The effects of using driftwood

[jacobfata]

Deep sand beds and discus aren't the best of friends.

I can see the effort you have put into recreating a "natural" habitat for the fish but I'm going to come off as a little mean here; the setup isn't that ideal for discus. Let me explain:

Discus naturally come from slow-moving, warm water that is often higher in tannins and low in pH which is a double whammy against bacteria so as a result the waters are generally low in bacterial concentrations. They also are not the cleanest eaters and need to be fed frequently as youngsters to really get the best growth out of them. This creates a lot of leftover debris, and with a deep substrate it can accumulate and produce a lot more bacteria than discus are naturally accustomed to. Thus having the potential to make them sick. If drop the substrate level and vacuum it with every water change it would reduce that risk significantly. For this reason almost all of the serious keepers my side run bare bottomed tanks that are cleaned daily. Please try and keep this in mind

As for water changes, discus need lots in a tank that size. I'd recommend getting a liquid test kit and make sure to keep Nitrate <20 all the time. 50% a week on a 55g won't cut it for discus. Also don't feed beef heart! It leads to accumulation of fat around the organs which is no good.

Apart from all that, good luck!

Other than too much sand now is a heavily planted and driftwood setup not right for discus? Yes I also see people with discus in bare bottom aquariums acting as if they’re a piece of glass they are trying to not break.. but I’ve also seen and heard of many discus keepers keeping discus in aquariums like so. My water parameters and housing seems quite the fit in my opinion. I’m purchasing a few large discus today if I see some I like. I think a few four inchers will be a nice addition to my setup. Along as I keep up with weekly large water changes like I always do. I’m heading to a new store now to look at the plant selection. I think filling the aquarium with lots of plants is going to combat the issues with toxins building up. I’m they all die it’ll be an expensive lesson learned I suppose. m
With the tank running for almost a year now, I think I’m good and I’m going to try.

 

[Matteus]

Cool. Keep us updated. I feel like this thread can be helpful to future discuss prospective owners as well.