New to Discus

[kandaii]

Hi everyone,

I think I may have caught the discus bug and am interested in setting up a discus tank. At the moment I am just gathering information and reading reading reading as much as I can!

I haved searched the board and I notice that a lot of people have recommended Andrew Soh's book, Discus: The Naked Truth. I am just about to order it online. Are there any other good discus books/websites/resources that you could reccommend? I would like to be as informed as possible before I take the plunge and avoid receiving as much bad advice as possible (it's difficut to find reliable websites).

Look forward to hearing back from you all.
Cheers,
Katie.

[Ghoti]

Hi Katie...be warned, it just starts with a coupe and before you know it the desire becomes insatiable :D

I have found forums such as this to be a wealth of information. The main thing I would advise though is to be wary as its difficult to determine the credibiklty of a person at the keyboard.

I seek out the more experienced members, then watch to see who they get their advice from. :wink:

Cheers,
Scott

[Ben75]

Hi Katie,
I agree with Scott in relation to filtering the information from forums.
This one does have some very experienced members sharing good reliable information. I have found Andrew soh's books good but a bit hard to follow at first. You might find Dick Au's book Back to nature an easier read to begin with and then work up to Andrews books.
The only advice i would give is to take it slow, it is easy to wrapped up in the hype of a new hobby.
Oh and welcome to the forum..... good to have you here :D
Regards,
Ben

[swampy1972]

Hi Katie,

Welcome to the forum and to Discus keeping.

Regardless of which reference material you go with, all I'd suggest is to keep it simple (K.I.S.S).

As Ben suggested, it's very easy to read and undertake the advice and techniques aimed at professional breeders which soon becomes overwhelming and tarnishes the hobby for you.

The most enjoyable period I've had with Discus was when I first got them many years ago and treated them like any other fish (although slightly different diet). By that I mean that I focuses on keeping a clean tank with stable water and the rest pretty much looked after itself. The fish grew well and bred frequently.

A couple of years ago I got back into them after an extended time away, got sucked into the hype and almost hated having them because of the "work they had become".. It wasn't until I realised what I was doing that I went back to the K.I.S.S principle and started enjoying my fish again. It was also obvious to look at the fish, as their condition improved and they started spawning etc..

I'm in know way intending to put you off - quite the contrary. There's nothing more beautiful in my mind than a Discus in good health. I just found that it's easier to focus on "caring for the water column". If you get that right and supply good food, the fish will almost look after themselves ;)

[Oonallee]

Hi Katie,

Welcome to the forum and to Discus keeping.

Regardless of which reference material you go with, all I'd suggest is to keep it simple (K.I.S.S).

As Ben suggested, it's very easy to read and undertake the advice and techniques aimed at professional breeders which soon becomes overwhelming and tarnishes the hobby for you.

The most enjoyable period I've had with Discus was when I first got them many years ago and treated them like any other fish (although slightly different diet). By that I mean that I focuses on keeping a clean tank with stable water and the rest pretty much looked after itself. The fish grew well and bred frequently.

A couple of years ago I got back into them after an extended time away, got sucked into the hype and almost hated having them because of the "work they had become".. It wasn't until I realised what I was doing that I went back to the K.I.S.S principle and started enjoying my fish again. It was also obvious to look at the fish, as their condition improved and they started spawning etc..

I'm in know way intending to put you off - quite the contrary. There's nothing more beautiful in my mind than a Discus in good health. I just found that it's easier to focus on "caring for the water column". If you get that right and supply good food, the fish will almost look after themselves ;)

Hi kandaii I'm also in the same boat, the above advice is spot on! good luck with it and make sure you post the obligatory pics :)

[Newbreed]

Welcome Kandaii,

All of the above messages are spot on.

From my perspective, as someone who has had various aquariums running on and off over many years, is ask as many questions as you can.

And also, go slow to start with.

I have found the information and feedback posted on this site to be invaluable.

Again, check out the amount of posts on the authors profile and judge from there.

I am sure you will love having discus in your tank.

Enjoy.

[kandaii]

Thank you to everyone who replied, I greatly appreciate it... and FYI DEFINATELY not put off - more interested than before! :D

[HUN]

hi katie,
since you have reading of some book ,have any idea how to get in to practical,or you have some in your tank?i use to read a lot of article , when come to experience i realise, passionate is far more important.