Discus in Houston tap?

[Nickgsr]

Hello everyone, I am getting back into the hobby after a few years away and decided I want to have a discus tank. The tank is a 72 gallon and has been cycling for a couple of months and currently has Cory and Tetras. Now my question is do to mixed information from everywhere I ask. I had a lfs tell me I just need to treat the water with acid buffer and discus will be fine at 7.0 pH. Others have said reverse osmosis is crucial, While others say they will adjust to our tap water just fine.
So, I figured I would ask here for some insight from people who have successfully kept discus in Houston's extremely hard water. I don't mind spending the money on reverse osmosis filtration if it is needed but my end goal is to make my water changes as hassle-free as using a python system.
Thanks in advance!

[troy tucker]

I have my Discus in tap water. I do use a detoxifier. but I don't try to change the PH.

[Goon]

Age your water so your ph can settle and be stable if not your discus will stress untill diseases manifest. Also buy from sponsors on simplydiscus they have amazing quality. there is a shop in west houston called aquapetsparadise but the price is a bit too high the only perk buying from there is that he quarantines for you.

you do not need reverse osmosis or any of that crap they are just trying to sell you uneeded equipment. my ph is 8.2 and my discus are perfectly fine and thriving, btw do not use an ph buffers or anything that alters your ph. fish can live in any ph as long as it is constistant. DO not your listen to your lfs please for love of god.

discus require the best care possible meaning ATLEAST 3 50% water changes a week and thats if your going with a barebottom tank. the more WC the better. hope that helps.

[Nickgsr]

I have my Discus in tap water. I do use a detoxifier. but I don't try to change the PH.

What detoxifier do you use? Thanks

[Nickgsr]

Age your water so your ph can settle and be stable if not your discus will stress untill diseases manifest. Also buy from sponsors on simplydiscus they have amazing quality. there is a shop in west houston called aquapetsparadise but the price is a bit too high the only perk buying from there is that he quarantines for you.

you do not need reverse osmosis or any of that crap they are just trying to sell you uneeded equipment. my ph is 8.2 and my discus are perfectly fine and thriving, btw do not use an ph buffers or anything that alters your ph. fish can live in any ph as long as it is constistant. DO not your listen to your lfs please for love of god.

discus require the best care possible meaning ATLEAST 3 50% water changes a week and thats if your going with a barebottom tank. the more WC the better. hope that helps.

I have always heard consistent pH was hey but my worry is how can I acclimate discus coming from a store using reverse osmosis water into my tank with super hard water? Would it make sense to lower the pH to start and then it would slowly level out to tap level through water changes?

[Goon]

they will adapt them selves, just put them in tank that has your tap water as blunt as that sounds.i have bought from a known importer who raise discus in 7.4 ph in california water and my ph is around 8.2 and they are perfectly fine. As i said before dont listen to your lfs, i doubt they have reverse osmosis water for the discus and if it they do its only a waste of their money. sure it would make sense to lower your ph so your discus can have a smoother transition but if your not a chemist or dont have experience altering ph your basicly playing russian roulette. if you really want to raise discus seriously, you should honestly buy discus from a sponsor from simplydiscus or a lfs that specialize in discus from known breeder. The meaning of the name discus is circular or round, at most lfs discus will be football shape and have other defects from birth what im trying to say is once you know what quality discus looks like you will cringe looking at lfs discus. If your serious about raising discus visit simplydiscus.com they have so many members with vast amount of experience.

[elevianne]

Tap water with Prime is fine for us. We have discus what you are ready to fill the tank. Water change is also an important factor in this.

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[troy tucker]

I use Kordon AmQuel +. I have been keeping fish here in Houston for a long time. I have done all the hard water fixes. RO/ID, Aging, and Dark water. (Peat bog, Leafs, driftwood). The chemical are hard to keep up with. It just take one miss hap and Well lets just say it's bad. All the others are just more work and time. ( I like dark water, but most layman think your tank is dirty.) If there is one thing I would use but I don't is a carbon bottle. (I run a real low budget set up.)
If you buy from Houston Aquarium Warehouse. Best in town already in Houston water. There are others who sale Discus and they are alright. HAW. it's what they do. They are a sponsor of the Greater Houston Aquarium Club. and give a discount.

IMO> all the thing you can do are unnecessary. There are people here already breeding in Houston water.

[Nickgsr]

Thanks for all of the feedback guys. I am going to try keeping them in the tap with prime and see how they do.

I went to HAW to check them out but there wasnt much to choose from in Discus.

Elevianne what type of Discus do you have and where? Thanks

[elevianne]

Thanks for all of the feedback guys. I am going to try keeping them in the tap with prime and see how they do.

I went to HAW to check them out but there wasnt much to choose from in Discus.

Elevianne what type of Discus do you have and where? Thanks

I got pretty much all popular strains. 2817049636 is my number. Text me & I can make time for you to swing by to see them.

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[Nickgsr]

Found some really awesome colored discus on discus Hans USA or discusfishstore.com....are these some of the more rare stands? Alenquer, leopard snakeskin...

[Goon]

i wouldnt say its a rare strain, but most certainly one of the popular ones. discus hans is consider cream of the crop of discus importers his prices are bit expensive but you get what you pay for, quality.

[black_knight]

Bare bottom and 50-80% water changes every 2-3 days from the tap and amquel or prime worked well for me for many years. As long as the water is clean and super warm (85-86'F), discus stay healthy. Hans has some big discus, but some have short gill syndrome (gill plate doesn't come over the gills fully). Adults tend to be easier, but pricier. Many initially don't eat much (spit up food) for weeks when you first get them, so fully grown discus with fat reserves do better. RO water is only necessary when breeding. Eggs tend to fungus over if the water pH s too high, or don't fertilize well if the water is too hard. And growing out discus is a pain, lots feeding, lots of mess, multiple daily water changes. Like I said adults are easier. Pigeon blood strains are very hardy. Avoid anything in the tank that might scratch their delicate bodies. Driftwood with out sharp edges makes them feel safer. Avoid substrate. It makes cleaning and water changes easier. Sand and gravel tend to scratch up the fish. If you don't like what they have in stock at HAW at this time, wait until they get another shipment. A lot of the Internet sales will rip you off. Stunted fish (eyes should be small compared to the body, and they shouldn't be trying to spawn at under 3-4inches), culumnaris, gill flukes, ect. It's better examine your fish before you take them home.

[Scott Wisnasty]

No problems here. Live planted w/ wood & CO2 so ph stays around 7.2. No buffers, just dechlorinator