Pets Information |
Water Chemistry For The Discus Tank
Much has been written about the Discus, or Symphysodon aequifasciatus, its Latin name. The Discus has always been given a bad rap for being hard to raise and difficult to keep. Actually, these long-lived fishes are easy to keep as long as certain guidelines are followed. Here, we discuss the different water parameters that MUST be followed if we are to insure that our Discus friends are kept happy and healthy. Testing the Waters Initially, you will need to test for chloramine and chlorine, pH, and alkalinity. If you are a city dweller, a lot of this information can be gotten from the city waterworks, and although a good idea to do so, I would not recommend that you rely exactly on this information. At anywhere from $275 to $425 for a breeding pair, an initial investment for a decent PH/TDS meter is well qualified. Currently at King Discus Hatchery, we use a Hanna Combo PH/TDS meter that measures in ppt (parts per trillion) for the most accurate reading of our tanks. Determining the levels of pH and alkalinity in your base water is the first step in this process. Although some base water is quite good for the discus with little or no buffering, some water will need extensive conditioning before the first Discus can be introduced into the tank. Once you know the levels of PH and alkalinity, water chemistry tests should be conducted on a regular basis. Test on a regular basis. When you are comfortable with this process, it is time to and add a few more tests to the battery of tests performed. These tests will be for nitrite and nitrate, phosphate. In the planted tank, you will need to also test for iron and CO2. Test kits are very easy to use if instructions are followed to the letter. A particular number of drops of the testing reagent must always be accurate, following instructions on the test kit, or test results can be skewed. Test kits and probes available for the aquarium are quite inexpensive and easy to use, and can generally be bought at your local pet supply store, especially if they specialize in aquarium keeping. Toxins in the Water Supply Be aware that Chlorine or chloramine are routinely added to the water in many urban areas. Using a simple color test kit to determine the presence and concentration of either is very advisable. Removing these elements of chlorine or chloramine is a vital part of the process to properly condition your water. Conditioning is carefully adjusting the chemistry of the water to raise it to the parameters required for Discus keeping. Aging the water through carbon filtration (mechanical), aging the water, and proper aeration will be of benefit. Be aware, though, that aeration will not remove chloramine from your water. Chlorine can also be removed by adding prepared chlorine removers, but Nick Lockhart, the breeder for King Discus Hatchery, is not fond of using buffering agents. Constant water changes in the Discus tank will only leach these buffers, and then you are unsure of where your water chemistry is at. Nothing will harm the Discus more than wild fluctuations of PH. It is much more advisable to use reverse osmosis or deionization. We use RO, with a special Peat Moss filter to accomplish our parameters. The process of RO with fine tuned filtration of the RO water will remove virtually all toxins, but one must be aware that Discus cannot live in pure RO water, and steps must again be taken to insure proper levels of acidity/PH in the RO water. Chloramine is a combination of chlorine and ammonia, and some water companies need to use this for disinfection of the water supply. If these simple tests are done on a regular basis, and care is taken to insure that there are no wild PH swings in the Discus tank, your success as a Discus breeder are much higher. Alden Smith is a published author, and has been marketing on the internet for 7 years. His website, King Discus, is an active gathering place for discus breeders and lovers of discus fish.His wife Betsy is the administrator of All The Best Recipes a site rich in online recipes and cookbooks.
MORE RESOURCES: Unable to open RSS Feed $XMLfilename with error HTTP ERROR: 404, exiting |
RELATED ARTICLES
Is There Taurine In Your Dogs Food? Taurine, a water-soluble amino acid, has recently become the topic of conversation when referring to the nutritional composition that makes up the human and animal physical structure. Once thought of as an unimportant A. How to Keep Your Cat Free from Diseases with Your Quick Guide to Cat Grooming Even a cat that compulsively cleans itself can benefit from a little grooming from her owner. Cats rarely need a bath, but frequent brushing removes a lot of loose hair which would otherwise end up either shed around your home or swallowed by the cat, creating constipating hairballs. Providing The Best Care For Your Goldfish Goldfish care is critical for the health of your goldfish. Unfortunately, goldfish are very vulnerable to disease, with young goldfish even more so. The Truth About Dog Food These days, it's hard to know what decisions are the best ones for our beloved pets. So much information, so many conflicting theories and opinions! When it comes to dog food, is wetter better? Or should you give dry a try?In this article, I'm not going to tell you what to feed your dog. The Top 3 Tricks Horse Owners Can Use To Unspoil A Barn Spoiled Horse It's been weeks since you went riding. Now you have time to ride this afternoon and there ain't no one gonna stop you. Animal Ethics IntroductionA long time ago, before evolution turned the primate into the businessman carrying a brief case, the topic of ethical considerations concerning animals was as talked about as an episode of Barney at a dog trainer's convention. Why is this? I believe that this is because nobody bothered to decide to give the issue any thought. What Type of Cat Food is Really Best For Your Cat? Which cat food should you feed your cat to be certain that he or she will have the proper nutrition? What is the best mix of food to assist your cat in living to the limit of it's life span?Let's examine the diet of a cat in it's natural environment. In the wild, a cat will eat almost entirely animal tissue. What You Should Know About Your Dogs Sleeping Habits It's important to understand your dog's sleeping habits and how they influence its behavior, particularly when your dog gets disturbed.You see, Dogs will usually sleep for around 13 hours every day. Safety in the Fresh Air and the Outdoors for Your Cat - How To Build a Cattery Animal welfare organizations and humane societies have been very successful in helping people to accept that their cats are safer living exclusively indoors, especially in urban areas. However, cat lovers still want to give their cats a chance to enjoy fresh air and all the sights and sounds that come with it. Is Dog Obedience School for You? Are you thinking about dog obedience school? Do you know what to expect out of it? Do you know what it costs or where to find a good school?If not, let me help take out some of the mystery of finding one to make sure you and your dog get the best experience you can.If you have searched the web in this topic, you probably found some sites that are basically search engines within search engines, no real information about dog obedience schools. One Of The Benefits Of Using RecoveryPets.Com One of the benefits of registering your pet with a pet recovery service is that in the event your pet should ever become lost, the finder can get information to contact the owner.The main drawback to many of these services is that they use the information currently located on the pet tag to register the pet, and by doing this, the finder of the pet does not have a place to go to view the owners contact information. The Power of Dogs Well first of all I was always a cat owner, till my husband bought our first Chihuahua (Stitch) in 2002, Stitch was about 6 weeks old and was generally purchased for our children and it stud that was till he was about 5 months or so. Then I started to notice that he was starting to favor me and follow me around more and more everyday, one day I hid from him and watched him run up and down the hallway from the crack in the bedroom door, until he found me and it just melted my heart, my cats never did that and after that he became ALL MINE Stitch stole my heart. Six Dog Training Tips to Modify Negative Behavior Almost every dog owner will have to use some sort of behavior modification techniques at one time or another when training their prized pet. If you are able to 'get' why your dog does what he does, when he does it, you are one step closer to solving the problem. Reuniting Lost Pets With Their Owners Losing a family pet can be a traumatic experience, especially on children who are close to the lost pet. But, one in three pet owners fail to take the steps needed to ensure that this tragedy does not occur in their home. Are You Ready for a Boxer? Are you ready for a Boxer?The answer is "no" if you are the type who mostly leave your dog on a chain. Boxers require much of your love, attention and companionship although they are easy to take care of. The Background and Use of Clicker Training For Dogs Presently, and throughout the 1990s a phenomena swept through the dog-lover's community. It was called "Clicker Training," and was implemented to teach dogs (along with horses and cats) that certain behaviors would be awarded, while others were not. Breeding Your Goldfish If you are keen on breeding Goldfish, you should know that it's not an easy task. It will take a lot of patience, a lot of space in the tank and quite a bit of money too. How Cats With Feline Diabetes Can Lead A Happy Life "Your cat has feline diabetes." If this is your vet's message after examining your beloved friend, it will come as a shock. Beds for Smaller Dogs All puppies are small dogs - some, however, won't be small for very long. You have to know how big your dog is going to be when it is fully grown before you can buy it a bed of its own, unless, that is, you don't mind buying your beloved canine friend a new bed every six months or so for several years. Choosing A Rottweiler Puppy? What You Need To Know So you're getting a Rottweiler puppy? Here are some general tips to help you choose a healthy, happy Rottweiler puppy.Note: These are only general tips to help you choose - especially for first-time owners. |
home | site map | contact us |