Adding Fish To Newly Cycled Tank

[jenavee]

Hi -

I just went through a fishless cycling process on my brand new 55 gallon tank. My ammonia and nitrites are now down to zero. Do you suggest adding all the fish I intend to put in the tank or only a few? My additions will be:

Danios
Guppies
Rainbows
and Tetras

Please let me know your thoughts. I would also like thoughts on an algea eater and something that will eat the leftover food at the bottom.

Thanks - Jeannine

 

[Colin_T]

put the danios in now and see how they do over the next week or two. If they are ok then add some more fish. Leave it a couple of weeks before adding more. By using danios as the guinea pig so to speak, you won't lose as much money if something has gone wrong. If you put corydoras or rainbows in there and they die, it could be a costly mistake.

Algae eaters can be shrimp or fish. Siamese flying fox, bristlenose catfish, peckoltia or any other suckermouth catfish, otocinclus, whiptails, twigs (Farlowella sp), rainbow & redtail black sharks. Snails

NB: the algae eaters will also eat the excess food that sinks to the bottom

 

[shaz3271]

Hi -

I just went through a fishless cycling process on my brand new 55 gallon tank. My ammonia and nitrites are now down to zero. Do you suggest adding all the fish I intend to put in the tank or only a few? My additions will be:

Danios
Guppies
Rainbows
and Tetras

Please let me know your thoughts. I would also like thoughts on an algea eater and something that will eat the leftover food at the bottom.

Thanks - Jeannine

someone correct me if im wrong, but doing a fishless cycle means you can stock it all at once ,

i suggest a nice bristlenose plec for a bottom dweller.

Sharon

 

[Colin_T]

you can stock it all at once after a fishless cycle but if something hasn't gone right, or if something nasty has gotten into the water, she could lose everything. By adding a couple of danios first she can see if it is safe to add the rest of the fish.
I just prefer to add a few fish at a time.

 

[jenavee]

Thanks!

 

[doresy]

you can stock it all at once after a fishless cycle but if something hasn't gone right, or if something nasty has gotten into the water, she could lose everything. By adding a couple of danios first she can see if it is safe to add the rest of the fish.
I just prefer to add a few fish at a time.

If the ammonia levels have been increased then dropped back to zero in twelve hours a couple of times with nitrite at zero then most of the intended stock should be introduced together (after a massive water change to get rid of the accumilated nitrate).

In a fishless cycle the ammount of ammonia that is continually added is meant to simulate the amount produced by the tanks maximum stock level. The bacteria levels that are produced to combat this level of ammonia will start to drop if only a few fish are introduced. Any future fish will then have to be introduced in small amounts to prevent a 'mini-cycle' from happening

But then, who am I to advise?!

 

[stang1]

You are best stocking with hardier fish first such as Platies, Mollies, Danios etc. to give the tank a chance to mature.
Fish like Tetras, Guppies, Cories and Plecos are sensitive and prefer a mature tank.

 

[rdd1952]

If your tank can process 3 to 5 ppm of ammonia into zero ammonia and nitrite in 10 to 12 hours, you can easily add the full stock of fish without any problems. There will be plenty of bacteria to handle the waste the full load will produce, provided your full load isn't severely overstocked or very heavy waste producers.