[kisame1235]

I currently have a 55 gallon tank with 3 discus and 2 labidochromis . So my question is what should I add ? Have I already reached my tanks limit or could I spare to add in some more fish and still have a peaceful tank .

 

[lauraleellbp]

Well, first of all you need to get rid of either the Labs or the discus, and fix your water parameters to suit the fish. These fish have opposite water parameter needs and really should not be kept together.

Discus by nature are soft water fish, whereas Labs need very hard water. So I'd figure out if you've got hard or soft tap water first, and keep whichever one matches.

Personally, I wouldn't try and keep discus in less than a 90gal, either. Adults are large, messy fish, and they need space to swim and larger volumes of water help maintain more stable water paramters.

If you keep the Labs, I'd look into getting some of the special cichlid substrate for the tank; that will help increase the pH and hardness and maintain the water parameters these fish need.

 

[Ariel301]

The discus definitely prefer soft water with a low pH (I know they have been acclimated to hard water successfully), and the Labs are native to hard, high pH water, but they do all right in other water conditions. The biggest issue I see is not the water conditions but the incompatibility of your fish species. I used to keep the Labs along with other mbuna cichlids, and even though labs are one of the less aggressive mbuna, they are still meaner than discus. They will kill your discus. Maybe not now, but somewhere down the road. About the only tankmate that goes with mbuna is more mbuna.

 

[nismo tetra]

I agree with laura and ariel, might want to choose one or the other.

The discus topic is iffy. I think it really depends on how long there tank raised bloodline is. I mean as they get more "domesticated" there sensitivity isn't like most make it sound. In my experience that is. As long as water is with in typical parameters.

I have to agree with the bigger tank is better. 55's are to slim in my opinion. They are the same length as a 75 gallon, so why not just go 75 to get the added width, maybe that's just me though. Wish you were local, we have 3 75's that were not using lol.

 

[kisame1235]

Well I took lauras suggestion and put the discus in a 90 gallon . So now I have one more question . How many discus can I keep in there ?

 

[lauraleellbp]

I think 4 adult discus would be OK in a 90gal, depending on the rest of your bioload. You need to keep in mind they are pretty demanding in regards to water quality; juveniles need to be fed several times daily and therefore increased water changes are recommended (at least every few days if not daily.) Adults are OK to be fed once a week, and weekly water changes are usually recommended.

Discus also do best in pretty warm temps; 82-84F ideal. Under 80F and they tend to be more susceptible to disease. Also, their colors will darken and they'll tend to hide.

 

[nismo tetra]

Hmm, I feed my juveniles once a day (maybe I should try twice as i did notice they eat like pigs) and do a WC once a week. Have 13 blue diamonds from a local breeder(dime size when we got them). For six bucks why not. The only other tank mates are two orinocensis of equal size to the discus, about 2 inches long in a 30 gallon tank. The ph is 6.0, according to a milwaukee ph probe and tank is 81-82 degrees. It's been about two months now and the bigger ones have quarter sized bodies (not counting upper and lower fins) a few are a little bit smaller. But they seem fine, active, starting to develop blue color and have dark red eyes. Pretty cool fish, they are surprisingly feisty for being a small fish. Gives them character as they are made out to be gentle/delicate.

I'm no pro at discus by any means nor do I want to be, but that is my experience with small discus thus far. Maybe I'm lucky I dunno. Seem like a laid back fish to be honest.

 

[rich815]

Hmm, I feed my juveniles once a day (maybe I should try twice as i did notice they eat like pigs) and do a WC once a week. Have 13 blue diamonds from a local breeder(dime size when we got them). For six bucks why not. The only other tank mates are two orinocensis of equal size to the discus, about 2 inches long in a 30 gallon tank. The ph is 6.0, according to a milwaukee ph probe and tank is 81-82 degrees. It's been about two months now and the bigger ones have quarter sized bodies (not counting upper and lower fins) a few are a little bit smaller. But they seem fine, active, starting to develop blue color and have dark red eyes. Pretty cool fish, they are surprisingly feisty for being a small fish. Gives them character as they are made out to be gentle/delicate.

I'm no pro at discus by any means nor do I want to be, but that is my experience with small discus thus far. Maybe I'm lucky I dunno. Seem like a laid back fish to be honest.

How long have you had them now? With that feeding and water change schedule they may not get very big. The water changes are as important as multiple feedings when they are that young for proper growth, and feeding them the right stuff too. Otherwise if you're lucky they will get to 3+" tops, when they could be 6-7", much more colorful and of superior shape. Discus only have a limited growth period after which they will live longer but not grow anymore. There's a reason discus that small are so cheap. Buying them 3-4" may be more expensive but by then there has already been at least 2 culls getting rid of the weak, dull, or mis-shapen ones or the ones that are finicky eaters.

 

[nismo tetra]

Yea we have had them for like two months, they were tiny tiny. The breeder was just trying to get rid of them at the time 5 bucks a fish. All I had was 6 bucks on me, so he just swiped the net in and I got 13 lol. I have noticed the weaker ones, they do not grow as fast but are not that far behind. Two of them have spikey like fins in the front. But most of them are staying at a decent growth rate/typical discus shape. I would say they have tripled in over all size since purchase. I know some should technically be culled. I don't really know what I want out of them, if they stay kind of small that would be fine. As all of our big tanks they would be eaten, or just to stressed with the more active fish. I guess I'm not really keeping them to "show/breed" or anything. They wouldn't be successful at breeding here anyways, unless I put forth the effort. I just kind of have them. I feed them flakes and brine shrimp. But I kind of over feed for one feeding. They pick around in the java moss to get the tangled up pieces.

On a side note, I do have one that has not grown AT ALL. He appears healthy, swims fine and eats flakes. He has stayed the size of dime. I put him in my planted 20 gallon because the others started to pick on him. He is like a midget of discus. But he's kind of cool. I can't really figure him out lol. He just wont grow, but looks regular. Doesn't act funny or anything.

 

[Bugman]

Have 13 blue diamonds from a local breeder in a 30 gallon tank

They will outgrow the 30 gallon quickly and as already stated by others they should be feed more and should get frequent water changes in order to grow out properly.

Well I took lauras suggestion and put the discus in a 90 gallon

What size are the discus? Is the tank heavily planted? The general rule of thumb is 1 full grown discus per 10 gallons but if the tank is heavily planted then that number is reduced. You certaily want more than 3. With only 3, at some point you will start seeing aggression that can result in real issues with you discus health.

 

[Digsy]

I have 5 discus in my 105 gallon. I had originally thought of doing 8 but with my manzanita and plants, I now see that I couldn't possible add more. I think the open swimming space in your tank is a major consideration when deciding how many discus to put in.

 

[nismo tetra]

I have started feeding twice a day and will do some more frequent changes. I know they will outgrow the tank, at that point I will give some away and maybe try to keep two for myself. You think they will be ok in a 150 gal with about 10 red shoulder severums, a couple pictus cats, and two pike cichlids? If not i'll probably give them all away. Guess I can only try and see how they react.

 

[khanzer22]

The 30gal will only serve as their growout tank but they'll outgrow it in no time specially if they eat a lot so they need to be transferred to a much larger tank eventually... Regular water change is healthy for these magnificent fish (promotes growth too!)... 30-50% WC everyday (sometimes 2x-3x) specially for most breeders but it all depends how frequent/much and what type of food you feed them...

Just a tip, Beefheart mix will boost their growth though the consequence is frequent water change...

 

[bsmith]

If I had a 90g there would be 10 or so discus in there, no problems at all.

 

[Centromochlus]

If I had a 90g there would be 10 or so discus in there, no problems at all.

Most people on SimplyDiscus (a discus forum) will tell you that the general rule is 10 gallons per discus. Although it looks very crowded with that many, they seem to do quite well in large groups like that.

I'm planning on getting 4-5 discus for my 85g, at the absolute most. But that's because i want to get a lot of tetras too. :hihi:


Edit: Woops... someone already stated the rule above.

 

[bsmith]

Its all up to the person. 1 discus per 10g is a good rule give or take a few gallons.

 

[Bugman]

Edit: Woops... someone already stated the rule above.

LOL, that would be me. Read you thread on Simply a week or two ago. Good thread. Discus are fairly new to me also and I've been reading Simply just like I read this forum when first starting my planted tanks. I'm not keeping them in a display tank. Growing out juvies to get eventual pairs for breeding.

 

[kisame1235]

To answer Bugman their only about 2 inches right now and haven't been doing much growing : ( could i be doing something wrong ?

 

[bsmith]

Discus grow pretty slowly if the parameters aren't perfect. When breeders grow out babys they feed them 4-5 times daily with high protein foods. They also keep them in bare bottom tanks so the water doesn't get mucked up by all the left overs and change the water almost daily too.

There is also am idea that the largest discus in the tank secrete a mucus that the small fry actually feed on early after birth. Some say that this stunts the growth of other discus in the tank, but I dont believe that has been proven.

 

[kisame1235]

Well i think in my tank i could fit 2 maybe 3 more but I won't push it , because the store I got them from gets them specially imported from the top german breeding organization