Water Parameters to Keep Discus Fish Healthy.

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   *In my endeavor to gain knowledge in keeping Discus fish healthy, whenever I altered my water chemistry it would always come back to bite me. After many years of trial and a lot of errors I came to the realization that these fish did not need me to prepare special water conditions for them. There is much written about how they require acidic, dark tannin colored, soft tropical water, as this is their natural environmental conditions in the Amazon River. Over the years I have replicated all these conditions and have seen NO advantage in doing so. Today I do nothing to the tank water, they adapt, and I do too. Even raising fry, I do nothing but give then unconditioned tap water from my onsite well.

In my Discus fish aquariums, I keep the tanks fresh by doing a 25% water changes once or twice a week. The temperature of the water in the Discus tanks, is between 84 and 86 for adult fish and breeding pairs, then 86 to 89 for smaller discus. This higher temperature keeps my Discus eating well, growing fast, and healthy. Not only does the high temperature produce healthy Discus, but will also help them to fend off disease and parasites which cannot tolerate the higher temps. To help the tank run efficiently, allow the water to run slightly acidic with a PH of 6.5 to 7.0. This lower PH inhibits bacterial growth and converts the toxic form of ammonia to a nontoxic form. As for hardness, I personally never check it and the Discus adapt and do fine regardless of the water being hard or soft.

My water comes out of the tap at a PH of 7.2. Due to populations of Discus in the tanks PH levels will naturally fall to 6.8 before I do another water change bumping it back up above 7. So, it is always fluctuating from 6.8 to 7.2 depending on when and how much water is changed. If you want to lower PH chemically, you can add an acid each time you change water. I use to do this, but not anymore.

I am a firm believer that if Angel fish do well in your local water supply, then Discus fish will do just as well. The only difference is, Angels can tolerate a lower temp of 78-80 and Discus like it warmer, which the Angel will also do well at.

Keep the tank warm, do water changes once or twice a week and you will be surprised on how durable and adaptable Discus fish are.

Learn More: Discus Fish Tank Size