Idea for a New Tank

[Fishie123]

Hello Every One.

I love Discus, And i love to buy more discus. :happy1: But I have no space to add more discus into both of the tanks. :tears: So I thought. Why not get rid of the 150L tank that i have and replace it with a custom made tank. About 350L or so. But the only problem is, The place where i want to put the tank has a limit of spacing ("Length wise") therefore I wanted to get a tall tank ("Height") and a slightly wider tank.

The Length of the 150 is 90cm. My ideas is to add atleast 10 Discus in the tank. At the moment. Ive got 9 Discus in a 224L tank. ("Ive asked someone about fitting the amount into the tank before adding.)

Before people jump into ("calling me a noob"). Ive kept discus only for 3months. And still learning. So I am sorry if I have made a mistake. :tears:

Thank You :dunno:

[henward]

everyone is a noob berfore you stop being a noob... its allg ood.

first of all, what is the total length you can fit into that gap where you want the tank?

If its a maximum of 1metre, then you will need a very tall tank for the size - meaning glass thickness is key.

9 discus, your tank is a bit small.

Frequent water changes i take it?

anyway, discus love taller tanks than longer - theyw ill thrive in a tall tank but volume wize, you shouldnt get mroe discus in a 300something litre tank.

the question is this.

1) what is the maximum length, height and wide you can go with?

and we can work from there.

as for getting more discus, i would hold off and upgrade tank size - thsi way your discus will reach better potential. quality vs quantity.

[Fishie123]

The max so far is 120cm height x 95cm length x 60cm width. Not accurate measurement, it my rough measurement. Don't know how many L that will hold.

[DennisP]

That would be a very tall tank.

Thats almost a 700L tank btw.

Also Remember, water changes on a tank that tall would be a mission. As would feeding and all that.

[Fishie123]

Wait. What. Are you serious?

[ryanjury]

I would definitely look at putting some $$'s into getting a bigger tank if you already have 9 in a 224L tank, you risk stunting and ruining them..

As for a tank 120cm tall tank, not only does it not really achieve anything in terms of stocking (doesn't increase surface area) but it would cost you thousands because you would need 15mm glass which is very expensive.

I suggest you find somewhere you can put a 5-6ft tank with the number of discus you have you should really be looking at a 4-500L tank minimum.

Are you doing lots of water changes etc on the tank?

[DennisP]

Dead srs. 8)

http://mathcentral.uregina.ca/volume_calculator

[Adrienne]

I think that a bigger tank would be a really good idea. Its recommended that there is 50 litres of water in a tank for each discus you have.

This tank is very tall (120cm). Are you sure you have given the measurements the right way around. A tank this tall will make it very difficult to clean the bottom.

I have a 450 litre tank (150L x 45D x 60H) and I currently have 4 discus (12cm+ in size) in it although 6 look really good in a tank this size (It is heavily planted).

[Fishie123]

@ryanjury: I didn't mean i was going to get a tank that was 120cm height. I was giving a rough idea how much the space that the area for my tank can fit. henward wanted to know the max space ("what is the maximum length, height and wide you can go with?

and we can work from there. "). I'm sorry if i said anything miss leading. Once i get rid of my angels, how many discus can i fit into the 150L and how many cani fit into my 225L tank?

@Adrienne: That isn't the tank measurement i want to get. Its it a rough idea on the space of the area that the tank could fit. My grammar is extremely bad. So maybe that why you guys think i am going to get 120cm length.

Yes. I do daily changes. I only got 9 in one tank because some are 4 months old. Once i get a new tank. The 150L will be a substitute for the little ones. Ive got 5 "4 months" old discus. And 4 "8 Months" old discus.

[Adrienne]

I would only have 3 discus in a 150 litre tank but thats because I like them to have plenty of space and so they can grow to their maximum size. In saying that they are better in groups of 4 or more or else just have a proven breeding pair. You will get away with more when they are smaller and if you are doing daily water changes it will also help. How much water do you change each day?

[Fishie123]

I remove 5 buckets of water everyday. So about 40%. Really sorry for the noobness here everyone. Should of read a bit more. I went to a Fish store and asked them, "How many can I keep in my 224L tank". This is what they said. You can put 8-10 discus into that tank. But i cannot blame the store because it was my fault on not reading more about the tank spacing.

[ryanjury]

You definitely can keep 8-10 in that sized tank, petshops keep more in smaller tanks all the time, but you cannot expect them to reach their full potential (ie grow up nice and big and colour up well) or be very happy long term in it. There is a big difference between what will keep the fish alive for a few years and what will keep them alive and happy for alot longer.

[phoenix44]

No more than 3 in a tank that size; but even with 3 you run the odds of aggression if 2 males have to fight over a single female.

Most people underestimate how big discus can actually get.

While 8 might be a good number to start off with, you do need to thin down numbers until the tank is 'balanced'.

[Fishie123]

What is the max amount in the 224L tank. And what is the Max amount in the 150L. I was planing to put the little ones into the 150L tank. I did an exact measurement on the area that i want to put my tank. The max space limit are, 110cm Length, 126cm Height, 60cm Width. I may be wrong. But if they weren't wouldn't they hide. My girlfriend was feeding the discus of her hand on the top of the tank. And they were eating fine. But i don't know if that happiness or just they hungry. Lol.

This is the link of them feeding.

[henward]

discus, especiallyb abies at 28c temperature will eat voraciuosly no matter the space of tank.

its a matter of growth, stunting and ruining them.

if you buy a high prized discus.

I have purchased rare discus before at 250 each! medium youngh adults....

you spend that sort of money you wont wanna stunt them.

you may buy smaller ones, that are cheaper.

when you buy smaller discus, you already hav a large, very lage chance they will never grow to full potential.

Only a small proportion of discus from a batch of fry will actually look great!

alot will die, probbly almost if not mroe than half.

thats why adult discus, taht look spectacular you pay more for.

your case, if you add more to your 150L, you will regret it.

you will stunt them, though yoru aily water changes are great, puttin 40% cold water into a warm tank will reduce temps that will impact your discus too (unless you are pre heating the water or mixing hot and cold from tank) but what ah assle.

better to have more volume and save allt hat ime.

IF you havea space constraint. then i suggest you reasses the number of fish - in all honestly, a 4 foot tall tank will be hard to manage, you will need to ensure that that tank is on a extremely low stand.

[henward]

if you hav a 4 foot tall tank, that will be expensive.

but make it a total 5 maybe 6 foot in total height including stand, or else it willb e difficult to clean, gets messy.

do not get more fish. 300 litres is very small for adult discus.

wonder which lfs told you its ok?

[Fishie123]

Ty Henward . I will put of the 3 baby discus the 150L tank. Will that be fine? And leave 6 into the 224L tank? I am not planing on getting rid of my 150L. That could be used for quarantine. But for my new tank. What is the best size from the measurement I have giving for a decent discus tank? I am going to build a custom tank for my discus. So i would need a exact measurement for a 5foot tank or 6 foot tank. Thank you :happy2: :happy2:

[henward]

for a 5 or 6 foot. well, of course i would say the bigger the better. more volume, better growth, happier fish, better water.

remember, more volume needs more filtration:D

but anyways, i would say standard 150x60x60 or 1800 by 60x60.

thats more then plenty for discus. 540 litres the first one OR 648 litres.

[Fishie123]

Ouch. I don't have enough space for a 5 foot tank. I guess i wont be able to get a new tank after all. As what i stated before. My max space is exactly 110cm Length, 126cm Height, 60cm Width. It doesn't have to fit 10 discus. What about a 4 foot tank?

[henward]

youc an have what ever height you want, its all about the money.

[Fishie123]

True. My budget isn't a lot tbh. I mean. A rough idea of how much the tank will cost will indicate to me how much i have to spend. I cant spend more then 400 for tank excluding the stand. BUT. If its more then 100 buck difference is fine.

[henward]

400 is not a bad budget, but i guess your problem si that you have to build a ta,ll tank.

Your width and length si limited, you have to make up volume by height.

whcih is actually ideal for a discus set up.

I would say 110 length, 60 fromto back, 80 height.

Doable, but glass thcikness is key

021 900 727name is greg, ask him how much that will cost - ensure you ask the MM of glass too.

he is really good, got him to work on my set ups before and recommend him to everyone.

tell him i referred you - maybe he will give me a discount next time i set up my next monster tank:D haha :happy2:

[Mirio]

( Using http://mathcentral.uregina.ca/volume_calculator )

A box shape that has dimensions 110 centimeters by 60 centimeters by 90 centimeters has a volume of: 594 liters

Using the 50L per Discus rule i'd say 11 would be the maximum amount. I guess judging from what everyone else has said that if you intend on keeping plants etc that number may have to be lowered.

But yeah, this is only if you don't intend on finding new homes for some of your existing discus.

Another thing to consider is that tank is going to be well over half a ton by the time substrate/driftwood/whatever else you're intent on putting into it. Before purchasing such a tank i'd make sure that the floor where you intend on putting the tank is strong enough to support such weight. Might not be a huge factor, but it's better thought about now than later. I guess if the house has concrete foundations then it's not too bigger problem. But alot of older houses are on wooden foundations. (Unfamiliar with building/architect terms)

Not sure how much power such a tank would consume, if you are concerned about that at all.

About all i can think of honestly, hope this helps. C:

[Adrienne]

I would also go 110cm L X 60D - height is up to you but as I have already said anything more than 60cm I can't reach the bottom of the tank to clean it. I also recommend the tankmaker Henward has suggested. He makes good quality, well braced tanks.

[the-obstacle]

I also recommend the tankmaker Henward has suggested. He makes good quality, well braced tanks.

I recommend him too. He's very good with custom sizes too.