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View Full Version : Converting from cichlid to discus... substrate question



psychoactive
Fri Oct 12, 2007, 12:58 AM
Hello, I had a cichlid tank but I gave my fish away because I want to keep discus.

I have a few question... first of all, I am using caribsea black sand that I bought 3-4 years ago. I see people using eco-complete, but when I bought my sand I dont think the bag said eco-complete or anything on it, it just said it was black sand from the caribean sea. Will this increase my ph too much to keep discus?

Another question I have is my tap water ph is 8.4, so when I do water changes will I be adding a lot of acid every time to lower the ph to a proper level?

Thank you!

ILLUSN
Fri Oct 12, 2007, 01:00 AM
if its the black sand from carib sea its proably tahitian moon, this stuff is great for discus, it really makes the colors come out. i use it as a top layer above eco complete in my plant tank.

lower your ph of the water BEFORE you add it to the tank, do it gradually, say get your new water to 6.5 and change 10-20% a aday for a few weeks to bring down the ph gradually

psychoactive
Fri Oct 12, 2007, 01:05 AM
yes, thats what it is! the tahitian moon stuff... I told the guy at the fish store I have black sand and he seemed angry, he said "sand? your ph will be way too high!"

I will tell him what kind I am using...

right now the tank has no fish, so I can just adjust the ph quickly. I was planning to get it to 6.5 and waiting a month to see if it goes up a lot...

thanks for the answer, the fish store guy made me worried.