Hey everybody! New and... maybe you can help?

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discusdrew

New Member
My names Drew and though I'm sure I'll come accross people I know on here, I am new to this site! I have always been interested in delecate freshwater tanks that supposedly couldnt or shouldnt be done. Most recently in the last 3 months I have become addicted to discus and I think I will find the advice of you all will be more than well suited to answer any questions I may have about my new discus, in particular, very precise water conditions.

That said heres something to start off with, I recently discovered that I get a Ph swing with our local tap water (Spokane, WA) from 7.8 to 8.2 when a direct "tap to aquarium" water change is done, primarily due to the heavy heat and airation that my tanks hold at for the keeping of discus. I have a new beautiful discus that I just brought in on wednesday of this last week around 2pm, he ate fine the first night and has since tapered off to eating nothing at all, and is now very subdued, hiding in the corner. He is acting very lazy, clamping his fins, holding to the bottom of the tank. No external parasitic or bacterial invasion can be seen.

My thoughts so far: I need to control this tap water swing as my new fish is not adjusting to it well in a little 10 gallon QT tank and the swing can be harmful period to all of my discus (6 total around 5"). So I need to age my water with aeration and a heater. I need help with this guys if anyone has any recommendations of quick fixes or a way to help out. I need a container to hold my water in, I know the type I should have and know that local recycling places can get them for very cheap or a few other places. I do not get paid until Friday however and this is a problem NOW, this little guy is not holding on well at all. Any suggestions for a quick fix? Anybody have old holding tanks they are willing to get rid of? Will deffinately pay for them if at all possible. Im trying to think of a SAFE item to use in the mean time, I can come up with aeration, dont really have an extra heater to use at the moment but I can get that worked out if anyone has any suggestions on what to use?

Holy crap, that wasnt supposed to be that long so thanks for reading and look forward to knowing you all!!
-Drew
 
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Mikey

New Member
Welcome to the site, Drew.

I'm sorry to hear about your Ph problem. I know people that use rubbermaid tubs to hold the water, but I know what container you're talking about. Hope everything works out for you!
 
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discusdrew

New Member
Once I have a holding tank system set up I will use get a RODI system and mix that with tap water and slowly lower PH down to around 7, until then my focus is stability as the discus will be just fine as long as it simply stops jumping around with every water change. Given that they recieve daily 50% water changes it is a big deal. So once I get a holding tank set-up and a system in place I will be looking to purchase a RODI system so that I can stabilize out my water quality and keep it consistent. I will need one anyway when they start pairing off and getting ready to breed. So a rubbermaid tote is probably my best solution for now? Just looking for something to make it through till friday.
 
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Anthraxx

New Member
personally i have very little to worry about with my discus. taps pretty neutral tho, IMO just add a TON of logs to the tank, not only will it help to lower the ph but it looks good and the fish like to have a choice in spawning sites. when considering breeding discus there are SOOOOOOOO many factors that need to be addressed, from geneology to body shape, dorsal spikes, proper growth rates, etc. i would also like to state that its much easier to stick with stable water conditions then play around with it. my pair has recently started breeding and i find myself needing to remove all dither entirely to get any sort of fry survival. just a few thoughts here, also your probably having odd ph readings because of the high areation and water movement. slow still waters have a tendenacy to pick up more debris and sediments and will have a higher ph level then a rivers headwaters at the top of the mountain. apparently i also didnt read your whole story. ya you need to act fast but gently at this point. a discus that isnt hungry doesnt have long. i suggest u A, lower the ph, B, slow down flow and all that, C try feeding many different things to wean him back to proper health (you can try daphnia, beef heart, or other varietys available. i personally prefer the quality of hikari discus formula and my fish seem to like it because it is a softer food in comparsion to NLS. as a rule of thumb ur discus are thriving if theyre always on the hunt for more food. another issue u may be having is diet, discus need a wider variety of foods then most fish. really hope it gets better for you but dont be too bummed if it doesnt. for newbie discus i think its best to buy locally (as these fish will be used to PH similar to your own)
 
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discusdrew

New Member
Im well beyond the basics of discus keeping but thank you for your input. Stability, as I stated is the goal, what I need is to airate and heat my water prior to adding it to the aquarium as eliminating oxygen in the aquarium and lowering the filter level is not an option that im willing to consider. This move will allow my water to PH and KH stabilize BEFORE it is added to the aquarium so that I dont get any fluctuation in my levels within the aquarium. Im mostly looking for suggestions on the materials to make this happen inexpensively until I can get a proper set up on friday.
 
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sandnuka

New Member
Welcome to the site, you certainly picked a very difficult fish to keep considering the PH out of the water you use is so High.....

Friend of mine has the exact opposite problem, low ph form tap, keeps african rift lake fish requiring Higher ph.... he puts his water in a large rubbermaid garbage can filled with crushed coral, lets it sit for about a week, then moves it to his tanks. this removes the chlorine and raises PH.... dont know what you should do for your system besides buying bottled water. GOod luck.
 
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VsKitchen

New Member
:welcome!: I'm not knowledgable on discus, but you've picked a great site to join :) I'm sure this will become a great resource for you. Good Luck!
 
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Anonymous

Guest
I know it has already been suggested, but in my opinion, your absolute best option is a RO/DI unit. From rereading your original post it seems you are having a problem with a ph swing in a 10 gallon Q/T? If this is the case, then I would just leave it be, if you aren't changing water there will be no swings. Also, something I have done in the past is useing my "display" aquarium as my water source to do top offs and w/c in my Q/T. This also minimizes stress on the fish in the Q/T when its time to add it to the "display". From what its sounds like with the clamped fins and hiding, it could be one of many illnesses, but, I have seen this happen soley from stress. So my advice goes as follows, first off, make ure there are plenty of places for the fish to hide, keep the lights OFF, and minimize traffic through the room. Try and feed a very small amount once a day, and try to not disturb the fish while doing it (so go into ninja form). And lastly, for your ph issue, either RO DI, or use display tank untill you can get one. Adding peat moss is supposed to lower your PH by a bit, along with wood, so possible filter through it. I would also do this in your main tank, to keep that ph low as well. Good luck. And I hope I was helpful.

PS, do research on diseases and illnesses that relate to the issues.. but honestly, I think its stress, from being in such a small tank.
 
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discusdrew

New Member
So here's where he stands as of now, this is less than ideal but so far has had positive impact and cost me nothing. I usually QT for about a month, I moved him into the main tank as it is a large tank and is capable of making it until Friday when I can purchase the equipment I need without the tank needing a water change. I usually do 50% daily water changes as discus are perfectionists when it comes to water quality. Using peat moss is a great suggestion but again the problem is needing to hold water and pre treat with pray moss prior to adding it to the tank, otherwise Ph swings will occur again.

To the point of raising discus with a high Ph, it is a common misconception that they will only tolerate a low Ph that was true and still is for wild discus but with how much domestic breeding has occurred it is no longer an issue unless you are trying to breed and raise fry. Water hardness is much more of a concern for discus as long as Ph is stable.

That said, he ate this morning with the pack of discus! So were on the right track and he should be ok :). As long as I can get a holding system set up soon to age my water... Then the RODI water comes next...
 
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discusdrew

New Member
Discus expect stability as a constant, so I agree that stress is the most likely problem but I believe the cause to be to instability of the Ph level in the tank which I have stabilized for now. We will see how he does for a couple days but may need a round of metro and prazi which are my standard QT drugs for discus. Very sedative to flukes and worms.
 
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