South American Cichlids • Discus fry getting eaten help, water conductivity issues

[easywolf31]

Hey all,

I'm trying to breed a 4 inch Blue Diamond Discus pair in an 80 gallon aquarium with small 1mm sand, 2 big blue sponge filters, heater, some plants and a breeding cone.

They lay eggs once a week and than eat the babies a day or 2 after they become free swimming.

Should I remove the sponge filters for a while because maybe they are too dark and the fry get confused? Perhaps lower the air pump so as to cause less water movement?

I also leave ambient light around this quarium when there are eggs and babies around, temp is at 84.5F at all times.

Concerning ph, kh and gh, my tap has a ph of around 7.6. GH 4.5, KH 3. If I add Acid Buffer, it raises the tds. I cannot use an RO system. Is there any other solution to this issue?

Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks