much are you taking out, and are you having problems currently?

[antwan]

How small are the small discus? Small discus require frequent, large water changes in order to grow to their full potential. Your plants won't like all the water changes so perhaps you could move the smaller discus to another tank and grow them up first? For a planted tank I would recommend 25% a week.

[Del]

No problems to speak of Ryan - just wanting to make sure I was doing enough.

I am changing about 30% once a week, cleaning about 1/3 of the gravel with each change. Canister and tube clean once a month.

Antwan, the smallest discus is about 7cms, then 8cms, 11cms and 15cms. The smallest 3 were added last week and are all eating well and getting along (a bit of pushing and shoving, but that's all part of it...!).

I guess I want to make sure I am growing them out correctly with my waterchanges, but don't want to strip nutrients from the tank by doing too many, too frequently.

I want the four to live together in the tank and be healthy.

DEL

[duck]

I guess I want to make sure I am growing them out correctly with my waterchanges, but don't want to strip nutrients from the tank by doing too many, too frequently.
IMO You can't have it both ways, it's one or the other.
I would do a WC every second day of aleast 20%,As for the plants i wouldn't worry to much as they are very hardy plants you have and grow very very easily.

Again IMO unless it's a 3x2x2 you are overstocked.

Or do as antwan mention move the discus into another tank and grow them out properly with large frequent WC and a heavy feeding regime.

[taksan]

, but don't want to strip nutrients from the tank by doing too many, too frequently.



DEL

Strip nutrients? ....... your not exactly growing difficult plants.

You cannot do too many to frequent .....that tanks overstocked.
I'd be doing 50% twice a week at minimum.

These people that think 10-15% .... I dunno what they are smoking.

[ryan]

taksan - how much do you take out of yours per week?

[Proteus]

I am a fan of the more the better, so long as it is aged water that is going in to the tank

[Del]

Taksan - 50% twice a week, in one go...? :shock: I was told never to do more than 30% WC at once... :oops:

Proteus - how much of a WC are you suggesting I do... you know the size of my discus babies... :?

DEL

[Proteus]

25-50% with aged water...

If you age your water and have it at similar parameters to what is in the tank there is nothing wrong with doing 80-90% water changes, heck, that is what they do at most of the discus breeding farms in Malaysia, 1-2 times a day.

[ryan]

how do the plants handle such changes? or are you talking about fish only tanks (bare)

if so that would make sense

[taksan]

taksan - how much do you take out of yours per week?

Depends ...but no tank even planted ones gets less then 50% twice a week.
I do 50% daily or every 2nd day on most tanks.

[taksan]

how do the plants handle such changes? or are you talking about fish only tanks (bare)

if so that would make sense

Plants are fine ..... Water changes don't affect plants like some people would have you believe.

[Proteus]

All you need to do is to read any of Amano's books or some of the other plant guru's literature and they all seem to do between 30 & 60% weekly

[duck]

My 2 cents,I do 50-70% WC everyweek on my planted tanks.

[Del]

My 2 cents,I do 50-70% WC everyweek on my planted tanks


All you need to do is to read any of Amano's books or some of the other plant guru's literature and they all seem to do between 30 & 60% weekly

So if I up my WC to 30% twice a week, will that help grow out my discus whilst keep my "not-difficult plants" growing?

I know it is not the ideal situation, but when renting a small flat, a 3x2x1 tank is my only option.

Maybe I should have only bought 3 discus in total... sigh. Or rented a bigger house :lol: mmmm discus addiction!

DEL