# 90 gal Discus Tank: sneek peek at next project



## SearunSimpson (Jun 5, 2007)

awesome tank man!
I have a 90gl sitting empty and I keep seeing awesome tanks and can never decide on which one to follow up on do one myself.
Do you notice that angel chasing after cardinals at all?


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## yikesjason (Jul 2, 2008)

This was my 125 gallon tank about the time it split a seam and spilled a lot of water on the floor. Luckily I was home when it happened and could prevent a lot more damage. I still lost some of my favorite fish in the next few days after the disaster. 










Everything had to go into Rubbermaid totes for a couple of day so I could find a decent replacement tank. This was when I lost my congo tetras, rummys, and my favorite GBR.










I picked up this 90 gal off craigslist late the next day. I got it set up as quickly as possible, but trying to move a soil substrate from one tank to the other is messy. It was cloudy for about a week and a half until I capped it again with pool filter sand.










After about a week.









After another week or so, things were pretty much back to normal.


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## yikesjason (Jul 2, 2008)

I have always wanted discus, but was too unsure about my aquatic skills to spend that much money. I was starting to have a lot of plant success and was selling quite a bit of extra plants here on plantedtank. My tank paid for a few of its own upgrades and I figured I would try my hand at discus around Dec. or Jan. I bought a few sad discus from a local guy just to give it a try and was able to nurse some sick discus back to health. That gave me a big confidence boost, but the discus were very stunted already.









When my big tank broke and I had to buy a new one, I thought I wouldn't be able to pay for discus for a while. But my Christmas gifts were generous and I was able to get 7 beautiful brilliant turquoise from Discus Hans last week. It was quite the upgrade. I got rid of the 4 stunted discus and 9 angelfish. 

















I love the way these discus school, way better than the angels did. They are just stunning. Thank you so much Hans.









They are still pretty shy and jumpy, but they are curious and eating. They make me nervous though because they bolt for the surface when they get spooked. I really hope they settle down soon.


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## Coltonorr (Mar 12, 2008)

I love it!
Thats going to look great
Those discus are amazing!


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## yikesjason (Jul 2, 2008)

Ever since I was a little kid, way before I was into fish tanks, I dreamed of doing a massive paludarium. I always envisioned something like a long table in the middle of a room with a small pond at one end, and ramping up to a large terrarium at the other end. With all different kinds of animals and plants. I don't have the room or the money, and I doubt I would have the approval of my wife, to do any thing like that. But all of these ripariums have my brain going. 

I have this very large anubias that I have had growing out the top of my aquarium for about 6 months. It has drawn some attention and I wanted to add to it. 









I did a small planter with a shower caddy and some plain aquarium gravel. I got a tube of Petsmart's non-aquatic plants and some crypts and set it up. But it just isn't big enough. So this weekend I was at Walmart and got a bigger shower caddy, a peace lily, and some purple waffle plant, I picked up some pea gravel from Lowes and was ready for a bigger planter. I have tried stopping by a local hydroponics store to get some clay pellets, but they have been out of stock on the small bag. I could never use the full $30 bag and these are still basically experiments. But after filling the big planter with plants and gravel, I realized why pea gravel is not normally used, it is heavy! The suction cups could not hold up the weight. I had to use a metal cloths hanger and pliers to make some hanging hooks. 









But I think it came out well.









Here is the smaller cup. It is not very impressive yet.


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## EdTheEdge (Jan 25, 2007)

Beautiful picture!!!! I have always wanted to keep both Discus and Angels.


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## Dr. Acula (Oct 14, 2009)

Both tanks look amazing...it's really a bummer about the one breaking, though. Fantastic work with the new setup, and amazing fishes. I want it.


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## yikesjason (Jul 2, 2008)

It appears that the otos are breeding in my tank. Last night while I was working on the tank, I saw this little critter. I am pretty sure it is an oto, but it is possible that it could be a pleco.
It is hard to see, but it is on top of the filter outlet.


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## OverStocked (May 26, 2007)

Absolutely stunning. Might get Angels for my now understocked 75....


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## Chrisinator (Jun 5, 2008)

Dude. You kinda stole my dream tank! I've always wanted to set-up an aquarium that has plants sticking out with ceiling proppelled lights. 

You have a beatiful tank and I love your discus!


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## Digsy (Mar 4, 2006)

Nice! Your Hans discus are beautiful and I like what you're doing with the tank. I always worry about having my large tank break! Glad to see you were able to come back and make the best of it.


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## OverStocked (May 26, 2007)

Chrisinator said:


> Dude. You kinda stole my dream tank! I've always wanted to set-up an aquarium that has plants sticking out with ceiling proppelled lights.
> 
> You have a beatiful tank and I love your discus!


Check out the tank in my sig... not exactly what you were looking for... but close... and not as good looking as this tank at all...


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## londonloco (Aug 25, 2005)

Tagging along....


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## yikesjason (Jul 2, 2008)

When I first started EI dosing, I had just mixed all of the dry ferts into one liquid mixture. It made dosing very easy, but it lost is potency by the end. I am dry dosing now and I am seeing a great improvement in the blyxa japonica and I know the other plants are going to do a lot better too.


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## problemman (Aug 19, 2005)

i think the baby is a pleco. its kinda rare for otos to breed but BN will just give you a ton of fish in a matter of no time


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## Ashok (Dec 11, 2006)

Awesome tank, subscribed. Hoping for updates.


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## theblondskeleton (Aug 28, 2009)

Your Brilliants are gorgeous, Jason! It makes me reconsider my methods to see them all happy and schooling about in there with all the plants... Your tank looks great - a testament to your skills!


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## yikesjason (Jul 2, 2008)

Today has marked a real change in the discus behavior. They are really starting to settle in and relax. They are spending more time in the open now, eating a lot more and even eating frozen blood worms strait from my fingers.


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## yikesjason (Jul 2, 2008)

Just a quick update. 
This weekend I painted the back of the tank and build a frame to hang the lights from. Earlier this week I had moved the tank about a foot to the right and away from the wall so I could swap the furniture on either end. The armoire that was to the right of the tank needed to go to the other side. But since my lights were suspended from the ceiling, they didn't move with the tank. I have another project that I am working on that is going to require more lights to be hung, so I made a frame out of 1/2" conduit to hang them all from. 

The discus are doing well. My 2.5 year old makes it difficult for them to be too comfortable in there, so there is still some shyness. But there has definitely been growth. They love to eat

FTS with the very large jade plant I inherited from my great grandma 









Closer view of the discus and the painted background.









For the light frame, I bent the 1/2" conduit with a pipe bender. (You can see my son's Mr Potato Head pieces on the floor next too it.)









Then I painted it and mounted it to the back of the aquarium. The part of conduit that is not painted will soon be hid by my next project.


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## Digsy (Mar 4, 2006)

Your discus are looking as beautiful as ever. You're definitely having much better luck with them than I am.  Great looking background too, I have been hesitant about white backgrounds in my tanks but I think it looks great in your setup!


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## yikesjason (Jul 2, 2008)

The color is actually "peanut butter". It is a tan color. I had 1/2 gallon left from painting the walls and I thought it would look ok on the tank. I think a cool color would have been better though. But I didn't want to do the standard blue.


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## dantra (May 25, 2007)

Everything just comes together so nicely. The plants look healthy, the water is so clear and the fish look happy. Nice set up all around.


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## i love planted tanks (Apr 27, 2008)

beautiful tanks,just love them,major props


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## yikesjason (Jul 2, 2008)

I have been working on a project to add to the aquarium, but I am not really sure what to call it. I have been calling it a backdrop. I guess you could call my tank a paludarium now. I have really like the ripariums that have been coming out lately, but I only have 14" of depth and I don't want to lose all the space that a riparium takes. I had several ideas running in my head as I started this project. They morphed into this as I worked. 

I should have done a journal of the build, but I didn't know if it would work out or what it would look like in the end. I knew there would also be some people always asking for updates on some of the other sites I post on. I will answer any questions people have about how it was done, but I don't have construction pictures. 

It is basically one of those diy rock wall backgrounds. I carved it out of pink insulation foam and covered it with thinset cement. To get the bumpy part I added a coat of thinset with peagravel in it. The black comes from concrete pigment. The brown is latex paint. (this the the part I am least happy with.) I peeled some bark off of a dead tree for the tree trunk, it already had the moss growing on it. I attached some lace rock to make planters. Coco fiber is glued to some of the ground areas to make it look like dirt. A lot of the plants and all of the moss came from my backyard, the others I bought at the store. It is all lit with 2 x 150watt metal halide pendants. I was hoping to use the halides to light the tank from that high, but it just didn't work, so the t5ho light is still on the tank. 

Enough chatter, here are the pictures. 

































Some closer shots of the plants.

























All of the fish were a little nervous after I had spent time working on the back drop, so they didn't want to be part of the pictures until I bribed them with a treat of frozen bloodworms. 









I would love to hear some comments or suggestions. I am pretty excited about this. If I were starting it over, I would probably do it differently. But I like this for my first shot.


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## londonloco (Aug 25, 2005)

Are you freaking kidding me? Once those plants fill in, it's going to look tremendous!


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## JennaH (Sep 28, 2009)

wow- that is defintiely one of a kind. very creative, it adds alot to the tank


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## Centromochlus (May 19, 2008)

WOW! That's really cool!


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## Takedakai (Jan 4, 2010)

Your project really turned out great! I agree that it will only look better over time as the plants grow and fill in. With how popular the ripariums have become and how good an idea this seems I'm a little surprised this kind of thing isn't a bit more common. 

Good luck and I look forward to seeing the updates as it grows in


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## yikesjason (Jul 2, 2008)

Thanks guys, I am glad you like it.

I am kind of surprised too that there aren't more tanks like this. I found a few when I was looking for ideas, but not many.


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## JennaH (Sep 28, 2009)

is there a trickle or pump of some sort on it? or are you misting the plants?


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## yikesjason (Jul 2, 2008)

I am misting the plants for now. I thought about doing a waterfall or trickle pump, but I wanted to keep it simple and not have to worry about leaks.


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## Grami Tami (Mar 4, 2010)

*Wow!*

Very cool stuff you are doing! Addi says it is bootiful.


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## AlexXx (Dec 1, 2009)

Wow! That is really a piece of art. I love the moss type stuff and the tree bark looks incredible. A water fall type thing would be pretty spectacular, but leaks would freak me out to. Cant wait to see updates!


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## SearunSimpson (Jun 5, 2007)

I'm not sure how sophisticated it would be, but I know of people who use plant set up's like the one you have above your tank as a mini trickle-esque filter. They use a small pump to pump water up to the top/plants and let the water pass through the root systems/containers and then I guess it drips/overflows back down into the main tank and supposedly their water conditions are spot on.


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## yikesjason (Jul 2, 2008)

After one week, the backdrop is doing fine. Most of the plants are growing and doing well. Some are not doing so well. I expected as much since I mostly just dug up what ever looked good out of the backyard. The miniature ivy with the little blue flower that I bought hasn't worked out, nether has the clover I got out of the yard. The moss doesn't stay moist enough, especially on the tree, but it is still hanging in there. Every thing else is growing and doing well. I was going to do some pictures, but my wife took the camera with her to take her sister to the dentist to have her wisdom teeth out. I think she is hoping for some goofy pictures of her sister on drugs. 

The discus don't much like me working above them when I am spraying the backdrop. I do it about 3 times a day and it has made the discus skittish again. I am going to have to work with them some more to get them to relax a bit. Some fbw by had worked well before. 

I also got my first anubias flower this week and my peace lily has its first flower coming up. It has been a good week for my plants. Maybe I can get some pictures up soon.


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## yikesjason (Jul 2, 2008)

Everyone is doing pretty well. The discus were not showing as much color as they should have been so I ordered some deworming flakes from AngelsPlus and they have improved quite a bit. (I also got some color pellets from AngelsPlus and was very pleased with my order.) 










Everyone loves the color pellets and it can create quite a feeding frenzy. Even some of the shyer fish make an appearance. 










I have focused a lot on the discus since I started gearing up to get them about 4 months ago. But my wild angels and some of the other fish are pretty nice too. 


















My plants are doing well too. My orchid is blooming and my peace lily should have a flower opening any day. I am pretty happy with the tank right now.


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## jargonchipmunk (Dec 8, 2008)

thank you for doing this so I could live vicariously through you  I was going to do something fairly similar, but then my plans went in-wall with my current project, so I couldn't. Looks like it's gonna be fantastic when it grows in! (not that it isn't fantastic already)


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## TRENT (Nov 25, 2009)

Tank looks awesome. If you don't mind me asking where did you get your Discus? I have a friend looking for some but he wants to find a Breeder instead of the LFS. I told him Wet spot was probably his best bet?


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## yikesjason (Jul 2, 2008)

I got them through PDX Exotics in Aloha. Through him, theblondskeleton and I ordered discus from Hans. It worked out a lot better than going to The Wet Spot. There are not many good choices here in Portland.


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## Fat Guy (Nov 19, 2003)

such beautiful fish!!


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## Robert H (Apr 3, 2003)

Damn Jason, this is the first time I have seen this. Excellent work my friend. You are now in my facebook aquascaping hall of fame! Are the nerites I gave you in there?


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## lauraleellbp (Feb 3, 2008)

Wow, how have I missed this thread?

Amazing job, Jason! I'm thoroughly impressed by your DIY on that background.

And aren't the AngelsPlus foods great? I use their flake food now as my staple, and their wormers on all new fish and annually on all my tanks- I think it works great and no problems at all getting the fish to eat it.


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## yikesjason (Jul 2, 2008)

The dewormer flakes are a favorite in my tank. The color bits almost smell good enough to eat.


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## thadius65 (Sep 15, 2006)

YikesJason,

Wow! Simply beautiful tank. Question for you and other keepers of Cardinals and Angelfish... How do you keep the Angel's from eating the Cardinals? Any time I bring the two together in a tank it is SNACK time!

Ted


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## yikesjason (Jul 2, 2008)

My angels are still pretty young and not big enough to eat a cardinal. I have read a lot about it and is seems to be hit or miss on angels and cardinals getting along. Some people say the key is having the angels grow up around cardinals so they are used to the cardinals not being a potential food.


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## Robert H (Apr 3, 2003)

how did you come up with the idea of the backdrop?


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## yikesjason (Jul 2, 2008)

I really like the ripariums that are popular now, but with only 14" of depth on this tank, I just didn't have the room to do it. Also I didn't want to loose the light in the rest of the tank. I have always dreamed of having a paludarium, but I don't have enough room to do that right either. So I did some looking around and found a couple of decent examples, but not many. 

http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/t...477-700-gal-indoor-sunken-garden-project.html

http://www.aquariacentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=214603&highlight=toty

If I get a chance to do my dream paludarium, it will be somewhere between these two tanks.


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## fuzzyfred101 (Apr 7, 2010)

*Yikesjason, 
I was wondering how you attached the light hanger you made. I have been wanting to do this but i dont know the best way to attach it. Do you have any picts of it?

And do you have any problems with the discus and other fish. I have heard of problems of disease when you mix them, just wondering cause i want some ha. One more question, do you have to clean your tank more since you got the discus?

But beautiful tank man, sorry for all the questions, just want to know what your doing right ha.
*


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## yikesjason (Jul 2, 2008)

I attached the light stand with conduit brackets. 

My discus get along fine with my other fish. I have had to deworm them, but that is because of some other discus I got before. 

Discus don't necessarily cause a tank to be dirtier, discus owners tend to do more cleaning because there is a bigger investment in the fish. Discus are more finicky, but any fish would do better with cleaner water and tanks.


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## yikesjason (Jul 2, 2008)

Not a lot of change. I did swap the halides for 65w CFL floods from Home Depot on the backdrop. I like them a lot better. There have been some minor changes to the plants and the discus have grown some more. But nothing major.


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## yikesjason (Jul 2, 2008)

I got some new apistos to add to the tank. I also added some more german blue rams.


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## VincentK (Dec 16, 2009)

Dang, your background is really B.A. (bad butt), I is jealous.


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## yikesjason (Jul 2, 2008)

Thanks Vincent.


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## VincentK (Dec 16, 2009)

I meant the thing hanging on top of it, also the side things, I like the idea of a waterfall that you mentioned earlier, if it came down from the hanging thing, but I agree, getting it not to leak or anything will be a hassle.


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## Digital (Apr 4, 2008)

Simply amazing.


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## benon (Feb 18, 2010)

*discus*

This tank is beautiful... This tank is my goal 6 months from now (I too want a large discus tank).

Hopefully by then I can afford a 90-gallon.

Sweet tank once again... the discus must be happy.


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## Valyrian (Oct 26, 2006)

What temperature do you keep your tank at? I've read that discus need higher temperatures and that limits plant selection.


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## yikesjason (Jul 2, 2008)

I have my tank at about 82 and haven't noticed that any of the plants have had a hard time.


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## Nate McFin (Mar 19, 2009)

yikesjason said:


> I have my tank at about 82 and haven't noticed that any of the plants have had a hard time.


 If there are problems you hide them well. roud:
Tank looks fantastic and those discus are stunning.
-Nate


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## yikesjason (Jul 2, 2008)

Nate McFin said:


> If there are problems you hide them well. roud:
> Tank looks fantastic and those discus are stunning.
> -Nate


The secret is wide shots on the plants and closeups on the fish. Then you don't see my algae.


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## benon (Feb 18, 2010)

The discus are beautiful indeed


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## yikesjason (Jul 2, 2008)

Thank you. They are starting to get big and beautiful.


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## SmoothSailor (Mar 15, 2010)

*mounting*



yikesjason said:


> Just a quick update.
> This weekend I painted the back of the tank and build a frame to hang the lights from. Earlier this week I had moved the tank about a foot to the right and away from the wall so I could swap the furniture on either end. The armoire that was to the right of the tank needed to go to the other side. But since my lights were suspended from the ceiling, they didn't move with the tank. I have another project that I am working on that is going to require more lights to be hung, so I made a frame out of 1/2" conduit to hang them all from.
> 
> The discus are doing well. My 2.5 year old makes it difficult for them to be too comfortable in there, so there is still some shyness. But there has definitely been growth. They love to eat
> ...


 
How did you mount this to the back of your tank?


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## yikesjason (Jul 2, 2008)

I put a simple 2x4 frame up behind the tank to support the weight.


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## !shadow! (Jan 25, 2010)

you make anubias look so good on that branch,what if you did that to some of the other branches?


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## yikesjason (Jul 2, 2008)

I have considered it and may do it. But it was a lot easier when I put on the first pieces because I had the wood out of the tank to do it. I can't take it out very easily now.


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## benon (Feb 18, 2010)

ADA sells these stainless steel wire twisties.

You can get quite a few for $8.00, but that might be a ripoff.


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## Digital (Apr 4, 2008)

Tank looks really awesome, love the angels and discus for sure!


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## yikesjason (Jul 2, 2008)

Thanks. It has been a fun tank. I am trying to put together the cash to buy the 150 gal tank from aquariumjunky to upgrade this tank. So if I am lucky, I might have some big updates soon. Otherwise, I have some small updates I need to add here anyways.


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## Digital (Apr 4, 2008)

omg! GET IT!!!!!!


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## yikesjason (Jul 2, 2008)

I have most of the cash already, and by selling the 90 I would have enough. But I just got laid off a couple of weeks ago, so I don't dare borrow from my savings to get a new tank. 

I really want it though. It is a 60" tank, so it would fit in the same spot as this tank, but I would get the depth that I am missing with the 90. Going from 14" to 24" front to back would make a world of difference.


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## Digital (Apr 4, 2008)

yikesjason said:


> I have most of the cash already, and by selling the 90 I would have enough. But I just got laid off a couple of weeks ago, so I don't dare borrow from my savings to get a new tank.
> 
> I really want it though. It is a 60" tank, so it would fit in the same spot as this tank, but I would get the depth that I am missing with the 90. Going from 14" to 24" front to back would make a world of difference.


I'd dip into my savings for that then replenish it. :fish: :thumbsup:


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## yikesjason (Jul 2, 2008)

IC3D said:


> I'd dip into my savings for that then replenish it. :fish: :thumbsup:


If I were currently employed, I would.


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## typicaltony (Apr 5, 2010)

that is one amazing tank.


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## globali (May 29, 2010)

Very nice.


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## highsea (Sep 19, 2009)

Great looking tank and I wish I could get my tank to look that half as good as your tank.


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## yikesjason (Jul 2, 2008)

It looks like I have found another 150 gal tank that I am going to get next week. I will need to repair a broken center brace, but that shouldn't be too difficult. I have my LFS tracking down a replacement frame for me. 

The interesting part about this tank is the dimensions, 48x24x36. So I will have a ton of depth and height. I am having a hard time imagining how I am going to do the scapeing. I need to start doing some researching.


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## yikesjason (Jul 2, 2008)

Time for a monthly update. 
Not much change. Some good filling in on the jungle wall. The discus are getting bigger. I have one that is really emerging as a favorite. And I added another orchid.


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## Larry Grenier (Apr 19, 2005)

Very, very nice... kudos!


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## Russgro (Mar 15, 2010)

Interesting, its gonna look stellar once those plants fill in the background.


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## shane3fan (Nov 2, 2009)

Everytime I see a FTS including the wall it makes me crave Japanese food--lol. I dont know why, but it reminds me of a Japanese hibachi restaurant.

Very nice tank and display.


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## yikesjason (Jul 2, 2008)

Thanks guys. I have never had a Japanese food craving while looking at my tank, but I do love to sit and watch a lot. It is in a nice spot were I can go and hide a little bit. It usually doesn't take long before someone comes looking for me.


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## EntoCraig (Jun 7, 2010)

:icon_eek: This tank is EPIC. 

Awesome Job on the in and out scaping.


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## yikesjason (Jul 2, 2008)

Here is a sneek peek at my next project. 
150 gal 48"x24"x30"

I need to replace the top frame and refinish the stand. I will also have to modify my jungle wall because this tank taller and not as long.


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## yikesjason (Jul 2, 2008)

Please excuse the messy garage.


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## EntoCraig (Jun 7, 2010)

that stand looks way sweet.


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## non_compliance (Dec 1, 2009)

bummer you will have to switch that background up... at any rate, STELLAR job on the tank. The fish, plants, and that weirdo wall thingie are all VERY cool. Don't know how I missed this thread... glad I found it! Nice work Jason.


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## SearunSimpson (Jun 5, 2007)

Hey man, If it's possible, you might want to maybe think about adding rockwool to that jungle background and to very easily McGyver a small pump to pump water into the top of it, creating a 'Green-wall', or a 'Living-Wall'. 
There are lots of sites and youtube vids showing how to do it, but check out www.greenovergrey.com to see what I mean.


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## yikesjason (Jul 2, 2008)

SearunSimpson said:


> Hey man, If it's possible, you might want to maybe think about adding rockwool to that jungle background and to very easily McGyver a small pump to pump water into the top of it, creating a 'Green-wall', or a 'Living-Wall'.
> There are lots of sites and youtube vids showing how to do it, but check out www.greenovergrey.com to see what I mean.


That is kind of what I wanted to do, but I chickened out because I was worried about leaks. The next one will have a waterfall feature though.


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## Minsc (Jul 9, 2006)

Very cool, I'm looking forward to what you will do with all that vertical space!

Does this mean your light fixture will actually fit the tank?:hihi:


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## yikesjason (Jul 2, 2008)

Minsc said:


> Does this mean your light fixture will actually fit the tank?:hihi:


The fixture will fit length wise now, but it is pretty inadequate for the width and depth. This new tank will be more of a low light tank. I am also thinking about selling or scraping the jungle wall.


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## yikesjason (Jul 2, 2008)

Here is the link to a journal I am starting for the new tank.
http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/t...-yikesjasons-150-wide-discus-tank-fixing.html


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## yikesjason (Jul 2, 2008)

This tank is now gone and another in its place. It is still in process, but here is a picture of the new setup's current state.


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