requirements for discus

O

Obsidian

AC Members
Dec 13, 2004
115
0
0
Pacific Northwest
I just changed the substrate in my stepdaughter's 25 gallon tall eclipse. I also kicked out the BGKnifefish, a swordtail, and two angels. All that remain are 6 tetras and 3 little cories. Now she wants to bring over an all-white discus from her tanks at her mom's house. :rolleyes:

Here is what I need to know: What are the care requirements for a discus? I think that 25 gallons is too small, but she does not agree. Also, my understanding is that discus require very clean water (diatom filtration and/or UV sterilizer) and 3 feedings per day. While I have no problem with frequent water changes (I change my planted aquarium 35%x2/week), I really don't want to invest in yet more equipment. Of course, as she is only around two weekends per month, this will actually be my tank, just in her room.

Do discus really need bacteria-free water? Are they hard to care for? How big do they get? Do they need to be kept in a school? Is 25 gallons too small? Could someone please tell me that this whole thing is crazy and that it would be better to just get some little rasboras for a heavily planted tank? ;)
 
No way, no how. I would only keep a discus in there if it is very young and moving to a new tank soon. You have to do A LOT of water changes with young discus to avoid stunting them, they will reach 6"+ if cared for properly so a 25 gallon is never going to hold even 1 fish.
 
A 25g tank might not be too small for a single juvenile discus, but that would be all you could get in there and when it got bigger (4"+) it would really need to be moved to larger quarters. Well-kept discus can get to be over 6" in length.

However, neons are not good tankmates for discus, in that they do best in cooler water (low 70's), and discus are much more susceptible to disease if they are kept any lower than 80 (I keep mine at 82).

Water quality is indeed key to keeping healthy discus, and the most important aspect of that is water changes. I do 50% water changes twice per week on my discus tank. Filtration is also important, but I don't think there is any benefit to any exotic filtration or water sterilization techniques. Just use a couple of good filters and maintain them religiously to remove organic detritus from the mechanical filtration matrix (whatever that might be).

Good luck.
 
racingjason said:
No way, no how. I would only keep a discus in there if it is very young and moving to a new tank soon. You have to do A LOT of water changes with young discus to avoid stunting them, they will reach 6"+ if cared for properly so a 25 gallon is never going to hold even 1 fish.
Click to expand...

Thank you. That is what I needed to know. :)
 
Er, turqs reach 10 inches let alone 6...Snow white discus will reach around 6 or 7 though.
 
i know that you can keep a mated pair in a 30 gal

i am pretty sure you could keep a single discus in a 25. but i am not sure it would be happy alone.
 
asd159263 said:
i know that you can keep a mated pair in a 30 gal

i am pretty sure you could keep a single discus in a 25. but i am not sure it would be happy alone.
Click to expand...

You want to keep a 6" long fish in a 24" x 12" tank? I guess that means I could keep a neon tetra in a soda can.
 
racingjason said:
You want to keep a 6" long fish in a 24" x 12" tank? I guess that means I could keep a neon tetra in a soda can.
Click to expand...

Yea i agree jas, i say a 55 is min.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
AquariaCentral.com
Top Bottom