Setting up a discus tank from scratch

[blackwid00]

Hi,

Im relatively new to these boards, but I have had discus tanks before. It was quite a few years ago so I guess you could say I'm rusty :)

I have a tank thats about 2ft tall (25 in), 4 ft in length (48 in), and 1.2 feet deep (16 in). It is in a really nice one piece stand with a hood etc. Currently there is nothing in it. I want to do this from scratch.

My goal is to have about 4-6 discus in there. I would like to add some rams eventually. I want this to be a display tank of sorts. I have no intention on breeding discus...however, should they do that on their own I wouldn't be upset :) This tank sits in our main living room area and I really want to show off the discus. I would love a planted tank, but Im not sure it would work being so deep. (or at least it seems deep to me.)

At this point, Im looking for ideal set up ideas from lighting, plants, substrate, equipment, compatible fish, if I have too many fish planned for this tank's size etc. It will be a project that has to go in steps so patience is not an issue for me at this point. Can't say that won't change once it has water in it though :)

Thanks In Advance :)

[Trebs]

Okay,

First of all your tank volume should be about 75-80gal. 10 gals per adult discus means you can get 8. You should get 6 as a minimum. I'd say 6 or 7 which leaves you with a little bit of room for some community fish. That is if you are prepared to do the w/c's.

As for a planted tank, at 2ft deep is about the limit for fluro lighting. I have done it before and as long as you pick the right plants it can work well. I'd be aiming for 4 standard 40W bulbs. Those with more experience with planted tanks may be able to direct you with power compact lghting. Either plantgeeks or plantedtank.net will have plenty of good info on these.

Now for substrate. You have a choice here, you can either go for a gravel bottom or a bare bottom tank. With a BB you can either grow plants in pots or on driftwood. The driftwood and pot options allow you to position plants higher in the tank giving better light exposure (Thus making the depth of the tank less of an issue).

I'd suggest going through this forum, awforum.net and the 2 planted tank forums. You'll see pics of what I have described above. Decide which you like the most and we can go from there.