20 gallon tank and discus?

Titan_113

Titan_113

Small Fish
#1
Feb 4, 2003
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#1
I recently baught a 20 gallon hexagonal flatback tank and i am planning on getting a tidepool wet/dry filter for it. If i do a planted tank how many discus could i put in it? Could i put 2-3 or 1-2. I would like to add a few other fish such as a school of Cardinal tetras. Any comments would be helpfull. Thanks.
 

J

-Joe-

Small Fish
#2
Oct 22, 2002
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#2
I'd say 1-2 if you plan to put more fish in there. Discus usually require 10 gallons a piece as a rule of thumb - but if you're going to put that filter on it you might be able to push 3. If you plan to get any other fish for the tank - corys, cardinals, rams, etc. I'd say 2 - but if you're doing just discus with frequent water changes you should be ok with 3.
 

Gnome

Gnome

Large Fish
#3
Oct 22, 2002
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Shadow Moses Island
#3
Hexagonal flatback tank? very nice
for 20gal, I recommend to get only 1 discus( general rule for discus is 1disc/10gal), cause 2 non pair discus will stress each other. Cardinal tetra is very nice for discus tank mates, but german blue rams is the best w/ discus water parameter ( they like warm, soft and slighty acid ph water)
but if you're lucky to get breeding pair, go with it, and if you do get pair and you want to breed them, I suggest you to use very fine gravel or sand substrate or potted plant (no substrate) even better for easy cleaning purposes also no other tank mates, that only if you want to breed them, remember to do WC at least every week, but if you want to breed them, then frequent WC is a must!
 

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W

wayne at home

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#4
Jan 19, 2003
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#4
If you have the option to remove one or two, you could put in 3 juveniles. But you'll end up with a single or a mated pair. 2 or 3 nonmated almost never works, and you'll find discus death slow and distressing.
Unless you can pay the big money and get a mated pair ($100 +probably) get a single and grow him out. I have a single blue who lives in a 20 with some other non discus due to his bad behaviour, and he's a great pet fish.
 

Titan_113

Titan_113

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#5
Feb 4, 2003
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#5
Iv never heard of the German Blue Ram before. I am actually starting to like them more and more. You wont believe how much I got that tank for. It came with a oak stand and the tank is an Oceanic systems with oak woodgrain trim. I got it for 40$ at a pawn shop in near mint condition, I couldnt pass that up. I also have friends in the aquarium business and they can get me filters and whatnot at wholesale price, so thats realy nice. Where could I get a mated pair of discus? The only place i can think of because there is no breeder around me is ThatFishPlace which isnt that far from my house. Iv usually been satisfied by there fish and they have hundreds of fish to choose from. I think the ladie who owns my local fish store breeds Discus, i might be able to get a pair from her. I'll keep you informed on what i do though, I want to research the rams a little more though. Since I like cardinals i was thinking about setting up a 12 gallon bowfront eclipse system just for them, but thats a while off , I gotta get this one set up first. Thanks
 

Titan_113

Titan_113

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#6
Feb 4, 2003
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#6
I ended up getting a Amiracle hang on Wet/Dry filter for my tank and everything else I need for it minus the fish. I got sum stuff to lower the PH, I got Keta-Peat nuggets and discus buffer. Im still looking around for a mated pair of discus but have had no luck. I dont want to just buy two and hope they pair off cause im takin a big chance. Could I do this or would the two if they ended up the same sex fight? Im going to wait awhile cause im redoin my room to set my tank up and it needs to be cycled anyway. Did anyone try Bio-spira to cycle there tank yet? If I didnt get a mated pair would i be fine to put 1 discus, 2 rams,about 7 cardinal tetras, and a few bottom feeder in my 20 gallon. That brings me to my next question, What kind of bottom feeders would be alright in a low PH and could coincide with the fish above?
Thanks
 

Gnome

Gnome

Large Fish
#10
Oct 22, 2002
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Shadow Moses Island
#10
just like RED said, why you want change your ph? what is your tap water ph?
it is better to have stabil ph than deal w/ all the chemical or even it is natural stuff, especially if you have large tank or mutiple tanks. you'll get headache sooner or later, believe me.

I know some people breed their discus in high ph 7.6 Mine is 7.6-7.4 and they're still doing just fine.
 

Gnome

Gnome

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#13
Oct 22, 2002
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Shadow Moses Island
#13
Originally posted by Titan_113
I tested my water and it was a little below 7.5.
Click to expand...
that's a pretty good ph, why don't you take a bucket or jug of that water and aerate them w/ airstone and see if the ph change in about 6-12 hours. Mine is 8. something out of from the faucet but after 6 hour or so it lower around 7.5.
 

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RedTurquoise

RedTurquoise

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#16
Oct 22, 2002
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#16
I would not worry about it then Titan! Your ph is fine. And as gnome mentioned, changing water parameters is a pain plus expensive after a while.

Could you imagine doing 75% water change on a 30G everyday and changing the ph from 7.6 to 7.0? I tried it twice! Never again!
My water straight from the tap is 7.0. After aeration for a couple of hours goes up to 7.6!

Good luck!
 

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