How often to add salt to the water in your discus fish aquarium? We recommend adding salt to your discus fish aquarium only as needed. When you first receive your Discus fish, salt is a good additive to help the discus fins to heal up... If your discus fish are fighting or have injured themselves use the 1 cup of any non iodized(99%+) salt per 100 gallons of aquarium water. Wait 2 days then do a 25% water change... This treatment can be repeated up to three times. Discus can handle these doses of salt, with no problem. Do not however keep salt in the water all the time... excessive salt or other minerals can prove harmful on the discus fish okidneys and other internal organs.