Water Chemistry ?'s about Discus Keeping

[FishCreek]

I would like to keep Discus. My ph is a stable 7.6. My total hardness is 21 right now. 16 GH and 5 KH. Do the knowledgeable folks on this forum think I will have an success without altering my water chemistry? Thanks ahead of time for all responses. :)

[jesx57]

It's a about acclimatising. To introduce discus to those conditions you will need to take the introduction process much slower. Add a little bit of water into your bag about every 10 mins, may take you about 30 mins for them to be fully acclimatised. Nearly every fish can get used to different living conditions - it all comes down to taking the intro process slowly. The bigger the difference the longer it will take. Discus like to live in water about 6-6.5pH, with soft water. I don't think it is necessary to alter your conditions.

[actinicblue]

purchase your discus where the water is kept near your parameters- i've seen an internet vendor that actually raised their discus in around 7.5 .
Jesx57 is right. acclimate your fish slowly specially on 7.6 water. but for a sure success and happy fishes, not to mention less headaches. look into lowering your ph. there are many easy ways out there to do that. good luck and keep us posted

[dwilder]

here in the us most of the breeders around keep thier discus in water that is pretty hard and has a high ph.my water ph is 8.1 and they are fine i have a pair that even lays eggs every five days of course i need to soften the water to get the eggs to hatch but the discus are fine.so you shouldn't have to alter your water

[cityguy]

I would like to keep Discus. My ph is a stable 7.6. My total hardness is 21 right now. 16 GH and 5 KH. Do the knowledgeable folks on this forum think I will have an success without altering my water chemistry? Thanks ahead of time for all responses. :)

I've seen recommendations for Discus' PH from 4.5 to 8.0! Purists say PH must be low, since that's what it is in the Amazon tributaries from where they originate, but most of us are buying domestic tank-bred Discus. The few Indian and Thai breeders I've talked to just raise them for sale in close to their tap water PH (ranging from 6.8 to 7.5)

The most important thing is to keep your PH level consistent. A level of 6.5 to 7.2 seems to be generally considered as acceptable, unless you're considering breeding. (Lower PH and soft water are supposed to encourage breeding) The advantage of keeping it near neutral is that less adjustments will need to be made with your water changes, and less stress for the fish.

Two more factors to consider when deciding on your PH level.... Low, acidic PH (below 6.5 or so) can help deter bacteria and renders high nitrite - ammonia levels more harmless. However, levels that low will cause your biological filter to nearly stop operating! You must rely mostly on water changes if you keep very low, acidic PH levels. Going the other way, for instance, increasing PH from 6.5 to 7.5 causes ammonia levels to be as much as 10 times more toxic to the fish. However, at the higher level, biological filtration becomes much more efficient! Nice choices to try and make, right? In consideration of these factors, most keepers choose, as mentioned above, about 6.5 to 7.2, with good reason!

All The Best 8-)