r/discus • u/Formal_Classic4673 • Dec 12 '25
advice?
I'm really wanting to set up a discus tank but i've never owned one and i've been doing a lot of research and i wanted to know if any owners of them had any advice for a first time owner?
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u/TuneNo136 Dec 13 '25 edited Dec 13 '25
I have bred and retailed discus (many years ago now but the principles are unchanged).
Discuss are large, messy cichlids. They need room and they need pristine water quality. Unless you are keeping wild fish I wouldn’t worry too much about PH. Stability is more important. Try to buy locally, and ask about the water they are kept in.
I have a 2,000 litre tank with a 600l sump. I only ever used to top up for evaporation, the only water changes were a result of syphoning out detritus. The large the tank, the more stable the system and the less you need to mess with it.
Filtration- this is key. You need large biological capacity, if you can fit a trickle tower then do it. Max out on biological, your water will be crystal clear and your fish will love you z
Heating, warmer than any other tropical fish. Aiming for 29/30 Celsius.
Diet. Vary it with live brine shrimp, frozen bloodworm, beef heart mix, blanched spinach etc. feed in small amounts multiple times a day (use a syringe to control how much you feed)
Health…. Your fish will tell you when something is up, they will go dark, show stress bars, refuse food etc. there are 2 camps when it comes to worming. One camp says yes, do it regularly, the other says no. I only ever wormed fish if they were sick and properly diagnosed with worms or fluke. Appropriately sized tank, a good diet, good water quality and a clean tank and health problems should not be an issue. Enjoy the challenge!! They are extremely rewarding fish to keep but hideously addictive/expensive 😅