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View Full Version : Starting a Discus tank! all help appreciated


voss345
Tue Feb 12, 2008, 09:35 PM
Ok hi guys im new to this site!
I live in Ct and have a few questions
Ive had a 75 gallon well established planted for about a year with juvies pike but switcing over to discus my tank water comes out at around 6.4 as i have peat to soften the water
Right now i have a fluval 404 for filtration and an AC110 and my nitrates are at 0 :D , im thinking about getting a 40 gallon refugium and take off the AC110 is this a good idea?
also anyone know of a good discus dealer in the New england area?

Also for my tank im thinking 4 discus to start ( or would it just be easier to introduce all at the same time)? 12 corys cats that i already have, and a few rams and maybe a shoal of 15-20 some odd tetras!
thanks alot

robb
ILLUSN
Tue Feb 12, 2008, 10:24 PM
if your nitrates stau at 0 then i wouldn't be changing anything.

get your temp stable at 28-29C for a month and see how the tank does, if the plants stay happy and the water quality stays good you're good to go to introduce your discus.
Merrilyn
Wed Feb 13, 2008, 06:37 AM
Welcome to the forum Robb.

Can you post your other tank readings? It seems most unusual for a fully mature tank to have a nitrate reading of zero. Can you post your ammonia and nitrite reading as well. That will tell us if your tank has matured.

In a 75 gallon tank, you could easily have 6 fully grown discus as well as the other tankmates you mention. I'd leave your filtration just as it is. With discus you need to do a water change twice a week anyway, so your current filtration will be quite adequate.
voss345
Wed Feb 13, 2008, 12:50 PM
ok thabks Merrilyn, well at the moment the tank is very understocked and just have a pair of venezuelan pikes im waiting to move out
do you guys thinks its worth it to make a refugium for the tank? It would help eat up more of the nitrates by putting java moss and other plants in there?
If i was to build a refugium im thinking 40 gallons, since i have an extra one, it would make the water more stable since there is more volume
also if i make a refugium should i cutback on the filtration maybe take the ac110 off?