New to Discus? lots of questions and dilemmas ;]

[Jonnywhoop]

hey everyone, i joined this site because i wanted to get into Discus's collecting, and hopefully breeding but anyways.

today i bought two brilliant blue discus's, about 2 inches big each, one male, one female, im sure, if i sexed them right; for 50 bucks. why not? ive always wanted discus anyways. i acclimated them into my 20g high tank with my black veil angelfish and flame Dwarf Gourami. when they got settled in, the gourami and angel started nipping at the discus' etc etc, so at the moment i pulled both of them out, leaving the discus to get used to their new home.

thats the least of my worries because ive dealt with bullies before. but anyways. i have a 10g on my desk, 20 x 10 x 12 i believe. now my dilemma is.


What should i do with the 10g tank?
A) make it another tank to house the angel and gourami, whilst i get more discus for my 20g
B) keep everything as is, and use the 10g for a breeding tank when i get more discus. (my tank has PLENTY of space, dont worry about overcrowding.)


If you chose option A
1) i was thinking about getting a whisper filter for that tank, but i was wondering that in the event where i do need a breeding tank, is there a way to convert that whisper into a sponge filter? i had a thought about putting on some kind of sponge netting of some sort, like a condom per se over the "sucking" part? haha

Also, if i used sand as a substrate, how can i siphon, or clean the sand, as that of a gravel substrate?

sorry for so many questions but yeah i just cant find any suitable reliable answers.
any other opinions, more options? questions.
thanks! :D

[samir]

I'm curious, how do you sex 5cm discus ?

[Jonnywhoop]

I'm curious, how do you sex 5cm discus ?

i read from a website that you can sex a discus but the fin alignment, color vibrancy, and overall size. i understand that they are juveniles and im not a 100% sure of their sex, but thats why im on this board, to find answers to my questions.

The suspected male has a short anal fin, and the dorsal fin lines up either straight on, or a little wider. he also has a more pale blue color, and not as striking as the female. the suspected male is also bigger.

The suspected female has a longer anal fin, and the dorsal fin lines through it. its color is a lot more vibrant, and is more defined. she is also smaller.

if these are three good potential methods of sexing a fish; they give me a good idea of the gender of my discus, then again they are still juveniles

[Hollowman]

Let me say right from the start, walk before you run!

IMO you cannot sex fish at that size, not even the experts can do this, and I know a few.

Not sure on what you have bought either? were they:

(a) Brilliants
(b) Blue Diamonds
(c) Cobalts
(d) Turqs

Pics might help.

Ok, your tanks.
The 20 gallon will be fine for the discus, but 2 on their own will lead to issues, discus are shoaling fish and do better in bigger groups, use the 20 for a grow out tank, but add another 4-6 fish of similar size, from the same supplier. This will house them until they grow, you may have to get a bigger tank once they double in size to get the best growth from them. These fish will need daily water changes too, and top care to grow them to their best.
The 10 gallon tank will do fine as a quarrentine / hospital tank, keep it empty, clean and ready for use at any time it is required. I always use Huey Hung sponge filters in my tanks with extra sponges, and can utilise the extra sponges when needed in case of emergency in either QT or Hospital tanks.
It is my opinion that a 10 gallon tank is way too small for an adult pair to use as a breeding tank. Maybe another 20 would suit you for breeding, but with the fish you have got right now, breeding is a long way off, you have at least a year to wait, and then if you only keep these 2 fish, you may have 2 females or 2 males.

Can you post your water parameters, and regime for water changing, this will help us to assess any problems you might run into before they happen.
Also what food are you using/intending to use to grow them out?

Hollowman

[boydie]

good luck with the sexing!!!!!!

[Hollowman]

good luck with the sexing!!!!!!


:lol: :roll:

[Jonnywhoop]

Let me say right from the start, walk before you run!

IMO you cannot sex fish at that size, not even the experts can do this, and I know a few.

Not sure on what you have bought either? were they:

(a) Brilliants
(b) Blue Diamonds
(c) Cobalts
(d) Turqs

Pics might help.

Ok, your tanks.
The 20 gallon will be fine for the discus, but 2 on their own will lead to issues, discus are shoaling fish and do better in bigger groups, use the 20 for a grow out tank, but add another 4-6 fish of similar size, from the same supplier. This will house them until they grow, you may have to get a bigger tank once they double in size to get the best growth from them. These fish will need daily water changes too, and top care to grow them to their best.
The 10 gallon tank will do fine as a quarrentine / hospital tank, keep it empty, clean and ready for use at any time it is required. I always use Huey Hung sponge filters in my tanks with extra sponges, and can utilise the extra sponges when needed in case of emergency in either QT or Hospital tanks.
It is my opinion that a 10 gallon tank is way too small for an adult pair to use as a breeding tank. Maybe another 20 would suit you for breeding, but with the fish you have got right now, breeding is a long way off, you have at least a year to wait, and then if you only keep these 2 fish, you may have 2 females or 2 males.

Can you post your water parameters, and regime for water changing, this will help us to assess any problems you might run into before they happen.
Also what food are you using/intending to use to grow them out?

Hollowman

pH 6
Ammonia 0
Nitrite 0
Nitrate 10
Temp 84

the discus' are i believe brilliant blues, they have the red on the fins, and black stripes going down with light red lines throughout its body
ive been using live brine shrimp, and since i finished those, im using my extra live brine shrimp that i froze. the discus' have been eating without a problem and they adapted to my tank quite well.
regime for waterchanging? if your asking what i do, i do two water changes a week at 20%, vacuuming the gravel.

i was thinking heavily on moving my gourami and angel, some of my driftwood and rocks into the 10g and was thinking about using sand for the 20g. is sand a good substrate for a discus tank? and is it easy to clean and vacuum it? im thinking that the vacuum will eat a lot of sand, is there any way to prevent this?

[Merrilyn]

Hi Jonny. Welcome to the forum. Looks like you've been bitten by the discus bug ..... well you're in good company here :P

Rule of thumb for keeping adult discus is 10 gallons per fish, so as you can see, your 20 gallon is only large enough to house your two existing fish. You could easily add another couple of juveniles, as they are much happier in groups, but you'll need to stick to that ten gallon rule as they grow into adulthood.

Juveniles need heavy feeding and lots and lots of water changes to help them grow to their full potential. Brine shrimp are good, but they are mostly shell and legs and not much meat. Discus usually love them, but they need a varied diet for good health. Try to introduce a greater variety, such as a good quality dry food, frozen bloodworms, frozen beefheart mix which includes some vegetable matter, and maybe some freeze dried food (blackworms are great) or flake.

Aim to feed them at least 4 times a day, and syphon off any uneaten food after around 30 minutes. Water changes should be done every second day, and try to change around 30% each time. Raising juvenile discus is pretty intensive, but it's very rewarding to see them 12 months down the track, as magnificent adults.

Substrate - you can use sand, but make sure it's coarse river sand, not the fine stuff like beach sand. The fine sand compacts too much, and can cause problems with trapped gasses. Coarse sand can be vacuumed just like gravel.

Don't mix angels with discus. Discus feed slowly, preferring to take their time at meal time. Angels will out compete them every time, and your discus, especially juvenile discus, will miss out. They do much better on their own, with perhaps a few tetras for company.

Good luck with your babies. Love to see some photos of them when you have time.

[taksan]

[b]

B) keep everything as is, and use the 10g for a breeding tank when i get more discus. (my tank has PLENTY of space, dont worry about overcrowding.)


[


Your tank does not have plenty of space .... you can only fit 2 discus in a 20G
period .....

As someone said ...walk before you run ! And who ever told you that it was possible to sex 5cm Discus with a autopsy was pulling your leg.

[Hollowman]

[quote=Jonnywhoop]

And who ever told you that it was possible to sex 5cm Discus with a autopsy was pulling your leg.

OMG :lol:

[Jonnywhoop]

Hi Jonny. Welcome to the forum. Looks like you've been bitten by the discus bug ..... well you're in good company here :P

Rule of thumb for keeping adult discus is 10 gallons per fish, so as you can see, your 20 gallon is only large enough to house your two existing fish. You could easily add another couple of juveniles, as they are much happier in groups, but you'll need to stick to that ten gallon rule as they grow into adulthood.

Juveniles need heavy feeding and lots and lots of water changes to help them grow to their full potential. Brine shrimp are good, but they are mostly shell and legs and not much meat. Discus usually love them, but they need a varied diet for good health. Try to introduce a greater variety, such as a good quality dry food, frozen bloodworms, frozen beefheart mix which includes some vegetable matter, and maybe some freeze dried food (blackworms are great) or flake.

Aim to feed them at least 4 times a day, and syphon off any uneaten food after around 30 minutes. Water changes should be done every second day, and try to change around 30% each time. Raising juvenile discus is pretty intensive, but it's very rewarding to see them 12 months down the track, as magnificent adults.

Substrate - you can use sand, but make sure it's coarse river sand, not the fine stuff like beach sand. The fine sand compacts too much, and can cause problems with trapped gasses. Coarse sand can be vacuumed just like gravel.

Don't mix angels with discus. Discus feed slowly, preferring to take their time at meal time. Angels will out compete them every time, and your discus, especially juvenile discus, will miss out. They do much better on their own, with perhaps a few tetras for company.

Good luck with your babies. Love to see some photos of them when you have time.

yeah im putting my gourami and angel in the 10g. and im going to keep my juv discus in the 10g. im going to move the gravel etc etc into the 10g, while using sand for 20g. as for now. im probably going to purchase 2 more juvenile discus for the 20g, after i move the angel and gourami out. im planning on getting a 30g BR tank or something that will give them more space, or maybe even bigger depending on how much space my room has haha.

thanks for the helpful info

[FishDude461]

Wow, you need some serious discus advice. From what i've read you have a 10g and a 20g. Your angel and guarami need to be in the 10, and the discus in the 20g.

Your water parameters are fine. Just keep up on the water changes with smaller discus, as they get older they do not demand as many water changes. With 2inch discus 2 weeks sounds good and i would do 40% I do all my tanks 50% atleast a few times a week.

As for the sex of your discus being male and female, there is noway you can tell the sex right now at that age, nobody can be 100% certain. Discus fish get big and if you plan on getting any more you will need a bigger tank than a 20. A discus will need atleast 10 gals a fish, they grow quick too. When they start to mature they become more agressive. If you plan on keeping a pair you should be using atleast 29gals for adult fish. A whispher filter on the back is fine, try looking into some bubbles sponges for your tank.

I can help out if you have more questions. I keep many discus and have learned alot about them. Discus isn't something to dive head first into. I currently have 4 tanks, 29, 50, 85, and 110. I also keep L-number Plecos.