New to Discus

[phear]

Hi guys,
Ive just gotten the fish bug and have a few 2ft tanks with bristlenose cats which will start breeding soon.. im wanting to get some discus soon just wondering if a std 2" or 2 1/2" tank would be suitable for a breeding pair of discus? what types are good for starters and what kind of setup should i have?? i know i really need a canister filter but is it totally neccicary??

any advice would be muchly appreciated even the most basic of help.

cheers Jamie

[goldenpigeon]

hey Jamie and welcome to DF.com :D

congrats on ur decision to keep discus :D have you kept discus before just wanting to breed them?

breeding them is really jumping in the deep end for a first timer with discus. i find that most people who keep discus for the first time have a problem with their discus (disease, water params etc) in the first couple of months with discus. ofcourse this does not always happen. but if you are relitively new to fish keeping as a whole i would recommend that you start with a few smaller discus and go from there. being as breeding pairs of discus go well into the hundreds of $$$$$ it would be better for you to grow up maybe 6 discus of the same strain and hope you get a pair.

as for a tank. a standard 2ft tank is to small to keep any discus above 6cm. and you would only be able to keep 2 in that size tank. soon they would grow out of it very quickly. it would be better to start with something like a 3ft tank. if you are able to get a custom built tank that would be better as you could get better tank measurements to suit discus and can keep more in the same tank successfully. if you can get a custom built tank try to get a 3ft long, 2ft wide and 18 inch high tank. ofcourse that size tank is wider than it is in height. but it does the trick for me :D

you dont need a canistrer filter unless you really want one. sponge filters do great things for discus tank and are cheap too. the secret to discs keeping is water changes (w/c). the more you water change your discus tanks the faster they will grow and the less need you will have for a huge filter set up.

hope this helps :D

cheers
junior

[R3dm4n]

G'day Phear,
It good to see you've caught the bug!! I can try an offer you some advice which comes from years of fish keeping, and hopefully it'll help you with a few of your decisions. I am a self confessed discus murderer, and it is for this reason i havent owned discus for about 18months. So take a leaf from my book an dont jump into things too quickly.
What you'll soon find out with discus is that they're really finicky at times and get unhappy and unhealthy really quickly. The more you read on the forum the better idea you'll get about their needs and get an idea of what is involved (which is time more then anything else).
Your 2ft tank is good enough for a couple of small discus, but i think you should take a step back from aiming to breed, and concentrate on keeping a couple of discus happy. Who knows, they then might end up being your first breeding pair.
Your internal filter will be fine as long as you do a 30% water change at LEAST every weekend, with second daily cleaning of your filter.
I have a couple of BN also with a few tetras and i've been waiting for a few months to get discus to make sure that my tank is in tip-top shape, with all the water parameters perfect, so that when i do take the plunge it will be a lot more enjoyable. Any other approach an i think that beginners with discus will have disheartening results (i know from experience).

Good luck Jamie

[Merrilyn]

Hi Jamie and welcome to the forum. So pleased to see you are seeking advice before you take the plunge with discus.

The guys have given you some good advice there.

Start with some juvenile discus, and learn how to look after them first, before jumping in at the deep end with a breeding pair, which will set you back hundreds of dollars.

Good luck with your first venture into discus. They are a beautiful fish, and well worth the trouble.

[phear]

thanks guys

if there is any secrets or hints that u can help me with it would be muchly appreciated. im going to get some small red turks from chris as he lives near me and ill grow them up how old do they start breeding at usually?

Jamie

[goldenpigeon]

Water changes r the secret :D