Tips on aging water for Discus tank

[Rajiv]

Hello everyone,

I am looking to set up a water barrel or something similar to age the water before doing water change for discus tank.
I was wondering if anyone can give me any tips on where to get the barrels from and types of water pump to use.

Thanks in advance!!!

-Rajiv

 

[chriscoli]

Hi Rajiv,

I don't age water for any of my fish, but I do store RO water for use and also have some rainbarrels outside to collect water.

Craigslist is a great source for barrels, as is the Pepsi plant in PG county. Just make sure any you buy used from Craigslist haven't been used for chemicals, and as a precaution, I always look for food safe barrels. Every now and then, you can get them on here, too. I believe Fran is even selling a really big 100 gallon + storage container.

Alternatively, I use the large gray trashcans that you can get from any of the big box hardware stores. There are a couple of sizes available.

As for pumps, I like using a good pondmaster pump, but I also sometimes use the ones that you can get from Harbor Freight.

 

[DiscusnAfricans]

I think Franny's tank might be 275 gallons, it was huge, but its definitely over 100 gallons.

I don't age water for my discus, and I'll do 90% changes without issue. I just make sure to add dechlor right away, and keep an eye on the temperature so it doesn't swing too far either way.

 

[Becca]

I think Franny's tank might be 275 gallons, it was huge, but its definitely over 100 gallons.

I don't age water for my discus, and I'll do 90% changes without issue. I just make sure to add dechlor right away, and keep an eye on the temperature so it doesn't swing too far either way.

Yeah, if I thought I could fit Franny's barrel in the fish room, I'd have been all over that for rain storage.

We have Discus and don't age water for changes. I guess I'm curious as to what you plan to do to "age" the water. Are you going to treat it with almond leaves or peat? Are you going to filter it so it's cycled (I do this for my more sensitive shrimp)? If so, do you have an air pump that is powerful enough to run a sponge filter at the bottom of a barrel?

 

[FishEggs]

I may be misinformed or mistaken but I believe the aging water was so that the chlorine in the city water would gas off making it safe for use without a using chemical dechlorinator/conditioner. These days treatment plants also use chloromines to treat the water which do not gas off so you will still need to use a dechlorinator.
A lot of stores/people use the big Rubbermaid brute trash cans which have a wheel attachment (sold separately) that you can put on to roll it around.

 

[chriscoli]

I "age" my RO water with aeration so that it can re-equilibrate atmospheric gasses which will influence the pH. That way it's already done that in the barrel, rather than in the tank. It might not be a big deal in my fishroom, though, because I don't do anything with 100% RO. I usually cut it 50/50 with fresh (dechlorinated) tap in the tank.

 

[Rajiv]

Thanks for all the great advice.

Main reasons I am thinking of starting to age my water is that I feel like my Discus are stressed out every time I do water change and secondly the Discus are not growing at all.
I also feel like our tap water has higher amounts of chlorine.

FYI, I am using Seachem water conditioner.

 

[DiscusnAfricans]

Just curious what aging would do to the water if its already being dechlorinated? As Becca mentioned, it can be conditioned with other materials, otherwise simple storage/aeration might not actually change anything about the water, considering chlorine/chloramine is already removed.

 

[Rajiv]

Just curious what aging would do to the water if its already being dechlorinated? As Becca mentioned, it can be conditioned with other materials, otherwise simple storage/aeration might not actually change anything about the water, considering chlorine/chloramine is already removed.

Other than removing chlorine/chloramine, I was also trying to match water temperature so that my fish wont stress out as much.

 

[Becca]

Other than removing chlorine/chloramine, I was also trying to match water temperature so that my fish wont stress out as much.

How much of a change are you doing, how often, and what is your tank set-up like? We do 50% once a week and our fish don't stress, but it's a 210 gallon tank with lots of plants and hardscape, so they've still got plent of room to move and environmental security while the tank fills back up (which takes about 40 minutes). We fiddle with the hot and cold tap to try to match temperatures, but aren't too picky about it and dose the tank with prime before turning the water on to fill it. I'd imagine the stress has more to do with what's happening around the tank when there's a water change than it does with the influx of new water.

 

[Rajiv]

It is 55 gallon tank with bare bottom and I try to do 20-40 % water change at a time once a week. I also try to match water temp by feeling it with my hand and I also dose dechlorinator before filling it back up.
May be discus are more picky about water parameters?

 

[Becca]

It is 55 gallon tank with bare bottom and I try to do 20-40 % water change at a time once a week. I also try to match water temp by feeling it with my hand and I also dose dechlorinator before filling it back up.
May be discus are more picky about water parameters?

I suppose I should have clarified that my fish ARE Discus. If you got your Discus from a quality source, they should actually be relatively hardy and the water parameter that matters most (within reason) is consistency.

Your fish might be stressed because there's nowhere to hide when they're suddenly stuck in a reduced amount of space. Also, without substrate, a lot of the surface area where "good bacteria" would normally grow in a tank is nonexistent. This means (particularly depending on your filtration) you're probably creating much larger swings in water quality than fish in a mature set-up would. Sure, you can get a bare-bottom tank "cleaner," but it doesn't have a reserve of nitrifying bacteria hanging around to replenish what's lost during a water change. It also doesn't have that reserve of nitrifying bacteria to work on waste products of the 7 days or so between water changes. Take a look at where Discus come from in nature - tannin-stained water, lots of roots and plants, dither fish, mud, dirt, leaves... If you're worried about stressing your fish, think about things that might make their environment more comfortable and nourishing and focus less on how fast they're growing. Discus probably won't grow very fast unless you're overfeeding them, and this has lasting implications for their longterm survival.

 

[DiscusnAfricans]

My fish have been in a bare-bottom tank for quarantine and growout, but I had a large sponge filter as filtration, now 2 filters in a bigger tank. I think if your filter is well seeded, the changes would only improve water quality, but its likely worth trying smaller water changes more often and see if it makes a difference. Eventually my fish will go in a tank with sand/wood/fake plants/dithers, but the more "stuff" in the tank, the harder it is to remove all organic matter, so there's a balance between ability to keep it clean, and more surface area for bacteria.

 

[Rajiv]

I suppose I should have clarified that my fish ARE Discus. If you got your Discus from a quality source, they should actually be relatively hardy and the water parameter that matters most (within reason) is consistency.

Your fish might be stressed because there's nowhere to hide when they're suddenly stuck in a reduced amount of space. Also, without substrate, a lot of the surface area where "good bacteria" would normally grow in a tank is nonexistent. This means (particularly depending on your filtration) you're probably creating much larger swings in water quality than fish in a mature set-up would. Sure, you can get a bare-bottom tank "cleaner," but it doesn't have a reserve of nitrifying bacteria hanging around to replenish what's lost during a water change. It also doesn't have that reserve of nitrifying bacteria to work on waste products of the 7 days or so between water changes. Take a look at where Discus come from in nature - tannin-stained water, lots of roots and plants, dither fish, mud, dirt, leaves... If you're worried about stressing your fish, think about things that might make their environment more comfortable and nourishing and focus less on how fast they're growing. Discus probably won't grow very fast unless you're overfeeding them, and this has lasting implications for their longterm survival.

Those are all good suggestions.
I am running two HOB emperor filters and one canister filter, pretty much over kill for 55 gallon I suppose.
I also have driftwood, some plants and big castle decor on one side. Also have some pothos plant hanging out side the aquarium.

I will try to introduce more plants and do frequent water changes but in lesser amount may be 10-15 %.

 

[Becca]

My fish have been in a bare-bottom tank for quarantine and growout, but I had a large sponge filter as filtration, now 2 filters in a bigger tank. I think if your filter is well seeded, the changes would only improve water quality, but its likely worth trying smaller water changes more often and see if it makes a difference. Eventually my fish will go in a tank with sand/wood/fake plants/dithers, but the more "stuff" in the tank, the harder it is to remove all organic matter, so there's a balance between ability to keep it clean, and more surface area for bacteria.

Yeah - QT and grow out are the 2 exceptions for me. I still throw in plenty of drift wood and usually some lava rock or something to make up for the lack of substrate. I also find that a thin (1-2 cm layer) of pool filter sand is pretty easy to clean and provides fish with something to sift through, etc.

 

[Becca]

Those are all good suggestions.
I am running two HOB emperor filters and one canister filter pretty much over kill for 55 gallon I suppose.
I also have driftwood, some plants and big castle decor on one side. Also have some pothos plant hanging out side the aquarium.

I will try to introduce more plants and do frequent water changes but in lesser amount may be 10-15 %.

Yes, give that a try. I guess the other big question is just how many fish you have in there?

 

[Rajiv]

Yes, give that a try. I guess the other big question is just how many fish you have in there?

Right now I have two 4-5 inch and two 2-3 inch discus, three small bristlenose pleco, and one tiny nirite snail.

 

[Tankster]

Years ago when I grew out discus from Hans I aged my water to stabilize Ph and gas off chlorine as well as to match the tank temp. I did daily 100% water changes and the fish flourished. I will dig up some old pics and edit this post to give you before and after. I know it sounds like overkill but the results were tremendous.

 

[Tankster]

Took me awhile to find them and time expired to edit original post.

If you want to wade into a group of fanatic discus keepers who will tell you you are doing it all wrong (with the best intentions of helping you) check out http://forum.simplydiscus.com/

Babies from Hans


After grow out. They got even bigger but I can't find the pics.

 

[Rajiv]

Years ago when I grew out discus from Hans I aged my water to stabilize Ph and gas off chlorine as well as to match the tank temp. I did daily 100% water changes and the fish flourished. I will dig up some old pics and edit this post to give you before and after. I know it sounds like overkill but the results were tremendous.

Can you give me some tips on how you aged the water?