About to order discus...could use some help

[Erk]

Im planning on ordering some discus soon, and as im reading some threads on the forum, it sounds like I need to raise my temp, but I already have two fish Im keeping a close eye on, cause they like water cooler then they are in right now....no quarantine tank either

What do you guys suggest I do? Temp is 81-82F The Queen Arabesque likes up to 79F and the cory cat likes up 72F???

I was planning on ordering 3x2.5" discus to arrive by the 24th of march

Thanks a lot!

[Erk]

Oh yeah, and the ottos like up to 79F I always forget about them

Thanks

[Hail2Pitt02]

Erk, it sounds like you might be trying to hammer a square peg in a round hole. I am not an expert by any stretch but I do know the basics and I do believe the current occupants of your tank are not going to appreciate you turning the tank temp to 83-84 degrees Fahrenheit (not to mention your plants in some cases). In addition as a minimum a full grown adult discus needs 5 gallons of water per fish, 10 would be a much better idea. Adding three discus will eventually overstock your tank which is a bad, bad idea with discus. Your tank already seems like it might be overstocked as it is. On the surface it does not appear to be, but nitrates of 20 indicate otherwise. Doing weekly 40% water changes leaves leads me to say hold off adding more fish right now. With discus you want to keep the water pristine….more than perfect for them to thrive. This means keeping nitrates as close to 0 as possible. I would venture that most who have those beautiful show discus with the vibrant colors keep nitrates at less than 10. You may to consider doing two 40% WCs a week to see where that takes your nitrates. Last but not least I would consider adding some additional filtration, especially if you add fish. An AC 110 or Emperor 400 would be perfect.

I hope I do not sound like a party pooper but with the high cost of these fish I would consider the risks before I rushed in an added any more fish. Also I would definitely Q any new discus before adding them to your tank. If a discus introduced some nasty into your water you might have a devil of f time ridding yourself of it with a tank full of plants.

[Erk]

Thanks PITT, I didnt really wanna raise the temp, and I didnt know it needed to be that high! I added the nitra-zorb to my cannister last night, and I was hoping by the end of next week, the nitrates would go down quite a bit...I think I must have a high amount in my tap. Some members on another thread said I should get 4 discus, but I was planning on three, since I do agree, i will be a tad overstocked, and maybe I do need to up the water changes. I was also planning on getting a UV sterilizer before they arrived, big enough to help kill some unwanted parasites, and keep them from getting sick?

I kinda update my signature as I go, and last time I checked the nitrates were rather high, so I got the nitra-zorb, and since I was planning on having them arrive either the 24 or the 27th, I thought that would be enough time to get the nitrates down a good bit.

Maybe I should pick up a quarantine tank before they arrive....I dont need anything in there but a heater and filter...correct? maybe an airstone? Why do you think I need more filtration on my main tank? I also have a marineland bio-wheel filter hooked up, but since it creates such a waterfall, and water current, I was gonna remove it in time...its good for tanks up to 50 gallon.

Thanks for the info! As always, more input is very welcomed!

[Erk]

The hang on the back filter is a Marineland Penquin Power Bio Wheel Filter 200 I think...it is good up to a 50 gallon tank, but I was planning on removing it, since it creates too much water current? Thats why it isnt listed in my signature. Is there anyway to slow down the waterfall on that kinda filter, and what would be recommended to use instead of the blue carbon pad that comes with those filters, as Ive read that carbon isnt that great for plants?

Thanks!

[Hail2Pitt02]

IMO, adding nitra-zorb is like putting a band-aid on a gun shot wound. I know some that use it in extenuating circumstances. One person on another board I belonged to suddenly discovered that nitrates were coming out of his tap at 15, basically rendering WCs irrelevant. He used nitra-zorb until his water company got their act together and fixed the problem. Otherwise I would stay away from products like that. What you need to remember is that products like nitra-zorb do not eliminate nitrates. Nitra-zorb contains Ion Exchange resins. Ion Exchange resins do not remove anything from an aquarium, they just change it into something else which is most likely every bit as dangerous as the nitrate itself.

Another potential issue is that if the chemical media you are using contains clinoptilolite then this can retard your nitrogen cycle, which will result in reduced nitrates, until the media is exhausted, at which point you will start registering ammonia and nitrite (a mini-cycle) due to insufficient quantities of beneficial bacteria. There is also a risk of clinoptilolite leaching it's captured substances back into the water if it is allowed to become "full".

The bottem line is basically if you can not control nitrates with water changes then you probably should not add anything else….especially discus,

A Q tank I would think is a must for any hobbyist. It’s cheep and can prevent a major disaster in your display tanks. For a Q tank sponge filters are the most cost effective solution. You can seed the sponge filter in your display tank and then transfer it to the new tank and just an instant cycle in there for the most part. Again as you said, all you read need them is a heater and you are in business. Maybe add a fake plant in case the fish want to be shy and hide, than can help reduce their stress. I would avoid using gravel as it makes the tank harder to clean. An airstone wouldn’t hurt but if yo are running a sponge filter you will have one going anyway.

A UV light I is a good idea as well but you know what they say about an ounce of prevention :wink:

[Erk]

Thanks PITT, I will check the nitrates out of the tap when I get home today, and see what that says

I will also pick up a quarantine tank, and I will do some research on this forum to get some information about the quarantine process, and how long to leave them in there

Thanks for your help

[Erk]

OK, nitrates from the tap are 20 :shock: , and doesnt change when adding prime? So what other remedies are recommended, if nobody suggests nitra-zorb? I also use the bio-chem zorb that came with the cannister filter in the first place

Thanks a lot

[FishLover]

When you have high level of nitrates, it means your water quality is not good for discus. Just remove nitrates will not help since there are lot more other things that we do not test in the water that arr bad for discus. The only sure way to get the water in good condition for discus is WCs (inless you have high nitrates in your source water).

[Hail2Pitt02]

Not good erk...I would be yelling at my water company if the nitrates are at 20. If you want to know why just google Blue Baby Syndrome. In your case nitra-zorb might not be a bad idea until your water situation improves. Just be careful with it and do not forget its in your filter. I would not add discus at this time. You are in a lose lose situation.

[Erk]

Well I will make a phone call to them about this, but who knows how far it will go from there, but I have two packs of the nitra-zorb, cause its rechargeable, and I just have to get it down with this pouch, over the week, and it says to recharge and how to recharge, every 1 to 3 months, so I will use this pouch for a short time, and while its recharging, I can rotate to the next one and that should be good to be in the cannister for a lil while, but I will write it down....I have a lil notebook! haha...im def. still learning, and I thank you for your help!

I will just plan on leaving them in the quarantine tank for a lil longer, and age my water for that tank over this week...Hopefully things go well! Im sure you will know

Thanks