Keeping Filter Alive During Stripdown

[markandhisfish]

when i do my discus setup im going to need to have my tank stripped down for probably a couple of hours, to keep my filter bacteria "fed" and avoid having a mini cycle would it be as simple as say getting a large bin with water and a heater add some ammonia and run the filter thru that water whilst i work on the big tank?

 

[waterdrop]

You don't need to go to all that trouble for hours. Just keep them wet in tank water. WD

 

[markandhisfish]

thats a releif, whats realisticly the longest it would be able to stay disconnected for before im risking a mini cycle?

 

[mattlee]

i changed my substrate this weekend and the filters were off for about 5 or 6 hours. i just switched them off and left the water inside them. when i finally put my fish back in i got an ammonia spike but 50% water change sortd this and its been fine (fingers crossed) since

 

[markandhisfish]

hmm could really do without a spike. i need enough time to drain, scrub, add plant substrate ,gravel,,plant and re-fill .

 

[mattlee]

hmm could really do without a spike. i need enough time to drain, scrub, add plant substrate ,gravel,,plant and re-fill .

thats pretty much what i did on my 65G. drain the tank water into a spare tank put all wood, plants and fish into the temp tank removed the gravel and cleaned the tank. cleaned and added the sand and half refilled. then started the planting and positioning of the wood etc and when happy filled the tank and got it to temp. then added my fish back in. it took me about 6 hours in total.....
i couldnt use my externals on the spare tank as it was sat on the floor so i just kept them full of tank water until the tank was refilled then to help heat the new water i turned them back on to circulate the water to spread the heat. i over dosed with dechlor to try and save the bacteria.
about 5 hours after the fish were back in i noticed an SAE rubbing on the sand checked the water and ammonia was at 0.25-0.50 ish so had to do a 50% water change.
i dont know why i had this as the same fish were added no more and the filters are mature so maybe a combination of being stagnant and the new water being filtered through ive checked 2 x dailly since and all is well and mt discus are happy again in their new set up

 

[markandhisfish]

fish wont be a problem cos when im stripping the tank down there wont be any . should be able to rig up a temporary filter "feeder bath" pretty easily . and for the sake of a couple of pounds for some ammonia , it will give me the luxury of being able to take my time and get it just right. which given that ive never planted a tank it could well be an all day job

 

[mattlee]

fish wont be a problem cos when im stripping the tank down there wont be any . should be able to rig up a temporary filter "feeder bath" pretty easily . and for the sake of a couple of pounds for some ammonia , it will give me the luxury of being able to take my time and get it just right. which given that ive never planted a tank it could well be an all day job

just remember not to over do the ammonia concentrations

also i find that when putting plants in not to think too much and whack them in, they can easilly be moved

 

[markandhisfish]

i was thinking something like 5ppm?

 

[Honeythorn]

It should be fine for a couple of hours with that. Or if it won't blow your fish about too much you could simply get a large bin or tub as you say and run it for those couple of hours like a normal tank with your filter, heater and some fish in it. You can get pretty big clear storage tubs which are great for that sort of thing.

 

[markandhisfish]

when i do this the fish will be gone hence the ammonia as i will have no bio-load to feed the bacteria ... so actually come to think of it i may even need to keep the filter alive ( minus fish) for a day or 2 . il just have to hope the ammonia "feeder" works .

 

[Honeythorn]

Ah I see. Well it seems to work ok for fishless cycles so perhaps you could look at the threads on that to see what sort of dose you might need for a filter that's already mature?

I guess it would depend on how heavily stocked your tank was too. Keep your test kit handy to keep checking for a spike and you should be ok I'd say.

 

[markandhisfish]

hmmm this is 1 thing i hadnt considered when making my grand plan . oh well its just something to overcome and work around .

 

[chrisbassist]

you'll figure it out, you seem to know what you're doing, and doing the ammonia thing to feed filters seems like a sensible option to me.

so have a vote of confidence from me

 

[markandhisfish]

cheers chris, i have posted something in the scientific section after reading through your post about farming bacteria , 1 reply about too high a concentration of ammonia causing the wrong type of bacteria to grow stuck out .