Hooked

Hi,

 

I would research the pitfalls of Co2 that others have had before spending the money. A simple thing such as a dirty probe in the tank will give you an incorrect ph reading, tight fitting glass lids and you will gas your fish etc

Think about this, at low ph there is a lot less bacteria in your filter. The higher it is the more it thrives, to a point.....

Now a lot of people here are use to high ph African Cichlids and going over to Discus now are some of these crew. The ph of tap water was generally high, so suited the Africans. Higher ph, higher beneficial bacterial content, higher processing of Ammonia into Nitrite and then the end product Nitrate. 

 

Now they go over to Discus, drop the ph, buy some fish etc etc. But if the ph is to low for extended periods, ie being tested with an API tester which only goes to 6, will only ever indicate 6 even if it drops way below that. The bacteria can be WAY less, the Ammonia will not be processed as quick as with the Africans and it will creep up and bite you on the "proverbial" by affecting your fish. They will slowly die, you wont know why. Ammonia is bad stuff even in minute quantities.

 

I just feel you are putting way to much faith in a CO2 system to control your ph accurately.

 

To be honest I think we all develop a way of doing things. We research, learn all the technical jargon, overcome the pitfalls and it all settles down. The problems become a distant memory and we forget to some part why it is we do what we do. It works, we are comfortable. I'm sure there's plenty I havent thought to mention.

 

One last thing, gotta head out again. Whether you use say HCL or Co2 to adjust your ph. It's all just a chemical reaction.

 

You'll get there mate, keep asking lots of questions,

 

 

The slower you go the more you will enjoy it  : )

Hi Kleinz,

By any chance will this talk be taped? Info on recirculating systems on larger scale set ups would be a useful tool to get hold of.
I went to a talk a couple of years back that Ollie did on diseases etc and learnt a lot of very useful info. I'd recommend to anyone to get along to an Ollie talk for a good night with the PCS crew,

Cheers

Hi Red,

 

Discus require a min of 40 lts each to grow as a guide. Obviously good food and very clean water plays a major part. Discus are a schooling fish and are definitely happier in numbers. Double the usual recommended filtration also helps with happy Discus. Enjoy mate!

I predict you'll be trawling Gumtree before you know it, bigger tank, bigger filtration, MORE discus...... : )

 

Beware the bug!...... They are addictive! : )

 

Cheers

Lookin good mate. The fish are going to look awesome against that black back ground. Nice job! : )

Hi,

 

I have a few of these barrels and this is what worked for me also. They are great for aging water etc. I used hot water to clean the barrels. Not boiling but very hot tap water. I put about 40lt in and sloshed it about vigorously. It broke up the slight residue which then floated on the water and just tipped it out. Did it a couple of times then scrubbed with a brush and some more very hot water. The barrel was then very clean so filled with water for a day, then tipped out, filled again for another day just to be sure. If you cant smell anything and there's no film on the water then you should be fine. I transported my 1000lt Community Discus tank fish from Perth to Albany, 400k's in 2 of them. 20 odd Discus, 40 Rummy Nose Tetras, heaps of Cardinal Tetras, BN Cats, heaps of corys, Whip tail cats etc etc Just have to make sure the barrels are full so that you remove what is called the 'Free surface Effect" or the ability of the water to slosh about. The dished, bowl like lids are great as you can put a 25mm hole in the middle of the lid, the water will slightly splash out into the lid, with the motion, which helps aerate it and then it drains back in. Wrapped in a Doona keeps the heat in longer. A heater in before (through 25mm hole) travelling keeps the heat up. All fish arrived in excellent condition with no scrapes or damage of any kind that I could see.

For travelling across town buckets with lids are fine (Bunnings do a good white 20lt bucket with lid) but depending how long you are going to have them in the buckets I suggest you not feed them for a couple of days. This purges the fish of waste and GREATLY reduces the build-up of harmful ammonia in the buckets of water.

 

I have also a blue barrel that originally had industrial liquid chlorine in it! I rinsed that well and then let it sit for a day with a good splash of Prime and an air stone to move the water. Then repeated for another day. No smell, was good to go. Have also a couple that had Hydrogen Peroxide in them. Rinsing and filling a couple of times for a day each time with an air stone removed all and were fine.

 

More info than you asked for but hope it helps in some way,

 

Cheers

Hi Colin,

 

Thank you mate. Will definitely keep that in mind. I'm wanting to change out the Whips parents after another spawn and put in a nice Discus pair that have been laying in the community tank. Hoping for a nice batch of discus fry to grow out alongside the whips fry in separate tanks. I'm on the hunt for some second hand tanks but slim pickings on Gumtree down here. Will end up with a tank for the whips parents and whips fry most probably in together. Was thinking the adults might compete with the fry for food? Yours must do okay though all in together?

 

Cheers 

Thanks guys, you're champions!

 

i made up a couple today with bits from Bunnings. Should do the trick. Followed your advice re the flow. Just having a saver that floats will make it much easier when vaccing/lowering and filling up tank. I used the fibreglass cloth with window each side and solid bottom. I used 25mm poly with bung ends as floats. When was dry enough to test it floated with top edge about 20mm above the water. You were right Buccal.very waxy type smooth surface. Used a mini die grinder with disc to rough up. The aquarium grade silicone wont be dry 100% for another 48 hours. Still using the other fry cube but none getting caught today thankfully. I miss not having a big LFS nearby for quick things needed in a hurry, : )

 

Cheers

Hi BRT,

 

I use Eheims on all my discus tanks. They are the best bar none in my opinion. I've bought heaps cheap, second hand off gumtree and had no probs with them also. I usually buy a reasonably priced tank with a pump I'm after, remove it, clean the tank right up then sell it for what I originally paid, sometimes more. If you go for a large model then you can drill out the spray bar holes to reduce the flow velocity. Just make sure you use a blunt drill when drilling plastic. A sharp one grabs and cracks plastic/perspex etc easily. As someone above said choose a size that is rated double your 270 litre capacity. Usually allow 40 litres for a each discus to have a reasonable grow out, so you should be right with 5. 

I don't bother with airstones or venturies. The spray bar flow moving the surface water (not vigorously, just a slight rippling) is more than enough to aerate the tank. Air Stones and venturis bubbling remove the already minimal Co2 from the tank that plants love.

When it comes time to get some discus contact living78 a member on here. He can help with Discus meds too when needed.

We all do things differently, for different reasons. If you want to breed discus then a sponge filter on hand is a good thing. I've just had a couple of newly arrived discus lay in a 200lt quarantine tank today and it has a  Ehiem 2215 running on it with the usual type canister filter pick up. I now have to modify etc to stop the fry, if they eventuate from being sucked up. I'd kill for a seeded sponge filter right now! 

 

Beware,,,,, Discus are addictive! : )

 

All the best,

 

Cheers