The Great White Hand

Hi Sharn What do you worm with? How about medication for flukes? My discus have never been medicated. Regards, TGWH

Hi, Now the little red melon (smallest of five), is getting very thin (not really eating with the other four), peppery and staying at the back, will still shoo away the other small red turq if it comes to the back of the tank. Both the large checkerboard and the large red melon are having the slimey BMs and the dwarf gourami looks bloated around the stomach (guorami my first fish, went through the cycle). Water parameters fine, except phosphates up a bit, dropped temp to 28.3C, doing 30-40%WC every 2-3 days Advice appreciated Regards, TGWH

Hi fievels This what happens with lots of female blue rams after they have spawned, from what I've seen (I have a breeding pair) and read this is completely normal. If the conditions are right they'll spawn every few weeks. Regards, TGWH

Hi Gills I run the syphon out the window (remember to vacuum carefully every 2nd or 3rd time) and and then fill a 20ltr bucket with lukewarm (approx 28C) water from the tap (we are soooo lucky in CHCH) and carefully pour it in, takes 5-10 mins for 4-5 buckets 30-40%WC in a 215ltr (gross) tank. It runs out about as fast as I fill it up. Even better, "Mikefish" on TM has an adaptor that goes on a tap faucet and you just fill the tank from there. See my technical thread on this one good avice from other. Regards, TGWH

Hi tdj5 With discus you ideally need to set up a system for efficiently changing water so it doesn't become to onerous. I'm currently doing 30-40% WC every 2-3 days in a 220ltr tank with 5 discus and lots of plants. Regards, TGWH

Hi I'm probably showing my innumeracy, but a 1/3 WC at 10C, when the current tank temp is 30C (say for Discus) would bring the tank to approx 23C. I would have thought that was too great of a drop for fish to feel comfortable i.e it would be stressful. Anyone do say 30+% WC for Discus with cold water? Regards, TGWH

Hi Guys Thank you! I really appreciate the prompt and valuable advice from members of the forum. I know Mike from my fishing days so will stop in and see what his set-up is like. At the moment my planted Discus tank is on its 4th day without a WC, and so far the "sky hasn't fallen" (he touches wood). The up side with the jug method is my 3 year old can count to 60, the number of jugs required to do a 30% change Alan, really keen to look at your set-up sometime the Echinodorus tenellus you sold me is growing well, do you anticipate having anymore available in the near future? Jolliolli, good to hear your discus tank is going well. They are such characters and so animated, but a heck of a responsibility! Regards Guy (TGWH)

Hi I've been doing 30% WC every 2 days in a 215 ltr tank (AR980 extensively planted and with 5 Discus and some small fishes). I've been taking the water from a bucket to the tank in a 1ltr jug and am getting a bit sick of it! I need one of those things that fits on the taps, maybe! Any ideas or devices (including brands) recommended? Regards, TGWH

Hi I've got a 9cm checkerboard in my tank with four other discus and other small fish. Tank AR980 extensively planted with wet/dry filter and Aqua One CF1200 cannister as well. Symptoms: Bowel motions, almost slimey (could be stomach lining?) trailing below body, the colour of colourbits, occur soon after feeding. Still eats well (greediest fish) and has had obvious BM's since going into tank 4 mths ago and is growing the fastest by a long shot, is the No. 2 discus in the tank for now behind a larger lady in red. Funnily enough haven't seen BM's from the other discus. Breathing seems slightly more laboured than other discus, but I've raised the water temp from 27.5c to 29.5c. Behaviour: I'm please to see him at the front of the tank again and bothering the BN, but for a few hours yesterday looked darkish and seemed to be shy and appeared to be hidng? Compounding things I've been doing some deep substrate cleaning and dumped some rubbish from the wet/dry filter into the tank made it a bit dirty. Stopped the cleaning and have increased WC's from 30% every 2 days to 45% every 2 days. Water parameters good except 0.2 - 1.0ppm on the phsosphates. I guess I'm thinking Hex and the breathing makes me think gill flukes or something? so contemplating metro or dimetro and prazi for the flukes. Any ideas with respect to diagnosis and treatment would be very welcome Regards Guy (TGWH)

Hi Casper Looks a bit like dirty gravel! I put 6 bags in my 215 ltr tank, rinced each bag at least 12 times in in a 20ltr bucket until clear, because it was a fairly fine gravel. If you were to start from fresh it might be a lot easier. Regards, TGWH

Hi Jolliolli I'd definately acclimitize slowly. Dare I say it, I've dumped fish in before, but I'd take my time with discus to avoid more stress. A breeding pair from what I understand, are intolerent of other discus and probably any fish in general when spawning. There are many on this site that will be able to elaborate. I think the gourami/ siamese fighter thing is much worse with males. I'm pretty obsessive and do approx. 30% WC every 2 or 3 days, but a few of my discus are 70mm or less. Sorry, I don't know anything about mollies, "non- dwarf" gouramis and female fighters with discus. Have you looked up the "Simply Discus" forum? a whole section on discus tankmates. Regards, TGWH

Hi Jolliolli Are you looking at a breeding pair? I started with one (the so-called "single discus set-up"), then couldn't resist adding another, subsequently had to add another three to disperse aggression. I know people have happy pairs though, just my own experience and something to consider Blue suggested gouramies may be an issue, my experience is with a single dwarf gourami, it killed my siamese fighter about 7 mths ago (my only fatality, touch wood) and certainly gives my discus a bit of a hurry up, despite the fact they "dwarf" him. I don't know about the larger gouramis though. Something to be thoroughly research I think - which is exactly what you're doing here! Definitely, the more filtration the better, I run a CF1200 as well as the built in on a 215ltr. The discus will be awesome in the Rio though! Regards, TGWH

Hi Smidey I acknowledge FreakyFish's points, but here is the info you asked for: Filtration: 10.2 - 12 (215ltr (gross, probably 180ltr net) @ 2200 ltr/per/hr) Algae: 1 Algae eaters: 1 BN, 2 SAEs, 8 otto's No chemicals Regards, TGWH

Hi Smidey I think both of your set-ups look cool! Good on you for having the goods instincts to pull the plants out and fixing the problem . What sort of readings were you getting (nitrate,phosphate,etc.)and how much water changing were you doing? Regards, TGWH

Hi Smidey Can you elaborate a bit on your problems, so I might know what to look out for? Regards, TGWH

Hi Chin Thank you for posting these beautiful fish for us all to see! Regards, TGWH

Hi Afrikan I'm a planted discus tank fan and this set-up is great now and will be fantastic! I can't wait to see it mature and be stocked. I can't believe you're quiting the Malawi's though ( I saw your big tank for sale)? Regards, TGWH

Hi Background: 215 ltr heavily planted tank (AR980), wet/dry filter and external canister (CF1200, plenty of biomax and good noddles). Five Discus, 2 rams, 6 corys, 8 ottos, 2 Saes, 20 harlequins, 16 neons. 30% WC 2-3 times a week only vacuuming the top 10mm of substrate, substrate appears clean. Noticed phosphates going up, put in seachem phosgurd but kept coming back (0.5 - 1.2 ppm)all other parameters fine, so decided to vacuum top 30-40mm (50mm fine gravel and 20mm JBL proflora), a whole heap of rubbish coming out. I think I'm heavily stocked, but am heavily planted and filtered? Should I be deep vacuuming? Will this upset my biological filtration? How to vac around glossistigma and tenellus? Any advice welcome! Regards, TGWH

Hi BlueandKim and Hummingbird Thank you for the headsup on the "discus tucker". Regards, TGWH

Thanks Guys! Biosuppliers only wholesale, "Discus Tucker". Will follow this up with John at Organism. Regards, TGWH

Hi BlueandKim I'll have to use it more sparingly, maybe a treat for when they're good, but, when are discus not good?! Since I'm now without my "Schlingmann's" are there any commercially available frozen discus mixes you would recommend. Regards, TGWH

Thanks for your advice! It seems, I'm probably giving my discus a reasonably good diet of the dried food available here. Gannet, I use frozen bloodworm, and a frozen blister pack called "Schlingmann's discus-fit" (Turkey heart, krill, mysis, Artemia Salina, white mossi larvae, crayfish, spinach, bio-algae, spirulina, minerals and vitamins) bought from Redwood Aqautics. However, they mostly eat the dried food so thats why I wanted your opinions. I mostly, use the dried food because since I've introduced the discus I seem to be battling phosphates a bit (.2 - 1.2 ppm). Regards, TGWH

Hi What is your preferred dry food for Discus? I the dry food I use is: JBL Gala Flake, Tetra colorbits, JBL Nova-bits, JBL Daph, JBL nova tabs. What about Wardley's, Haraki? Is there something that is the best? Regards, TGWH

Hi bli What brand and model of UV sterilizer? Regards, TGWH

Hi Fantastic looking set-up and fish! I'm a huge fan of planted Discus and Blue Ram tanks. Please tell us more about the set-up (cardinals and rummy-nose as well?)and more shots are always appreciated. Regards, TGWH