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I'm excited to share my plans for a new 125-gallon tank, and I'd love to get your thoughts and input. As a relatively experienced fishkeeper, but a Discus newbie, I want to make sure I get everything just right for these beautiful fish. The tank's dimensions are 72.5"x18.5"x23.5" (LxWxH), and I've done plenty of research on layout and stocking, but I know that hearing from more experienced keepers will be invaluable.

My planned stocking is as follows:
6x Symphysodon aequifasciatus (Discus)
18x Nematobrycon palmeri (Emperor Tetra)
18x Hemigrammus bleheri (Rummynose Tetra)
6x Kryptopterus vitreolus (Glass Catfish)
10x Corydoras habrosus (Dwarf Spotted Cory)
10x Pangio semicincta (Kuhli Loach)
12x Otocinclus vestitus (Silver Otocinclus)
3x Garra spilota (Spotted Garra)

Initially, I thought I'd set up the tank like my smaller ones - densely planted with rocks and wood - but I quickly realized that wouldn't work for juvenile Discus. Now, I'm planning a thin layer of white sand and terracotta pots with plants and Fluval Stratum as media. Some pots will be empty for aesthetic purposes and to provide hiding spots for the loaches. I've also considered adding some wood for extra visual interest.

I know some of the species I've listed have different temperature requirements, but I plan to keep the tank at a steady 82°F (27°C). If any issues arise, I have other tanks ready to accommodate them. For plants, I've chosen species that can thrive in higher temperatures:
- Cryptocoryne wendtii 'Green'
- Anubias barteri v. 'coffeefolia'
- Echinodorus bleheri
- Hygrophila corymbosa v. 'Angustifolia'
- Aponogeton ulvaceus
- Nymphaea zenkeri
- Vallisneria americana
- Cryptocoryne balansae

My goal is to create a healthy and thriving environment for the Discus, as well as a captivating display. Breeding isn't my primary goal, but I know it's a natural result of providing optimal conditions. For filtration, I'll be using a canister filter with a flow rate of 1,056 gph, pot scrubbers as bio media, and poly-fil for mechanical filtration.

My tap water is slightly acidic (around 6.6-6.8 pH), and I'll be doing daily 50% water changes once the fish are settled. Later, I'll reduce the frequency to every other day or so, depending on their condition. I'm eager to hear your thoughts and advice on this setup.

Re: Feedback on Plans for 125 Gallon

I've taken the time to thoroughly read through your setup, and while it's ambitious, I fear it may be one of the more challenging ways to keep discus. A heavily stocked, planted discus community tank can be a stunning sight, but it's a feat even experienced discus keepers struggle to maintain. It's achievable, but not ideal for a discus beginner.

Your proposed setup might work with six adult discus, but I'm concerned it's overstocked with the additional fish you've listed. The juvenile discus, in particular, require special care. If you're starting with 3" juveniles, it's essential to grow them out in a smaller, separate tank for several months until they're around a year old. Only then should you transfer them to the 125-gallon display tank.

Attempting to grow out these juveniles in your proposed planted tank setup could hinder their growth and increase the risk of disease. I strongly recommend researching the best practices for buying and growing out juvenile discus. There are numerous resources available on this forum, including sticky threads at the top of the beginner's page and various discussions on planted discus tanks. It's crucial you educate yourself on the proper care and maintenance required for these fish before proceeding.

Re: Feedback on Plans for 125 Gallon

Thanks for your reply. I appreciate your honesty and concern for the well-being of the Discus in my planned setup. I think I may have given you the wrong impression about my intended tank setup. As I delved deeper into researching the needs of Discus, I realized that a heavily planted tank would be impractical, especially for growing out juveniles as you mentioned. Instead, I plan to use terracotta pots with plants that thrive in higher temperatures, such as those I listed earlier, and keep the tank itself relatively bare-bottom, with only a thin layer of white sand covering the bottom.

I understand your concerns about the difficulty of maintaining a planted Discus tank, and I assure you that I've taken those concerns into consideration. By using pots, I'll be able to easily move them around to clean the tank, and the thin layer of sand will be turned over entirely and cleaned during each water change. This setup will allow me to access all parts of the tank for daily cleaning and maintenance. Would this setup be more suitable for growing out juveniles?

Regarding the overall stocking, I had some reservations about it myself. Would it be better to reduce the number of tetras or omit a species altogether? I'm open to any suggestions you may have. I've taken a look at some of the stickies, but I'll definitely review them again before finalizing my tank and stocking. Thanks again for your feedback and guidance.

Re: Feedback on Plans for 125 Gallon

I think your revised setup sounds more suitable for growing out juvenile discus. If you're primarily focused on raising healthy discus, I'd recommend keeping the tetra population to a minimum, maybe just a few for dithering purposes, and consider adding some cories or bristlenose for a cleanup crew.

The plants you've listed should do fine at 82F, and keeping them in pots is a great idea for ease of maintenance. I've had success with those plants in the past, so you shouldn't have any issues.

For the discus themselves, I'd suggest starting with a group of 10-12 individuals. Six might be too few, and they could get stressed and hide a lot. As for water changes, you'll likely need to do daily 25-50% changes to give them the best chance of reaching their full potential. And if you're using a canister filter, make sure to keep it clean - discus slime can clog it up quickly. I actually stopped using canister filters for my discus a while back because of this issue.

I'm sure others will chime in soon with their thoughts. If wilde shares any advice, take it to heart - he's got a lot of experience with discus.

Re: Feedback on Plans for 125 Gallon

This setup seems quite familiar, and I must say, there's already some excellent advice here. Nevertheless, I'd still recommend growing out your discus in a smaller tank, around 50-75 gallons. This tank can later serve as a quarantine or hospital tank, which is always useful to have on hand. Using planters is a great idea, as it allows for easy maintenance and helps to familiarize the fish with plants. I've had good success with this approach.

Thanks so much for the feedback, it's been incredibly helpful in fine-tuning my plans for this tank. I appreciate your honesty and the time you took to break down the potential issues with my original setup.

Thanks for sharing your experience and the pics of your tanks. I've taken a look at them and I must say they look really well set up, especially the way you've used planters to familiarize your discus with plants - that's a great idea. I'm starting to think that growing out my discus in a smaller tank, like you suggested, might be the way to go. Having a separate tank for quarantine and hospital purposes also makes a lot of sense.