I am planning on starting a 29 gallon planted discus tank?

Question

The tank is 29 Gal. and i want discus and live plants what plants would be good for the tank and what other fish should I get? What light levels are best for discus and can I have an electric blue freshwater crayfish with a few discus in the tank? should I get snails or a different tank cleaner? I hear plecos tend to suck the slime off of a discus is this true? What should the water readings be for discus cuz I have learned they are demanding fish and what tests should I do before I add fish? What is the best way to cycle the tank? I am looking this stuff up on the net but finding more advertisements than information, sorry this question is so involved.

Answer 1

Some good advice so far,i don't know if i can add anymore.
Yes,a 29 is kinda small for discus.May i recommend 40 or bigger?At Petsmart i noticed a 40 tall and stand this month for $229.00,not much more than a 29 and stand,equipment.You could keep a pair in this,the fish would be more comfortable and look much healthier.I mean we get Discus for the beauty of this species,if they are stressed they just won't color up or stay in prime color.
I recommend you try to recreate a Brazilian river bottom,the jungle type.Lots of swords and Brazilian creek plants,neon tetras are the only tankmates i would recommend.Can't get much better than Discus and neons! As you mentioned,Discus are a tough act to keep happy.The less critter's the better in their environment and surroundings,especially if you go with a 29 gallon.Remember,discus fish do best in pairs.A 3rd fish will be pushed out by the stronger pair and probably will die.
I have kept discus the last 14 years and clean soft water is a must.Just missing their water change once or twice can create problems.I recommend reverse osmosis water if this is possible,i eliminated a ton of nagging problems when i finally invested in this system.
Sounds like a lot of concerns,and they are.Broodstock is expensive,but i feel worth it if you are willing to invest the time and equipment the fish require.We love ours,i really wouldn't be without them!
Good Luck,hope this helped in your decisions.

Answer 2

Planted Discus Tank

Answer 3

Sound like a plan, except this tank is a fair bit too small for Discus, which get rather large and can be exceedingly finicky regarding the quality of their environment. As a responsible fishkeeper you should strongly reconsider getting something more appropriate for your tank.

29 gallons are a tougher one to plant because they are tall tanks, which makes it more difficult to light, and the small size means less selection in lighting. Because of this you are best sticking to plants that do well with less lighting - annubias is a great start.

Crayfish are not a good mix with fish, since they like to eat them, especially in a small tank like this.

You are obviously in need of more information then you'll get out of a simple yahoo post. Lets bypass the ads and get straight to the links:

www.fishforums.net
www.cichlid-forum.com
www.thekrib.com
www.badmanstropicalfish.com

Oh, and the best tank cleaner is a bit of elbow grease. Snails, shrimp, and pleco's should be used because the aquarist likes them, not as an aquarium tool. Pleco's eat some algae, and contibute a ton of waste to the tank otherwise. Some types will go after the attractive sides of the slow moving Discus and do damage. Snails don't contribute much waste, but can become a plague fairly easily. Shrimp are excellent scavengers, but considered food by many fish.

Answer 4

I'd consider a 65 gallon for Discus. If you add a Pleco, even bigger. Probably better off with a school of Otocinclus. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Otocinclus
Especially if you only are doing a 29. Discus need soft water (low hardness) and a pH around 6.5, which is slightly acidic. This can be a challenge. They also need very frequent water changes. Most breeders use a "drip system" that amounts to a 100% water change every 24 hours and no filtration. That's quite a challenge.

Answer 5

A 29 gallon tank is a minimum size for discus, I reccomend you only get two. A male and female.

Amazon sword plants are great, especally if you are hoping for them to breed as they lay their eggs on the plants.

No you cannot keep a crayfish as it will snip at your discus. Crayfish can really only be kept with other crayfish (for future reference most electric blue crayfish in stores have been injected with ink and will fade as soon as they shed - watch out for that)

In a 29 gallon tank, the only pleco you should consider would be maybe a clown pleco as it stays small. Most plecos can get over 2 feet.

I've never heard of a discus being cleaned by a pleco.

Discus are demanding but rewarding, for all the rest of the information check out this site. one of the best discus sites I've seen

http://www.clcdiscus.com/Discus-Care.html