matthewY Posted September 8, 2009 Report Share Posted September 8, 2009 So picked up some discus locally off trademe. there was a hint from the seller that they could possibly be a pair.... turns out they are as I found the eggs last night against the backup internal filter. there’s currently 3 discus in a 60L tank (was just storing them there until the main tank is cycled and prepped). The 2 larger discus is the pair and they have now totally started picking on the 3rd one :-( Looking for ideas on what works, ie: could I use a clear divider to separate the tank (but the type that allows water to flow) to ensure the safety of the 3rd? When babies hatch, would they wonder through the divider? Also, looking at the eggs this morning, there’s possibly 50 - 100ish (maybe more????), most are orange, afew have turned white. Should i do anything to remove white eggs, should i add meth blue to help out (and would meth blue have bad effect on filter?). Finally, the tank has 2 filters, 1 is a 1200Lh external canister (I've set it up to run about 1/2 that but its still full of media). The other is a small internal 200L one which I was using as backup. The discus have laid eggs on the side of the internal filter. What should i do? should i turn off the internal (will they get sucked in after they hatch?), what about the main filter, do I need to add something on the intake to protect them? do I need to replace it completely with air driven one? do the kids wonder far from parents in the first few weeks? So far the parents are taking good care of the eggs, both have taken turns blowing onto the eggs. The eggs are only left unprotected during feeding time.... I have seperated the 3rd one into a floating container for now to ensure hes going to be on when i get home :-) Keen on any ideas, suggestions, comments… Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LYNDYLOO Posted September 8, 2009 Report Share Posted September 8, 2009 I'm confused Are you running the 1200L External plus the Internal Filters on the 60 Litre Tank?? How Big is the Tank that you are Cycling?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phoenix44 Posted September 8, 2009 Report Share Posted September 8, 2009 hey matt! it would be best if you could remove the 3rd discus that is not part of the pair, and house it separately. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matthewY Posted September 9, 2009 Author Report Share Posted September 9, 2009 running a 1200lh which i attached about 2 monsth ago. Its flow rate has been reduced to approx 600lh. The internal was one which I ran the tank off when I only had 1 discus. Its 200lh and was left in cos of its cycled media filter so didnt want to disturbe it durign teh cycling of the bigger canister..... The main tank which these were going to eventually go to is 300L and has its own trademe filter (says 2400lh but prob 1200 flow). Dont really have a suitable tank setup for now for the 3rd discus. i will try and move him in to the main tank as soon as its cycled (perhaps 2 weeks off still) :-( is it worth adding him in the big tank earlier? big tank has 2 gba's cycling it and its temp is only 25 degrees so will need to up it slowly for the gba's.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
diver21 Posted September 9, 2009 Report Share Posted September 9, 2009 how long has the big tank been running for? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matthewY Posted September 9, 2009 Author Report Share Posted September 9, 2009 i put 2 gba's in about 1 week ago. The tank has been running by itself with filter and plants (but no fish) for 2 or 3 weeks now. The temp is 25 or so degrees in the large tank (with the 2 gba's) and about 31 in teh discus tank Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
diver21 Posted September 9, 2009 Report Share Posted September 9, 2009 personally i would put the single discus across to the big tank, unshure of what to do with the filters though, prob put the canister across to the big tank and leave the pair with the internal not running anymore with a air operated box filter. but im not a discus person yet so prob best to confirm with one of them Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twinkles Posted September 9, 2009 Report Share Posted September 9, 2009 i'd expect a 300L tank to handle the discus no problems, thats a big volume of water so if you're concerned about the amonia from it being uncycled just do frequent water changes for a while. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LYNDYLOO Posted September 9, 2009 Report Share Posted September 9, 2009 I would transfer the 1 Discus over to your Big Tank, just keep an eye on the Ammonia, and DONT overfeed him :roll: I would Transfer the External Filter over to the Main Tank aswell Leave the Breeding Pair in the 60L Tank along with a Heater, if you do Water Changes everyday you wont need a Filter, if your wanting to use one just go with a Small Sponge Filter Discus Temps should be sitting round 29-30 Mine have decided to Lay again tonight, the layed last night aswell, then decided to eat their Eggs, so here's hoping this time they might get the idea of what they are meant to be doing with their Eggs :roll: Do you have a Water Test Kit?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
firenzenz Posted September 9, 2009 Report Share Posted September 9, 2009 I'd be tempted to use this as a trial run until you get fully sorted. the pair will most probably breed again. its a lot of work to raise up Discus fry successfully and get the best offspring. I would suggest your attrition rate in your circumstances would be sizeable, and do you want to go throiugh all that for a dozen fry?. Get the pair in the 60ltr tank with sponge filter at 29 degrees. get a breeding cone and get yourself set up with a BBS culture. 10 ltr water change every 1-2 days once eggs have hatched, even better if you siphon and fill slowly with airhose. what are the parents ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matthewY Posted September 9, 2009 Author Report Share Posted September 9, 2009 ha, by the looks of it, theres quite afew others here with discus laying eggs :-) I've started upoing the temp on the main tank, figure it will take 1/2 a week or so to get it to the right temp without disturbing its current occupants. The blue discus will def go into the main tank judging by everyones comments. Ha, change 10L of water in the small tank aday, I already do that and been doing so for over 2 years now :-) Don’t mind giving time to the baby discus (assuming they hatch and all) but i'll need to figure a way to feed them when i'm out at work. Do BBS live long in fresh water As for the "trial" aspect, I somewhat agree, I def dont want to get my hopes up but I do want to get the eggs as far up the chain as I can. If they hatch and grow, that would be awesome, if they turn out stunted, crap but at least i tried and better luck next time.... Parents, photo 4 in auction below: http://www.trademe.co.nz/Browse/Listing ... =234387848 If you know what the white one is.... (maybe butterfly???) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matthewY Posted September 10, 2009 Author Report Share Posted September 10, 2009 oh yeah, dont have much in terms of test kits.... Can test ph (got liquid bottle as well as a digital meter) and conductivity only. if i get concerned, i usually rely on the petshop to do some tests for me :-) Did have one of the amonia hanging things a while back but it kept getting dirty to teh point where I didnt trust it (it had algee on it) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matthewY Posted September 11, 2009 Author Report Share Posted September 11, 2009 good news and bad news. The good news is I dont have to worry about the 3rd discus for afew more weeks. bad news, no more babies The eggs started hatching last night and both parents were very attentive to them, picking the newly hatched fry's off the ground and blowing them back onto the wall. this morning, they were all gone.... The 3rd discus was in the floating tub so def wasnt him, one of the parents bust had gotten sick of picking up the babies all night (it looked very much like a loosing battle cos when they blow the baby back to the wall, 3 more would fall off....). Good start and now that i know they are a pair, I will move the non paired discus into the main tank (once it heats up) and try again with a propper breeding cone. so who knows how long before I would expect another bunch of eggs? :-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
firenzenz Posted September 11, 2009 Report Share Posted September 11, 2009 Yes Nxt time. Your parents a quite young so will probably take a few times before they get it right. They'll get the idea soon enough. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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