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[Wet Thumb Forum]-How many discus people here?

2K views 11 replies 8 participants last post by  imported_chrismisc 
#1 ·
I would like a roll call of discus/plant people here! And, would you be interested in a discus forum here to discuss the special needs of Discus with plants?
 
#6 ·
I'll probably be keeping discus within a year (planning to buy a house - more room for a 75) Since I'm in the bay area I can get some relatively cheap to try out. Seems plants, killies and discus are the afflictions of the truely masterful FW aquarists and it'd be sweet to have all three.
 
#11 ·
I think its a great idea Robert. I had about 12 discus in a 100 heavily planted tank. They do indeed have special conditions and demands that arise from planted tanks. For example, I've had problems with DIY CO2 and discus. DIY CO2 goes strong at first and tends to overdose in the beginning. Even using a more efficient reactor can OD. My discus were sensitive to the CO2 while the other fish were not. The symptoms resemble ammonia poisoning and flukes. The discus stay at the bottom of the tank instead of going to the top as with ammonia. The CO2 can actually go below their scales and irritate the skin causing shimmying and scratching. The CO2 is also an anesthetic and put the fish in a sleepy lethargic mode. Took me weeks to figure this out. Another problem is phosphates. They are heavy feeders and add alot of phosphates to the water resulting in hideoous algae growth that a normal planted tank wont face. THe solution is sticking to PMDD philosophy. Make sure all the nutrients are there for rapid plant growth so the plants can outcompete the algae for PO4. These are just some of the problems I've faced with discus in a planted tank.
 
#12 ·
I would be thrilled to have a discus forum since that would make the Wet Thumb Forums a one-stop shop!

I've had two discus for about a month and a half--they're not even listed in my profile yet. Have never kept them before. I've kept live plants in fish tanks for about four years, but in the last year and a half, the focus has been the plants (The fish are poducers of plant fertilizer, rather than on the plants as a healthy environment for fish!).
 
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