Help Center

Discus fish belong to the group of cichlids and should therefore be kept in a group of at least 10 animals! (Exception: pair keeping/breeding):
The typical behavior of these cichlids is that a dominant animal tends to develop in a smaller group. This animal attacks all other discus fish, often resulting in the weakest animal being kept away from food, becoming emaciated, standing in the dark corner, isolated from the group and even dying. After that, the next weaker animal is kept away from the food. To stop this behavior, we recommend simply increasing stocking density until group aggression subsides. Experience has shown that the discus fish behave from one Group size of at least 10 animals peaceful. This behavior is known in African cichlids (e.g. Malavi, Tangajika). The discus fish is a South American cichlid with similar behavior!

5cm - 2 months
6cm - 3 months
8cm - 4 months
10cm - 6 months
12cm - 9 months
14cm - 12 months
15cm - 18 months
17cm - 24 months
If kept well, discus fish can live up to 15 years and reach a diameter of 21 centimetres! At about 2-2 1/2 years discus fish are considered fully grown! In order to achieve even growth of our discus fish, we recommend feeding them 3 times a day with our STENDKER discus food.

discus food

The discus aquarium for aquaristic beginners
A very simple and uncomplicated way to keep discus is to place a group of 10 or more small (6.5-10 cm) discus in a standard 1 meter aquarium. This aquarium size is ideal for rearing young fish. The easiest way to successfully keep a discus aquarium is to do without companion fish and real plants (risk of disease introduction). Ideally, however, the animals are transferred to a larger aquarium after a certain time and when they have reached a certain size.

Aquarium equipment should consist of:
– lighting
– 2 filters (e.g. foam block filter, or a hamburger mat)
– 1 heating rod
– 1 night light
– 1 membrane pump for oxygen supply
– Timer to control the light
– thermometers
– Measuring drops (nitrite, PH)

Many pet shops already offer inexpensive complete aquarium packages. You are also welcome to use some substrate (sand) and/or artificial plants. All
Before placing them in the aquarium, soak the furnishings well, rinse them off and wash them out. Be careful not to use sharp objects. root
sand down beforehand and remove sharp edges to avoid injuring the discus fish. To beautify the aquarium, there are now numerous beautiful artificial plants on the market that can hardly be distinguished from real plants. (with real plants you should work with a CO2 system.)
Preparation of the appropriate water values and commissioning (preparation time approx. 2-4 weeks)

Finally, we recommend using a piece of filter sponge to clean the panes (coarse-pored), especially in an aquarium with a curved pane. In this way, "discus aquarium for aquaristic beginners" does not get any ugly scratches in the front pane, as can happen with the blade scraper. Buckets and aquarium accessories should be free of soap and cleaning agent residues and should ideally only be used for the aquarium. Thoroughly remove soap and cream residue from your hands before you reach into the aquarium! If you come into contact with the fish, please wet your hands beforehand!

Recommendation aquarium size fish stock
You should choose one of the following four options when holding the discus
decide:
1 discus breeding (pair keeping)
For breeding discus fish, we recommend an aquarium size of 150 liters (60 cm x 50 cm x 50 cm). The young fish should be 12-14 days old
Parents are separated as at this point they may start foraging on the bottom of the tank and ingest pathogens.
2 pair of discus with companion fish, in the planted aquarium For this you need an aquarium size of at least 180 liters (100 cm x 40 cm x 45 cm). We recommend an aquarium size of 250 liters (100 cm x 50 cm x 50 cm). For keeping in pairs, the pair should be at least 14 cm tall, because two individual, smaller fish are difficult to grow because there is no jealousy about food.
3 discus rearing or group husbandry
An aquarium of 180 liters (100 cm x 40 cm x 45 cm) is already suitable for rearing a discus group (with at least 10 animals). for 10
However, we recommend an aquarium size of at least 300 liters for adult animals.
4 groups in a planted aquarium with companion fish
We recommend a minimum aquarium size of 400 liters for 10 adult discus fish including companion fish and plants.
See also: (cichlid behavior, discus plants, discus fish companions)
Our tips:
1. Decide in advance to keep discus groups or discus pairs (as listed under 1-4 below) and lie on wild caught,
Asian offspring, or our STENDKER discus fish and stick with it (do not mix!).
2. Prepare everything calmly for the new entry until you have reached the optimal water parameters for our discus fish. (LINK: retract filter)
3. Determine the plants and fish stock generously once and refrain (due to the risk of disease introduction) from later restocking “aquarium size fish stock (exception: our STENDKER discus fish can be restocked at any time without hesitation.)
4. Feeding 3 times a day, ideally with our original STENDKER discus feed, which is ideally suited as a complete discus feed solution and
also eaten by other fish. (Feed dosage-Feed instructions)
5. 1 weekly water change 1/3 with cold water! (water change)
6. The ideal keeping temperature for discus fish is 28-30° Celsius. 12 hour light control with a timer and night light is recommended (to help with orientation and to avoid being startled).
7. Tip for holidays can be found under (LINK: Holidays).

Food dosage and thawing instructions for our STENDKER frozen discus food:
Important instructions:
– Be sure to thaw our food before feeding it! Frozen food can
intestinal obstruction of the discus fish!
– Do not defrost in the sieve under running water, as important nutrients would be washed out!
– Leftover food should be sucked out of the aquarium after 10 minutes at the latest, since
otherwise the water quality will be affected.
Food thawing instructions:
Take about as much frozen food from the freezer as you need for 1-2 days 3 times a day
feeding for your discus fish.
Tip: the 500 g bars can be easily portioned with rose scissors. Take one
Freezer box with lid and put the still frozen discus food the evening before, for
thaw gently, in your refrigerator. This keeps the firm consistency.
Feed dosage of our STENDKER discus feed Good Heart:
Our food is ideally suited as a complete food, please do not feed too much and absolutely
thaw beforehand. For 10 discus fish with a size of :
– 6.5 to 12 cm, about ½-1 blister (2.5-5 grams) per meal, i.e. 7.5-15 grams a day.
– 12 to 18 cm, about 1-1 1/2 blisters (5-7.5 grams) per meal, i.e. 15-22.5 grams a day

Feeding and food for our STENDKER discus fish

Our tip for simple and comprehensive feeding of discus fish:
Continue to feed our discus fish 3 times a day with our STENDKER discus food. It has proven itself as a complete feed in our discus farm for more than 47 years. Our food is also eaten by other fish. (Available as frozen food from pet shops)
dosing and feeding
Please feed your fish 3 times a day with our STENDKER discus food.
1 x in the morning (1 hour after the light is switched on)
1 x midday (always at the same time if you like)
1 x in the evening (2 hours before the light is switched off).
The discus fish get used to these regular feeding times and will eagerly await you. Feeding from the hand (of course cream and soap-free hands (brush well under running water) is very quickly possible.

Food dosage of our STENDKER discus food GoodHeart:
Our food is ideally suited as a complete food, please do not feed too much and be sure to defrost beforehand. (Tip: thaw the night before in the fridge in a plastic storage container with a lid) For 10 discus fish with a size of :
– 6.5 to 12 cm, about 1 blister (2.5-5 grams) per meal, i.e. 7.5-15 grams a day.
– 12 to 18 cm, about 1-1 blister (5-7.5 grams) per meal, i.e. 15-22.5 grams a day.
Give the animals about as much food as the fish will eat in five minutes. Please do not feed them any more, as uneaten food residues significantly worsen the water quality and water parameters. Discus fish do not have a pronounced feeling of satiety and too much food could lead to overfeeding of the animals. Please be sure to thaw our frozen food before feeding! Discus don't like hard food and will lose their appetite if they bite into something frozen. In addition, the frozen food can (in some cases) also cause the discus fish to develop swim bladder infections or inflammation of the intestines. Depending on the size of the tank and the number of fish, 2-3 feeding points have proven useful, so that the weaker animals in the group also have a good chance of getting the food. That
Defrosted feed can be easily portioned and fed with a knife or spoon. Our discus fish and other companion fish eat our food very quickly and with pleasure. If you are unable to feed your fish 3 times a day for reasons of time, it is usually sufficient to only feed them in the morning and evening. However, the daily amount of food should remain the same. However, for smaller discus (less than 8 centimeters in size) it is recommended to stick to three meals a day to ensure even growth. You are also welcome to give additional light snacks such as mosquito larvae (but please not the red mosquito larvae, as they often live in polluted water and could thus introduce diseases into your aquarium).
Thawing instructions for STNKDER discus frozen food:
Take about as much frozen food from your freezer as you need for 2 days (3 meals a day).
TIP: The required amount of feed can be easily cut from the frozen 500g feed board into portions of the right size using rose shears. Our thawed frozen food keeps in the fridge for about 2-3 days, so you don't need to repeat the thawing process every day. Fill the frozen food into a fresh storage box and close it with the lid that comes with it. Then place this food tin in the refrigerator for gentle defrosting. After approx. 6 hours you can already use the thawed food. If the food starts to ferment or smells unpleasant after a few days, please wash the feeding container thoroughly with hot water and take out a new amount of frozen food for the next two days. Please do not thaw the food with a sieve under running water, otherwise the important vitamins would be washed away. Our discus fish know and love our discus food, which is why they literally pounce on it, which is partly reminiscent of piranhas. Don't be alarmed if you only see a "cloud of dust" at the end. Our feed is eaten very quickly.
Why our STENDKER discus food is so good:
We have been breeding discus fish for more than 54 years (in Germany) and over this time we have developed a feed mixture specially tailored to the needs of discus fish. We feed our STENDKER discus feed exclusively to our own discus fish in our breeding facility. It contains everything that discus fish need for a healthy diet and is ideally suited as a complete feed. STENDKER discus feed contains a mixture of beef heart, vegetable components and much more, which makes a significant contribution to keeping our animals healthy. When you see our animals, you will immediately see how well the discus fish are doing with our STENDKER discus food. Make up your own mind and give it a try. Of course, the quality of the feed depends on the careful
Production, the correct mixing ratio, the high quality of the ingredients, the composition and the gentle preparation. With our food you can be sure that we have taken all these factors into account to make the discus feel comfortable and healthy. In order to provide you with high-quality, comprehensive and very simple feeding, we offer our STENDKER discus food as a complete complete food through pet shops. Our STENDKER discus frozen food is available in 100 gram blisters and as 200 or 500 gram flat bars. This good and balanced feed mixture contributes significantly to maintaining the health, colourfulness, reproduction and growth of the discus fish.
Ask your pet shop. By the way: Other fish also love our food and aquatic plants in your aquarium usually no longer need any additional fertilizer.
Food for discus fish in general Beef heart was wrongly condemned in the media as food for discus fish as "there are no cattle in the Amazon". Cattle are not treated with hormones, which is regularly checked by veterinarians. Beef heart is an animal protein that the discus fish absorbs in the wild from small crustaceans, worms and insect larvae. Since some of these animal species are hard to find in our latitudes, expensive and sometimes heavily contaminated, beef heart is often used as a protein supplier for discus fish food in our region. Of course enough
In our opinion, beef heart as a complete feed is not enough for discus fish. We also advise against red mosquito larvae and Tubifex as food for discus fish, since both types of food come from heavily polluted water (manure) and often introduce bacterial infections into the aquarium.
We also advise against Cyclops shrimps, as they often carry tapeworm larvae, which develop into tapeworms in the discus after eating and can lead to massive growth disorders.
We consider other types of frozen food such as water fleas, Artemia, muesis, white and black mosquito larvae to be good additional food, but should only be seen as a "candy", as the nutritional value of this food is very low.
Addition: refusal of food after transport and use After the transport and transfer of the discus fish to your tank, which is very stressful for the animals, food intake can be delayed by up to four weeks, especially for the larger fish. The smaller discus fish (up to 14 cm) are less sensitive to this, feel at home in their new environment more quickly and usually eat quite well the next day. However, since our discus fish are generally well-fed, this refusal to feed does not pose a serious problem when the discus is almost fully grown. In such a case, we recommend slowly increasing the water temperature in your aquarium to 33°C for about two weeks (please remember to move the plants beforehand!). This stimulates the metabolism and thus also the appetite
discus fish. If our discus fish continue to receive their usual food (STENDKER discus food), it will be easier to get started.

Plants for discus aquarium
Adrie Baumann (World Champion 2013, in the LIVE Aquascape) kindly provided us with the following recommendations for plants that are compatible with keeping discus (28-30° degrees keeping temperature). Mr. Baumann also enjoys his private life
and a beautifully captured aquarium, which he has stocked with our STENDKER discus fish. In our opinion, a beautifully scaped aquarium with our discus fish is already "the premier class of freshwater aquaristics, in perfection". If you work with real plants, you usually need a CO2 system and also fertilizer. The trick is not to bring too much fertilizer and CO2 into the aquarium and to achieve a good middle ground between plant growth and ideal keeping conditions for our discus fish. There should also be enough swimming space for the discus fish. It is also recommended to first test the bacterial compatibility of plants under quarantine (Bacterial compatibility).

Suitable plants for the discus aquarium
(a small selection of possible plants follows):
- Anubias barteri var. angustifolia
– Anubias barteri var. Barteri
- Anubias barteri var. caladiifolia
– Anubias barteri var. coffeefolia
– Anubias barteri var. nana
– Anubias barteri var. nana 'Petite'
– Aponogeton boivinianus
– Aponogeton crispus
– Aponogeton crispus 'Red'
– Aponogeton longiplumulosus
– Aponogeton madagascariensis
– Aponogeton ulvaceus
- Bolbitis heudelotii
– Ceratopteris thalictroides
– Crinum calamistratum
– Crinum natans
– Crinum thaianum
– Cryptocoryne beckettii “petchii”
- Cryptocoryne crispatula
- Cryptocoryne parva
– Cryptocoryne fortunei `Broad Leaves`
– Cryptocoryne wendtii `Brown`
– Cryptocoryne wendtii `Green`
– Cryptocoryne wendtii `Mi Oya`
– Cryptocoryne wendtii `Tropica`
– Cryptocoryne x willisii
– Echinodorus `Aquartica`
– Echinodorus bleheri
– Echinodorus cordifolius ssp. fluitans
– Echinodorus osiris
– Echinodorus `Ocelot`
– Echinodorus `Ocelot Green`
– Echinodorus palaefolius var. latifolius
– Echinodorus quadricostatus
– Echinodorus `Red Diamond`
– Echinodorus `Red Special`
– Echinodorus `Reni`
– Echinodorus `Rose`
– Echinodorus `Ruby`
– Echinodorus tenellus
– Echinodorus uruguayensis
– Echinodorus `Vesuvius`
– Echinodorus `Barthii`
- Heteranthera zosterifolia
– Hydrocotyle verticillata
- Hygrophila corymbosa
- Hygrophila corymbosa `Angustifolia` - Hygrophila corymbosa
`Siamensis` – Lilaeopsis brasiliensis
- Ludwigia glandulosa
– Ludwigia repens `Rubin`
– Marsilea hirsuta
– Microsorum pteropus (Java fern, also called salsify fern)
– Microsorum pteropus `Narrow`
– Microsorum pteropus `Trident`
– Nymphaea lotus
– Nymphoides sp. `Taiwan`
– Pogostemon stellata
– Rotala rotundifolia
– Rotala sp `Green`
- Sagittaria subulata
– Staurogynous repens
– Taxiphyllum barbieri
– Taxiphyllum sp. `spicy`
- Vallisneria sp. `Gigantea`
- Vallisneria sp. `Natans`
– Vallisneria spiralis `Tiger`
– Vesicularia dubyana `Christmas`
– Vesicularia ferriei `Weeping`

Please plant the smaller plants in front and the larger plants in the back. Aquatic plants should also be trimmed regularly to give your discus enough room to swim. In order to pre-treat purchased plants that are occasionally already colonized with "snails", it is advisable to soak the plants in a bucket of carbonated water for around 24 hours. This is how you get rid of the snails and don't put them in your aquarium unintentionally!
ATTENTION: before planting, please remove the lead rings
on the plants, otherwise they would die and the water would be poisoned by the lead ring
becomes.
(All statements without guarantee)

Companion fish for the discus aquarium
Adrie Baumann (World Champion 2013, in the LIVE Aquascape) kindly provided us with the following recommendations for suitable companion fish that are compatible with discus keeping (28-30° keeping temperature). Mr. Baumann also enjoys privately his wonderfully captured aquarium, which he has stocked with our STENDKER discus fish. In our opinion, a beautifully scaped aquarium with our discu fish is already "the premier class of freshwater aquaristics, in perfection" and with a selection of suitable companion fish, such as Thai cleaner fish, you even have a "cleaning troop for algae removal" that is impressive . Fellow fish also like our discus food. However, we recommend feeding them some dry food as well. Please also note our recommendation for aquarium size with companion fish. LINK: ideal keeping conditions Please only socialize small catfish with our discus fish! It is also recommended to first test the bacterial tolerance of companion fish under quarantine (bacterial tolerance). Please buy all discus fish, companion fish and plants from the same dealer and as soon as possible, as fish and plants bought later can suffer from diseases and diseases
other strains of bacteria can bring into your aquarium. In order not to endanger your fish population, we recommend: please buy plenty of fish at the beginning and do not add any more fish. This saves you a lot of trouble and avoids the risk of disease being introduced.
Exception: If you have decided on our STENDKER discus fish, you can stock animals from our breeding farm in different sizes and colors at any time. Suitable companion fish for the discus aquarium (a small selection of possible companion fish follows):
– Red neon (Paracheirodon axelrodi)
– Yellow Congo Tetra (Alestopetersius caudalis)
– Blue Congo Tetra (Phenacogrammus interruptus)
– Adolf’s armored catfish (Corydoras adolfoi)
– Agassiz' cichlid (Apistogramma agassizii)
– Bleher’s red-headed tetra (Hemigrammus bleheri)
– Flag tetra (Hyphessobrycon erythrostigma)
– Striped sea mullet (Garra cambodgiensis)
– Golden sturgeon catfish (Sturisoma aureum)
– witch catfish (Rineloricaria fallax)
"Other fish for the discus aquarium"" Page 1 of 2
"Other fish for the discus aquarium"" Page 2 of 2
Continuation: suitable companion fish for discus fish:
– Cockatoo dwarf cichlid (Apistogramma cacatuoides)
– L46 (Hypancistrus zebra)
– Leopard armored catfish (Corydoras trilineeatus)
– Ear lattice loricariid (Otocinclus macrospilus)
– Orange Corydoras (Corydoras sterbai)
– oblique swimmers (Thayeria boehlkei) [
– Rose tetra (Hyphessobrycon rosaceus)
– Reddish sucker mullet
– Gara rufa (also called Thai cleaner fish)
– Siamese Algae Eater (Crossocheilus siamensis)
– Butterfly cichlid (Microgeophagus ramirezi)
– Black Flag Tetra / Neon (Hyphessobrycon herbertaxelrodi)
– Black phantom tetra (Hyphessobrycon megalopterus)
– Lemon tetra (Hyphessobrycon pulchripinnis)
– Red line dwarf cichlid (Apistogramma hongsloi)
– Golden tetra (Hemigrammus rodwayi)

Disk cleaner fish (catfish) can also prove to be useful cleaning agents in your discus tank. But please make sure that you choose small catfish, as catfish that are larger than 15 cm like to "nibble" on discus fish and of course we want to avoid that. Neon swarm, consisting of approx. 30-50 animals, butterfly cichlids (pairs), approx. 2-3 pairs of dwarf cichlids, approx. 6 catfish (small sized ones also called disk cleaner fish), approx. 6 Amano shrimps for algae removal
Please place butterfly cichlids (one coconut each, with an entrance or a small stone slab as a breeding ground) in your aquarium for the pairs. Butterfly cichlids show a very nice pair and breeding behavior.

Cleaning the substrate with the mud bell to prevent or eliminate hydrogen sulfide poisoning:
The fish were doing well for weeks and months and suddenly the behavior of the animals changed. The fish are no longer so trusting, jumpy, breathing becomes faster and the animals no longer feel so well. The cause of this is often hydrogen sulfide poisoning, which is caused by soil contamination. This becomes visible through rising bubbles when moving the substrate. These are putrefactive gases that form in the substrate.
This can be avoided or remedied by cleaning the substrate with the mud bell when changing the water. We recommend carrying out this process once a week.

BUYING TIPS:
Visit several pet stores before deciding to buy fish and check the quality and health of the pets in the stores as follows:
1. Do the animals look healthy?
2. Do the fish still look healthy on your next visit in about 2 weeks?
3. Do the fish all come to the food for feeding and do they eat well?

Another quality feature of a healthy discus fish is its red or amber-colored, luminous eye and a broad forehead (where the fat reserves are located). Please buy all discus fish, companion fish and plants from the same dealer and as soon as possible, as fish and plants bought later can bring diseases and other strains of bacteria into your aquarium. In order not to endanger your fish population, we recommend: please buy plenty of fish at the beginning and do not add any more fish. This will save you a lot of hassle and
avoid the risk of disease introduction.

Exception: If you have decided on our STENDKER discus fish, you can stock animals from our breeding farm in different sizes and colors at any time.

Be sure to ask your specialist retailer whether the discus fish on display are wild-caught, Asian bred fish or our STENDKER discus fish (if this is not clear). Decide on one of these three species and stick with it, as discus fish from different farms should not be mixed!

Frequently asked_questions_and_answers_about_maintenance_and_care_of_diskusfischen-diskuszucht-Stendker-GmbH-Co-KG

Helpful tips about the discus fish
Feed recommendation
There is a lot of discussion and differing opinions about feeding discus fish. We feed our STENDKER discus feed, which we have specially adapted to the needs of discus fish, exclusively to our own animals in our breeding facility. It is a good and balanced feed mix that contributes significantly to maintaining the health, colourfulness, reproduction and growth of discus fish. We recommend feeding your discus fish with our STENDKER discus food 3 times a day. Our STENDKER discus frozen food is available from pet shops as 30 gram sausages, 100 gram blisters and as 500 gram flat bars. The required amount of feed can be easily cut from the frozen 500g feed board into portion-sized pieces with secateurs. Our thawed food keeps in the fridge for two days (see also "Feeding and food for discus fish"). Group size of discus fish The discus fish is a schooling fish and should therefore be kept in a group of at least 10-12 animals. We strongly recommend keeping to this number, otherwise an animal will be separated from the group and not receive enough food.
Selection of discus fish
You should decide in advance which type of discus fish you want, as animals from different breeds have different strains of bacteria and therefore must not be mixed! Discus fish are offered in pet shops as wild catches, Asian offspring or our STENDKER discus fish (made in Germany).
Sleep and circadian rhythms of discus fish
It is optimal for your discus fish if the lighting is switched on and off at the same time every day (controlled by a timer). It is also important that they are fed at the same time if possible. Optimal is the morning feeding one hour after the light has been switched on. At lunchtime, the second meal and two hours before the lights are switched off in the evening, the third meal. The animals get used to the feeding times and are eagerly awaiting you at the window at the usual time. Feeding from hands that have been previously cleaned with water (absolutely remove cream and soap residue with a brush under running water) is possible within a few days.
night light
In the wild, Pisces orient themselves by moonlight or the sun. With a night light, which you can control via a timer and which should overlap with daylight, you can help the animals to keep their bearings and minimize jumpiness. If the light is suddenly switched on in a dark room, it can happen that the discus fish are so frightened that they "shoot" fearfully through the tank, jump out of the aquarium or even bang in front of the aquarium glass. Through this impact on the
discus fish can even die (e.g. through a skull fracture). With a night light you minimize this risk. (a “moon” baby light in the socket would also be possible).
Location of the Discus Aquarium
Feel free to place your discus aquarium in a busy place in your living space, as our discus fish are used to people and like company. Make sure that your aquarium is not exposed to direct sunlight, as this promotes the formation of algae. Also, please do not set up your aquarium behind a door, as this location makes the discus fish more easily startled.
Use of the fish after transport
It is extremely important to use the fish properly after transport (described in detail by us under "Use of the fish after transport". You should
1. Make the temperature adjustment slowly when the animals with pure oxygen
have been packed. (with the fish bag closed so that oxygen does not escape)
2. Adjust water (open fish bag and fill aquarium water into fish bag)
3. Fill the fish into the transport box or bucket and insert them carefully with the fishing net
The old transport water should be thrown away and not get into the aquarium,
since it is already very polluted by transport and your water quality deteriorates
would.
Difference between temperature and water balance
Temperature adjustment is carried out with the fish bag closed, for example by placing the fish bag in a transport box and pouring in the aquarium water from the outside. In this way, the temperature of the water slowly adjusts. If the temperature difference is less than 4°C, the water adjustment can take place. Water adjustment is carried out with open fish bags. Attention, the use of fish
should be completed after a maximum of 15 minutes after opening the bags, otherwise the discus fish would suffer from a lack of oxygen! When adjusting the water, pour about as much aquarium water into the fish bag as is already contained in it. Then you can put the discus fish in a tub, a bucket or a transport box and carefully place them in the aquarium with a fishing net.
water change
Run cold tap water for about 5 minutes so that you don't use the stale water in the pipes for your aquarium. Warm water is usually heated in the boiler, which often contains copper tubing that can poison the aquarium water. Fill the bucket with fresh tap water, preferably with a shower head (at a distance of 10-20 cm) (this removes chlorine residue). Please fill the fresh tap water carefully from your bucket (which is only used for this process of changing the water) into your aquarium. Please repeat this process until the old water level is reached again. Please clean your hands thoroughly from soap residue and any chemical residues with a brush under running water before you reach into the aquarium!
Tips for your vacation
Most fish die on vacation because the neighbor means too well and feeds them too much. Therefore, it makes more sense to simply take a feeding break for your fish during your vacation. Because discus fish from 10 cm in size and other half-grown fish can easily survive 2-3 weeks without food. Older and larger animals even survive longer lean times of 1 to 2 months. Such fasting periods also occur in nature every year and can even be very beneficial to health. There is no need to change the water during this time, as there is hardly any contamination due to the lack of feeding. Please note:
– Control the light in your aquarium using a timer
– Running an additional (second) pump/filter continuously as a failsafe
(do not accidentally connect to the timer for the light!)
– Lowering the water temperature to 27°C
(curbs the hunger of the fish, makes them calmer and reduces the metabolism) After the holiday, you should initially feed your fish little and increase the meals cautiously at first. The animals and the filters first have to get used to the normal amount of food (increase the number of bacteria and the filter performance).
Aquarium Insurance
In the unlikely event that your aquarium leaks, for example when changing the water or due to leaking adhesive seams, we recommend aquarium insurance. As a rule, you can take out supplementary aquarium insurance with your household contents insurance. This additional insurance is relatively cheap and highly recommended, since water damage can often cause considerable costs (possibly water flow through several floors). You can exclude this risk with a minimal expenditure of money. Please inquire with your insurance company and take out supplementary aquarium insurance via your household contents insurance. Water temperatures and influence on the behavior of discus fish The normal temperature for keeping discus fish is around 29-30°C. If your fish are too calm and sluggish and don't eat greedily but rather hesitantly, you should increase the water temperature to 33 °C for about two weeks. This increases the metabolism of the discus fish and stimulates their activity and feeling of hunger. If your animals are very agile, aggressive and fight each other, you can "cool down" the temperament and aggression of your discus fish significantly by reducing the temperature to 27°C.

Important instructions:

• Before touching the aquarium / discus fish, hands should be free of cream and soap!
• Wet your hands before touching them so that the fish's mucous membrane is not injured!
• In the case of stab wounds caused by discus rays, please keep pressing until a drop of blood comes out, which cleans the wound and thus avoids infection.
• Never mix wild caught, Asian offspring and our STENDKER discus fish!