# How many Discus



## djarmstrong (Feb 12, 2008)

*Discus . , .*

Hi ,

i am getting a new 4 foot tank next week and i was thinking on a planted Discus tank with maybe about 25 neons in there too .

the tank holds 300 Uk liters and the aquarium size is (LxDxH): 121 x 51 x 62 cm so how many Discus do you think i could get .

if you think Discus are not a good idea what other fish do you think would be good in the tank ( mid - large fish ) .


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## thefishmanlives (Feb 15, 2008)

I would probably go with 2 to 4 at most. You would need a taller tank if you wanted to do a school of discus. 3 Discus and 60 or 70 cardinals would make a nice tank with a clown loach or 2 in there. Invest in a python or aqueon water changer because discus need a lot of clean water.


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## Fishman123 (Dec 11, 2007)

What are the dimensions of the tank? Some are more suitable than others.


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## djarmstrong (Feb 12, 2008)

thefishmanlives said:


> I would probably go with 2 to 4 at most. You would need a taller tank if you wanted to do a school of discus. 3 Discus and 60 or 70 cardinals would make a nice tank with a clown loach or 2 in there. Invest in a python or aqueon water changer because discus need a lot of clean water.


Thanks very much with that , what other small schooling fish could i get instead of getting that many of the same fish ( 60 or 70 Cardinals ) . Eg Neon Tetra , Lemon Tetra , Rummy Nose Tetra

I was thinking maybe 25 Rummy Nose Tetra , 30 Cardinals or Neon Tetra , 20 Lemon Tetra and then about 8 Bronze Corys .



Fishman123 said:


> What are the dimensions of the tank? Some are more suitable than others.


Aquarium size (LxDxH): 121 x 51 x 62 cm


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## crystalview (Mar 9, 2008)

I had 4 in my tank and they were doing fine with the 25 tetra's. Tetra's need to be in groups of at least 4 and 6 would be better. Your choices sound fine. 
I just lost one of my rescue discus and I find that the two have paired and pick on the third. I am going to try to add back another to make and even number to help reduce the fighting.


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## jazzlvr123 (Apr 29, 2007)

just make sure your O2 levels are adequate and you'll be fine with about 4 full grown discus


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## star rider (Feb 27, 2006)

Discus are one of the species of Cichlids that prefer schooling.
they should be kept in a group of noless than 4.
yes , others have kept pairs(breeding) and singles.
buit for them to feel comfortable andd exhibit their natural tendencies..they should ber in at least a small school.
a 4' 300 liter tank should be able to accomadate this.


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## rich_one (Oct 31, 2007)

I have a typical 4 foot long 55 gallon tank in which I have kept 5 discus no problem. you should be fine with the 4 that have been recommended to you. jazzlvr123... did you mean CO2 levels? just checking to make sure I am understanding you correctly. my discus tank was not a planted tank, but I am planning one.

I like the cardinals better than the neons personally. in my experiences, they seem hardier. diamond tetras go very nicely with discus imo also.

oh... last bit of advice. some may have done this successfully, but if this is a planted tank, you may want to make sure you start with adult specimens as opposed to juveniles. discus juveniles do not grow out very well in planted tanks. just fyi. if you don't care about that, I guess its not a big deal.


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## djarmstrong (Feb 12, 2008)

rich_one said:


> I have a typical 4 foot long 55 gallon tank in which I have kept 5 discus no problem. you should be fine with the 4 that have been recommended to you. jazzlvr123... did you mean CO2 levels? just checking to make sure I am understanding you correctly. my discus tank was not a planted tank, but I am planning one.
> 
> I like the cardinals better than the neons personally. in my experiences, they seem hardier. diamond tetras go very nicely with discus imo also.
> 
> oh... last bit of advice. some may have done this successfully, but if this is a planted tank, you may want to make sure you start with adult specimens as opposed to juveniles. discus juveniles do not grow out very well in planted tanks. just fyi. if you don't care about that, I guess its not a big deal.


Thanks i will have a look into the diamond tetras and thak you for the tip on buying adults .


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## Brilliant (Jun 25, 2006)

star rider said:


> Discus are one of the species of Cichlids that prefer schooling.
> they should be kept in a group of noless than 4.
> yes , others have kept pairs(breeding) and singles.
> buit for them to feel comfortable andd exhibit their natural tendencies..they should ber in at least a small school.
> a 4' 300 liter tank should be able to accomadate this.


Yep. 48" x 20" x 24" is smallest tank I would keep bunch of discus in but Id start with 6 adults.



rich_one said:


> I have a typical 4 foot long 55 gallon tank in which I have kept 5 discus no problem. you should be fine with the 4 that have been recommended to you. jazzlvr123... did you mean CO2 levels? just checking to make sure I am understanding you correctly. my discus tank was not a planted tank, but I am planning one.
> 
> I like the cardinals better than the neons personally. in my experiences, they seem hardier. diamond tetras go very nicely with discus imo also.
> 
> oh... last bit of advice. some may have done this successfully, but if this is a planted tank, you may want to make sure you start with adult specimens as opposed to juveniles. discus juveniles do not grow out very well in planted tanks. just fyi. if you don't care about that, I guess its not a big deal.


55 gallon is perfect example of bad planted tank for discus. Its very thiin and has little room. Makes great bare bottom tank for growing a bunch of young fish.

I agree about getting adults but have not seen much proof that discus are doomed to be stunted in planted tank.


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## rich_one (Oct 31, 2007)

Brilliant said:


> Yep. 48" x 20" x 24" is smallest tank I would keep bunch of discus in but Id start with 6 adults.
> 
> 55 gallon is perfect example of bad planted tank for discus. Its very thiin and has little room. Makes great bare bottom tank for growing a bunch of young fish.
> 
> I agree about getting adults but have not seen much proof that discus are doomed to be stunted in planted tank.


well, maybe I should not characterize it as them being "doomed" per se. in this hobby, there are always those that do things that others find a bit difficult to do. it is just that I know quite a few discus keepers, and I know the ones that have been grown out in planted tanks are not as large as the ones that have been grown out in bare bottom tanks... which leads me to believe there is a connection there. I have done quite a bit of reading, and it is certainly difficult to filter through all of the info, but I have come of the opinion that unless you are fairly experienced as a discus owner, it is probably not the best idea to attempt to grow out juveniles in a planted tank. when I setup my next 55 gallon, planted discus tank, I will be using adults. I have to say my discus have not shown any detectable issues on my part with navigating in a 55 gallon tank, and I had 5 of them in there... with artificial plants.

that is just my opinion though, and I do not think anyone should ever take any advice people give in these forums as gospel... it should only be used as a guide, and people should alter advice, I suppose, as it suits their needs.


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## ranchwest (Jul 17, 2005)

I wonder how many of those planted tanks were established tanks and how many were newly planted.


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## rich_one (Oct 31, 2007)

ranchwest said:


> I wonder how many of those planted tanks were established tanks and how many were newly planted.


well, the ones I am aware of are established tanks, as most of the individuals are responsible for getting me into the discus keeping hobby. some of my fellow GWAPA members have established planted discus tanks, and they simply do not mind the slightly smaller fish. they even suggested to me that if I want my fish larger, it would be wise to buy them as adults first, since they do not get to the same sizes they get to in bare bottom tanks. as a moderator at Fishgeeks, I have received much of the same advice there, also from people with established tanks.

I do not know if I said something seemingly wrong here, but I am merely communicating my experience with this fish, which I thought was exceptable here. it is not gospel... I have said that. very little in this hobby is gospel, as it is ever changing... which is part of the fun.

at any rate, I trust my sources and those that have influenced me in this hobby, and I have had success due to their advice, and I am merely sharing what worked for me. If you have had different results, then hey... by all means, put it out there. that is what these forums are all about, right? expressing your experiences and allowing people to make informed decisions on which way they want to go. I am just trying to participate in that process, that's all.


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## ranchwest (Jul 17, 2005)

No, I didn't mean for it to seem that I was doubting you in any way. I was just truly curious as to what information you had on the planted/discus tanks. 

I know that discus owners swear by bare tanks. I just don't really fully understand why it works.


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## Brilliant (Jun 25, 2006)

Sounds good. Husbandry is directly tied to fate in planted tank. One thing is for certain, planted or not growing discus need water changes.

If I grow out 30 discus in bare bottom versus 6 or 8 in my planted tank I know I will get more larger fish from bare bottom tank.

I would consider starting planted discus tank with 90g or above.

Bare bottom tanks are very unstable and require daily water changes. I do not swear by them but they are needed to breed the fish and raise many of them.


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## rich_one (Oct 31, 2007)

ranchwest said:


> No, I didn't mean for it to seem that I was doubting you in any way. I was just truly curious as to what information you had on the planted/discus tanks.
> 
> I know that discus owners swear by bare tanks. I just don't really fully understand why it works.


my apologies... and you certainly have the right to doubt me.

I just mistook the context. please forgive my confusion.


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## ranchwest (Jul 17, 2005)

Not a problem at all.


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## doug105 (Oct 28, 2005)

If you want to grow your discus as big as dinner plates, you need to feed
lots of protein based food (beef heart, shrimp, etc.). This leads to lots
of nitrogenous waste products from the eaten and uneaten food. The easiest way to
manage this is with lots of water changes and vacuuming the bottom of all uneaten food
and fecal matter frequently. This is a heck of alot easier to do with a bare bottom tank.

Adult discus can be fed alot less and therefore don't dirty up the water as much.
Keeping them in a planted tank is less problematic.

The temps needed for discus do reduce the plant selection for thise tanks. But
that's a different topic.

Doug


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## djarmstrong (Feb 12, 2008)

doug105 said:


> If you want to grow your discus as big as dinner plates, you need to feed
> lots of protein based food (beef heart, shrimp, etc.). This leads to lots
> of nitrogenous waste products from the eaten and uneaten food. The easiest way to
> manage this is with lots of water changes and vacuuming the bottom of all uneaten food
> ...


Yep i am looking on the net looking at lots of cleaning stuff and other things , and about the plants in the tank , i have been looking on the net and i have emailed my LFS and i have sceen and been told that i can buy lots of plants which will be ok in the warmer temps .


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## rich_one (Oct 31, 2007)

djarmstrong said:


> Yep i am looking on the net looking at lots of cleaning stuff and other things , and about the plants in the tank , i have been looking on the net and i have emailed my LFS and i have sceen and been told that i can buy lots of plants which will be ok in the warmer temps .


main thing regarding that I would advise you to do is make sure, to the best of your ability, you know the names of the plants you plan to acquire, so you can research them online, and get as reliable information as possible. often times, pet stores or LFS can be notorious for spreading misinformation not only about fish... but about live plants as well. like, for instance, when you see fully submerged bamboo in fish stores.... that plant will die fully submerged. just an example.


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