Does anyone have any suggestions of a Brand of heater that is capable of Higher than 82 degrees? If so please send your suggestions. I have some Discus and this last one I put in the tank is Jet Black and sits at the back of the tank. When I first come home and turn on the living room light, this fish has some wonderful Cobalt coloring. and about 15 minutes of the living room light on and it is Jet Black again. I do not even turn on the discus light hardly at all. I did get a Marine Bulb that is Blue color versus the typical lamp and they like it better and dont Hide near as much except for the new one. I have 2 heaters in the tank and it stays at 82 all the time. In my books it says that discus hospital tanks need to be 90-92. Let me know if this sounds right and next, how do I get to that temp without having a small fire under the tank. thanks!! I am currently using Fluval heaters along with Pen Plax. I am not a big fan of Pen Plax and the ability they have to maintain Temp.

Dennis B

Is he eating? color of stool? I have a few cobalts that darken as their mood changes and when their guarding their clutch.

I'd start looking in water parms if everything else checks out, keep TDS down along with Nitrates... My discus are thriving in 82-83 F water at a ph of 6.0...

GL
Almost forgot look into a good titanium heater with digital controller

In my 125G tank I use two of the Fluval E series 300W heaters set for 82 degrees. The pair lay eggs almost ever week. Both seem very happy.

In my 40G breeder grow out tank I use two marineland visi-therm heaters. Not sure on the sizes. I keep this tank right around 90 degrees. I have insulation under the tank, back of the tank, and then one side. Then insulation on top of the tank. I needed something to put on the top as I have lost a couple fry that decided to jump out.

Does your tank have a top? How big is the tank?
If I was going to do it over I would buy and external controller and run two heaters off of it.

It is a 55Gal Tank that my discus are currently in. All the water parameters are good. I am set at 82 degrees now and I have the All Glass Versa top to help keep the heat in. My Brilliant Turquoise discus is usually a little darker when I first turn on the light but his color come back once I drop the first food in the tank. This other cobalt has some really nice color when I catch it off guard. Then he / she spends about 85% of the time either in the back of the tank or behind the rock structure in the tank. it has holes through it and they like to swim through it or keep their face close by so they can keep an eye on whats going on. He is eating fine and on occasion has been schooling with the other 4 discus in the tank. There is also a 12 in albino pleco and 4 cory cats in the 55 gal tank. I did notice the other day it looked like the feces was a yellowish white color.

I do a 30% water change once a week minimum and sometimes twice a week. I did notice that the breathing on that fish is a little faster than and his gill covers travel out farther than my other ones in the tank. Probably part of the stress. I just added this fish to my tank on sat night and I thought it was just getting used to the new tank and tank mates, but None of my other discus have turned all Black so i think there is something else going on.
Dennis B
Dennis B

Current meds on hand are Maracyn, maracyn 2, general cure, and mela-fix. I was going to add general cure to the tank but thought I better wait and see what advice I get back before proceeding that route.

Dennis B

Thanks for the help!
Dennis B

Take a look at these www.wonbrothers.com/product/heater/ICHEATER.htm I am assuming your tank is glass, as these are not recommended for acrylic.
To use the chart say you keep the house temp around 70 degrees, but you want to heat the water in the 55 gallon to 85 degrees, you would be looking for a minimum of 190 watts to obtain your heater goal. You could obtain the heater wattage two different ways, by picking up one 200 watt heater or a couple heaters of smaller wattage to equal the 200 watts.
Also keep in mind if you choose to ever raise the temp (for treating illness) or have a malfunction of some sorts, if you purchased two heaters from the start you will be ahead of the game. Use the chart to figure out your normal temp needs and your emergency needs and purchase one or two heaters to accommodate your needs.

"Wondering out loud" I wonder if the below instructions for the linked heater is what plagues our inexpensive stick heaters to stick on or off from time to time, as the temp control is attached to the heater tubes????
"Never place the thermo sensor rear the heating tube. It will cause inaccurate control of the water temperature. Place the thermo sensor at least 12 inches (1 foot) away from the heating tube.

Thanks for the info! I think this will be a "Must Have" for the Discus tank!

Dennis B