A Cycling Log

[Nosphaer]

I have realized that I'm an impatient person, so I wanted to leave this here, to allow me to get help and end any confusion.

I have had the tank's water dosed with ammonia to about 4-5ppm for a week now.

After adding two sources of what seemed like mature media, one being an entire, supposedly established and well used filter pad, I've seen no change in any of the readings.

I ran a 50% water change today. Of course, it only makes sense that the ammonia went down to 2ppm. I'm still uncertain of what I've been doing wrong. It seems a bit amazing that a chemoautotrophic bacteria, needing of ammonia to survive, could flow through the air into my filter, but I'm not even going to ask, since it's an established process in the community.

Anyhow, I think I'm done being excited enough to hunt down mature media, given the recent results. I just want to get cycling over with, and not have to deal with it again.

Would anyone recommend a course of action, aside from everyday tests?

 

[Nosphaer]

2nd of March, 2012

Ammonia: 2ppm (No +/-)
Nitrite: 0ppm (No +/-)

 

[Ruskull]

Let me start by saying I'm no expert, but I was able to jump start a 36 gallon, 10 gallon & another 20 gallon using an established 20 gallon that I bought that way. I just ran the tank with 2 filter pads for a bit letting the new pad get adjusted & then I took out the oldest pad & put in right in the brand new filter of whatever tank I was jumpstarting.

 

[Nosphaer]

Let me start by saying I'm no expert, but I was able to jump start a 36 gallon, 10 gallon & another 20 gallon using an established 20 gallon that I bought that way. I just ran the tank with 2 filter pads for a bit letting the new pad get adjusted & then I took out the oldest pad & put in right in the brand new filter of whatever tank I was jumpstarting.

That all sounds like good practice, but I might have had some strange, bad findings. I tried to use an established, mature filter pad to no avail, so far.

 

[Ruskull]

Let me start by saying I'm no expert, but I was able to jump start a 36 gallon, 10 gallon & another 20 gallon using an established 20 gallon that I bought that way. I just ran the tank with 2 filter pads for a bit letting the new pad get adjusted & then I took out the oldest pad & put in right in the brand new filter of whatever tank I was jumpstarting.

That all sounds like good practice, but I might have had some strange, bad findings. I tried to use an established, mature filter pad to no avail, so far.

What size tank was the donor tank & how much did you try to use? I had a hard time when I started up the 36 since I was only using some of the media from a 20 gallon but the others were easy. In other words doing smaller tanks is easier and requires less media to get going for obvious reasons.

You should try a different donor tank from a larger tank than yours if possible.

 

[FishFanatic04]

Ruskull makes a good point. My 10g tanks cycled almost overnight after getting filter floss from a petco, which had obviously seen alot of ammonia. But my new 75g took about 3 weeks, with 2 sets of media from a petco, 2 sets from my 46g. The media from smaller tanks can't instantly cycle a larger one. I may also be running against the pack, but I do NOT think that anyone should dose over 3.0 ppm ammonia. I personally never dosed over 2.5ppm. Fish don't produce that much ammonia in a day. The bacteria you work extra days to build will just die back when you stock your tank.

I fish-in cycled my 46g unknowingly and it is still having issues. But my 75 can clear 1.0ppm of ammonia in 4 hours and the resulting nitrite in less then 8. I can't even accurately record how fast because whenever I test, I get 0's. I really think overdosing ammonia to cycle just takes more time, overloads your filter, and then your bacteria die back anyway.

 

[Nosphaer]

What size tank was the donor tank & how much did you try to use? I had a hard time when I started up the 36 since I was only using some of the media from a 20 gallon but the others were easy. In other words doing smaller tanks is easier and requires less media to get going for obvious reasons.

You should try a different donor tank from a larger tank than yours if possible.

I see... The tank I got the pad from was absolutely tiny. It had to have been around 2 gallons or less. I thought it would not make a difference, but I can entirely understand such not working.

I got an entire pad, which was a little under 4"x4" in some water from the tank. I'll admit, I'm a little surprised that I've seen no drop whatsoever, but I suppose this makes sense.

 

[Nosphaer]

3rd of March, 2012

Ammonia: 2ppm
Nitrite: 0ppm
Nitrate: 0ppm

 

[Aqua Tom]

I have donated lots of media & the previous advice is spot on. If I can donate enough media to completely fill or 2/3rds fill a filter then it is pretty much instantly cycled. If it is only a fraction of that then the cycle will take a lot longer, but hopefully be quiker than without the donation.

tom

 

[riogal_11]

If the tank was only a 2 gallon, what was left in it for it to continue in a cycled process? It is not unusual for the first ammonia drop to last a week or longer. Mine took exactly one week to drop from 5+ppm to 0. So, my advice would be to not do anymore water changes and just let it play out naturally. How reliable was your media? Are you sure that it was truly cycled? Even still, coming from such a small tank, it just sounds like it wouldn't make much, if any difference anyways.

 

[Nosphaer]

If the tank was only a 2 gallon, what was left in it for it to continue in a cycled process? It is not unusual for the first ammonia drop to last a week or longer. Mine took exactly one week to drop from 5+ppm to 0. So, my advice would be to not do anymore water changes and just let it play out naturally. How reliable was your media? Are you sure that it was truly cycled? Even still, coming from such a small tank, it just sounds like it wouldn't make much, if any difference anyways.

The person I talked to seemed to know what I meant by "Cycled". The group I was talking to is indie and seemed knowledgeable, but they may have just handed me a dirty filter pad for giggles.

I'm through with getting worked up about mature media for the tank. I'll just passively test the levels until viable bacteria glides into my filter and gets to work. I suppose it was silly to assume that such a tiny tank's filter would be brimming with mature media solely for the reason that it was incredibly dirty.

 

[FishFanatic04]

You weren't silly at all. I am making mistakes all the time. And I already have fish in my tanks. I think there are so many variables to fish keeping that it is hard to see everything at once. I only knew that cycling a bigger tank from a smaller one doesn't instantly cycle your filter, because I did that too. Now you have just learned the same thing.

Maybe you can find another source. I got lucky and talked to my local chain store "Petco" and they have given me 5 pieces of nasty looking floss from their filters. It still took 3 weeks of ammonia dosing before my filter was cycled enough to clear 3.0 ppm ammonia in 10 or less hours. At first all of my local stores refused to help..... My point, I guess..is don't give up, and maybe try some local places that would understand after you explain the need for media and cycling your tank.

 

[Nosphaer]

I went to a local chain for some media, and I asked them about their cycling, a little while ago.

They claimed to have a "bacteria bed" that created all of their beneficial bacteria underneath the tanks on the top row. I have no idea how it was oxygenated enough, but they simply could not cut a piece off of said "bed".

 

[Nosphaer]

4th of March

Ammonia: 2ppm
Nitrite: 0ppm
Nitrate: 0ppm

The nitrate seems a lot darker than the 0ppm square, on the chart, but there is no drop in ammonia to correlate it to ... Probably a lighting/perceptive mistake.

 

[Nosphaer]

That old ammonia test always gets my hopes up with its fashion of turning from very pale green to a dark, rich tone.

5th of May, 2012

Ammonia:2ppm
Nitrite:0ppm
Nitrate:0ppm