Cycling A Tank Quickly?

[duplosion]

Thanks for the advice, Byron.
 
I know that the levels in my tap water are higher than normal. What I'd done in the past with the 55g was prepare the new water the night before the water change and just let it sit.
 
I'd fill a pair of 5 gallon buckets with hose water, add API water conditioner and API Quick Start, and let it sit for a day (both to let the chemicals settle and to let the water come to room temperature).
 
With the new tank, I decided to give Prime a shot. So we'll probably be doing the same thing -- filling a 5 gallon bucket with water, adding Prime, and letting it sit for awhile before doing a water change. Hopefully that's suitable.
 
I'm making a trip to the fish store today, and I'll pick up some new plants to help him out as well.

 

[Byron]

I'm curious to know if letting the water sit out actually removed the ammonia.  Did you test the water the next day for ammonia?
 
And with water conditioners, there is no need to let the water age in any way.  If filling with a bucket, just add the conditioner to the bucket as you fill it (use hot/cold water to approximate the tank temp, a tad lower is fine for most fish) and then add the bucket water.  If you fill directly from the tap to the tank as with a Python, you can squirt in the conditioner as you start to fill.  Conditioners work instantly.  Use the amount for the volume of fresh water, there is no benefit in over-dosing conditioners.
 
Byron.

 

[duplosion]

Ok, so I'm having a hard time believing the water readings in my son's new tank. It was just two days ago that we cleaned out the tank and re-filled it. These are my water test results, as of this morning:
 
Ammonia: .25 ppm (my understanding is that this could be a false positive on account of adding Prime. My tap water is 1.0 ppm, and I've dropped in some fish food each day)
 
Nitrite: 0
 
Nitrate: 5 (our tap water is 0)
 
After we cleaned and re-filled the tank, I gave him another one of my used filter pads (the 55g gallon has 2 filters with 2 pads in each), another pound or so of gravel from my tank, and we added Prime. That's it.
 
Is it possible that it really cycled in two days? 

 

[Byron]

From your description, I would say that you have a colony of nitrifying bacteria now established that is easily capable of handling the minimal amount of ammonia.  So technically, yes, the tank is "cycled."
 
Establishing the nitrifying bacteria in a new tank when none is added by any means can take anywhere from two to eight weeks normally.  The temperature and pH factor into this, so there is no set time as it depends upon the individual tank's system.  "Seeding" the tank with bacteria by some method quickens this process, and that is what you have done here.  The ammonia in the tap water is being taken up by the seeded bacteria.
 
Byron.