# decisions have been made..



## ctmpwrdcamry (May 23, 2005)

I think I'm going to go with discus. I have done alot of reading and some say its difficult, some say its easy. I am going to continue to read, but it looks like with reduced dosing i can keep discus in the 75 and still do a single water change a week.

For my set up i am going to have an Eihime classic 2217 and a AQ 500. The thinking is the AQ 500 will help add water movement. I don't know if the AQ will out gas some Co2, but i think i can just turn it up. Any input here is still welcome. :mrgreen:

The new soilmaster and black colorquarts is going to look great. Thought some reading i found that discus look great in dark tanks, other say you loose their colors. I ask because I don't know what to do about the tank. I have thought about putting a few more red plants that I normally would to help their color. Should i not paint the back of the thank? I love how it looks on the endler tank i just set up.

I hope this all makes sense. I have to get the tank set up but want to get the right equipment the first time. Even if they are more expensive the first time around, its cheaper than buying things twice. Once i get everything on the set up figured out, i need to figure out fertz, but alot of that will come from fish load and food load. For a while i may need to do two water changes a week.


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## MatPat (Mar 22, 2004)

Glad to hear you are going with Discus. Make sure you keep the temps up and I think you will be fine. How many are you planning on getting...Juveniles or adults? What color? The 

As for dosing, what are you using for lighting on the tank? Have you figured that out yet? If you can get into the 3wpg range, I would dose 1/2 tsp of KNO3 and 1/8 tsp of KH2PO4 every other day and dose 15ml of CSM+B on days opposite the KNO3 and KH2PO4. 

With a 50% (or more)water change each week you shouldn't have to worry too much about the ferts building up. If you decide on 2 water changes per week, just do them on a KNO3 dosing day so you don't have any more issues with BGA  

I would paint the back of the tank but that is my preference. You can always put one of those Black/Blue reversible background on the tank. That way if you change your mind, you're not out much. To me, a background just makes the plants and fish stand out that much more. IF hte substrate makes your fish seem duller, plant a foreground. That will make the substrate green and hopefully make the fish pop.


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## molurus73 (Apr 15, 2005)

Well, you are gonna start out with a black painted background anyway unless you have a razor blade handy. I like a painted background. Gets rid of the clutter of the hoses and wires. Also I think it makes the fish stand out. Next time you are down this way maybe we can swing over to Cinci Discus and take a look at what they have. You can also get a look at mine if you are here on Sunday.


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## EcleckticGirl (Jul 26, 2005)

From an artist's standpoint: color theory is that a black ground makes color pop out. White sucks color out by scattering the light waves. The black quartz sand should make the colors of the fish just sing out at you and the same with the plants. I agree, paint the back of the tank. Paper is a pain in the butt to deal with, especially the longer the tank. You can always peel it off with a single edge razor blade. You've seen what it does for the Endlers!

The conflicting advice you are finding may be arising because "dark" can be referring to any number of colors and some sources may be in line with the natural darks of a planted aquarium and say yes. Other sources may be thinking darks are the circus and neon colors available at LFS and be saying no way.

Now from an aquarist's standpoint: Just think if you were a stressed out juvie discus introduced to a strangely colored world of dark pink stones wouldn't you stress out more and lose more color too? Compare this to a stressed out juvie fish introduced to a home that seems more like the home waters that folks only whispered about in the tanks at the breeder... looks pretty cozy so you relax and color up nicely.

_OK, so maybe I am anthropomorphizing a bit here, but I have a touch of insomnia..._


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## ElectricHead (Sep 11, 2005)

Sounds to be a good plan to me. I believe you are spot on with getting the good equipment from the start. I was told that reef keeping with clams and acropora corals and reef tanks in general were "hard". A lot of knowledge gathering and holding off to get the quality equipment made the reef setup I had for six years my most successful aquarium to date and I did not find it to be hard at all. I am using this method to put together this FW planted tank now.


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## Rob Tetrazona (Jun 21, 2005)

I'd put a black plastic backdrop on the back of the tank if I were you instead of painting it, because if you go to sell the it some day it may be harder to sell with a painted back of the tank. I have black backdrops on all 3 of my 75's and probably costs about the same as paint. They are held on by water and can be removed easily.


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## ctmpwrdcamry (May 23, 2005)

Well i guess i'll go with a black backround  

Now i just need to peice togehter my co2 system and order the 2217, looks like everything else is ok.

Matt as for the lighting its going to be those shop lights. Maybe I should try and fit three above the tank, think that is possible? Should i maybe to 2 shop lights and one AH kit for alittle extra power?


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## MatPat (Mar 22, 2004)

ctmpwrdcamry said:


> Matt as for the lighting its going to be those shop lights. Maybe I should try and fit three above the tank, think that is possible? Should i maybe to 2 shop lights and one AH kit for alittle extra power?


Three is possible but the third light will interfere with feeding the fish. It won't matter if it is another shoplight or an AHS supply light, you will have to remove it every time you want to get into the tank.

I would recommend you start with just the two shoplights. That is what Jim is running over his tank now and the growth is pretty good.

There are a lot of things to get used to in a high light tank. You have to dial in the CO2 and get our fertilization routine in order, plus prune plants. You also need to make sure you pack the tank with plants. I should be able to contribute some plants for you and I imaging some of the others will have some also.

Things will grow a bit slower with 128w over the tank but that is a good thing in the beginning. Less lighting means slower algae growth and more time to respond to the algea, if it shows. I'm not trying to discourage you from putting more light over the tank, just letting you know the options.

At times, I wish I would have stuck to the 136w I had over the 75g when I started. Things grew well though they did grow slower. I had some algae issues but nothing like the problems associated with having 206w over the tank. Less light can be a blessing as long as you provide enough!


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## ctmpwrdcamry (May 23, 2005)

Its all good infomation. Being that they are discus and i will have to feed a few times a day, pulling a light in and out of the way is not my definition of fun.  I do that with my 40 gallon now and im trying to find a new solution.

Starting with lower light is also probably a good idea. Getting used to the CO2 with lower light is probably good advice, i think i will take it. :mrgreen: Maybe turn up the light later, but for now ill start easy.

Looks like, with the soilmaster delay, the tank will not be set up till around thanksgiving(hoping).


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