Discus

hello i am a newbie. i have bought some beautiful discus from my local pet store. at first they were spectacular to look at. but now they have no colour there fins are down i have lost about 4 so far. so i went to my pet store again with a sample of my Aquarium water. the niterite was very high. then i did a 45% water change as instructed by my pet store directions. there has been some change in most of my Discus. but i have around 3 that do not look happy at all. there fins are down black in colour. is there anything i can do to maybe fix this problem. can you please help. thank you Dingo1.

Welcome to our forum!

If the nitrite is high, there is a chance your aquarium was not properly cycled before you added fish. One solution to that is a 15 or 20 percent water change every day for a week or so. Don't even think about adding medications until all of the water parameters (including temperature) are correct. Some aquarium shops give good advice, and some are just trying to sell you a bunch of stuff. Check out some of the on-line aquarium supply stores, and think about getting your own water test kit. Be sure to check for ammonia.

I have a couple of errands to run, so I'll make this short. Discus keeping is best left to experienced aquarists. They're a beautiful fish, but they're also rather delicate. Many other species are easier to keep and better to learn on. If you can, please provide more specific information about your aquarium (size, temperature, plants, etc.) Again, welcome to the club.

first of all thank you for your advice on how to keep my Discus. when i meant im a newbie i meant in the club. i have been dealing with Americans for years and yes some Discus from time to time.i do agree with you about nite rite and ammonia. but i have done all the tests on ammonia came up clear also when i did test to the nite rite it came up clear. my tank is 6 foot by 18inches high and wide. my temp is around 29 degrees i have plastic plants and i have a outside filtration it does 2000 litres an hour it also has a ultraviolet light on it. i have taken the sick Discus out of the tank and put it in a hospital tank. i am going to do another water change of 15% today. please do not take this the wrong way. i am only asking for your help. the other fish are happy all i have in the tank is Discus. so any help would be very appreciated. thank you Dingo1

Hmmm, it sounds like you have a pretty good idea what you are doing. Did you add all the discus at once? The sudden addition to the bio load could have caused your tank to do a mini cycle to catch up with the strain of additional fish. I am glad to hear they are in a hospital tank. Hopefully they will pick up soon. Keep up with the water changes as suggested and keep testing the water. Another thought...how did you acclimate the fish? Did you float them in the bag and dump them in or did you acclimate them in a bucket gradually adding water from their new tank. Sudden changes in the ph or other parameters from one bit of water to the next can be very stressful. Especially for a more sensitive fish like discus. By the way, welcome.

My mistake. I thought you were new to the hobby and were taking a very expensive first step. Were the discus in the fish store aquarium for very long? If not, they have been asked to tolerate two water changes over a short time. The water parameters in their original aquarium could be very different from those in the fish store, which could be very different from your aquarium water. For efficiency, many aquarium shops use a single filtering system for all of their aquariums. That means that all the fish get the same water parameters, and if there is a disease or parasite it's in every tank. Discus are very sensitive to change and are very susceptible to diseases and parasites.

Hi Dingo...
Hope we can help you with your questions.
If your tank is fully cycled..you should "never" have any nitrites.
The fact you are now showing any levels...your tank has went into a mini-cycle.
How long has this tank been established?
You say your filter system does 2000 litres an hour? That is around 500 gal...am I correct?
That is an awfully strong filter for this type of fish...and this size of tank.
I am wondering if it is not giving the ammonia enough time to breakdown the nitrogen cycle?
The fact your Discus has darkened to this degree is a sign they are sick..and under great "stress"..so you putting them in quarantine is good.
As JohnA and Megham said..they are also very susceptible to internal parasites.
Have you raised the temp. in the hospital tank? I would.
I have raised all kinds of fish over the years (also worked at our LFS)...and due to the fact Discus are so delicate..have not taken that plunge. Closest I have got..is Angelfish.
I have friends who raise Discus though.
Best thing you can do is keep their tank clean. They LOVE fresh water...so the more large w/c's the better.
But..you have to have some source of ammonia..to break down the nitrogen...so your tank can fully cycle.
Water changes are removing it..kind of defeating the purpose to some degree. Do you have access to a product called BIO-SPIRA? It will help give you the benefical bacteria you NEED for this tank. It works immediatley.
What is your PH? Is it soft enough?
The easiest and safest way is to add "peat" to your filter system.
Sorry for all the ??'s
..just trying to help.
Here is an excellent source for Discus...
http://www.simplydiscus.com/library/ disease_medications/index.shtml

Hello i thank you all for your help. since putting my sick one in a hospital tank and treating him. with a dose of salt. and then i did a test on the ph. the ph is around 6to7 which is good ph level. he had smokey eyes but now he is coming good.i an going to buy some coat protector.just in case. is this the right thing i am doing please let me know if i am. once again thank you for your help and i am very happy to be in this club and i will be letting others know about your club. thank you thank you. kind regards Dingo1.

Hello i thank you all for your help. since putting my sick one in a hospital tank and treating him. with a dose of salt. and then i did a test on the ph. the ph is around 6to7 which is good ph level. he had smokey eyes but now he is coming good.i am going to buy some coat protector.just in case. is this the right thing i am doing please let me know if i am. once again thank you for your help and i am very happy to be in this club and i will be letting others know about The club. thank you thank you. kind regards Dingo1.

I am glad to hear he is doing better. What do you mean by coat protector? Are you referring to a water conditioner like stress coat? A water conditioner should always be added when the tank is first filled up as well as when any water change is performed. Your should treat for the entire amount of water volume in the tank; not just the amount replaced. It gets rid of any chlorine or other nasty chemicals in the water. Most water conditioners contain additives that will help a fish strengthen its slime coat after the stress of a water change. Let us know if we can help you further .