Hello all, could use some help!

[Trauma]

Hello everyone i have been lurking around this forums for a couple weeks trying to decide if planted tanks where for me. I have a 75 gallon community tank i have had for several years, so im not completely new to the hobby but i have decided to take it more seriosly.

I want to set up a planted tank for Discus and a realize they are a touchy fish so i am willing to keep other fish till im more comfortable with plant keeping. My budget is not limited but i would like to keep things under $800 for everything (not including tank) if possible.

My main goal is first to learn as much as possible about planted tanks for more in the future, and the overall health of the fish and plants.

I am open to all suggestions, and could use alot a help with setup ideas. I think i will start with a 55 gallon tank, but i am open to suggestions on that.

On i side note I am not computer litterate if someone could tell me how to use spell check on here that would be great. Thanks

[timwag2001]

i dont know anything about discus... just wanted to say hi and welcome to the forum.

dont worry about caps or spelling. i think its over rated

[Trauma]

I guess i will share a few more of my thoughts so im giving you something to go off of. I have no idea what type of lights to get, but from lurking here i take it i will need at least 3-4 w per gallon.

Since i want to eventually keep discus i was thinking of using the co2 system from dr foresters that is suppose to monitor and control ph level?
anyone have this and know if it works and if its worth the $350?

Also for my 75 gallon tank a have the master water tester kit thingy all i really ever used it for was the initial cycle of the tank a couple years back. What sort of test material should i buy for a planted discus tank.

Im not sure if my tap water is good for plants/ discus and any thoughts on how and what to test for would be appreciated. Or should i skip tap alltogether and get and osmosis system?

Thanks again for your thoughts

[lauraleellbp]

First of all, if you're going to start off with juvenile discus (less than 5") I personally recommend a bare-bottomed tank setup until they're over 5". Juvenile discus are messy eaters, need to be fed multiple times per day (minimum 3x), plus are super sensitive to water quality issues, so bare bottomed tanks make life much easier in terms of keeping the tank clean and the fish growing at a decent rate.

If you can shell out the $$ for large discus right off the bat, then it's easier to maintain them in a fully planted tank.

But discus need to be kept in schools, and IMO a 90gal tank is really the minimum size for a small school of adult discus. I'd actually go for a 125gal+, personally.

You don't need 3-4wpg on a big tank. As a matter of fact 2wpg is high light on a large tank, especially if you're using T5HO fixtures.

Reconstituted RO water is usually the easiest way to go if you want to maintain suitable water parameters for a discus tank, but many people also can make do with their tap water if it's not too extreme in terms of quality and hardness.

[AquaTX01]

Hello Trauma, welcome to TPT. no expert here, but learned a LOT from these guys here... few pointers.

Tank size: it's up to u, but if I it was me, I'd go w/ the 75! coz almost everyone wants a larger tank, once they have there's up n running for a while. + u've got more room for error.

Lighting: I'd go w/ T5 High Output. Best option for Planted Tank. and you'd need about 2 w/g if you use T5HO (not accurate, but close). best option, get a four bulbs T5 HO setup, then start w/ just 2 or 3 bulbs.

CO2: u really dont need one w/ PH meter thingy, but it dont hurt having it. Most uses, CO2 regulator w/ solenoid starting an hour before the light, and along w/ ur light (photosynthesis period)... to ensure the right amount of CO2, u need to get a "CO2 Drop Checker".

Water: tap water. no need for RO...

g'luck man...


edit: Laura beat me to it... I'd deff take her advice! she knows what she's talkin bout... lol