Ammonia Cycling

[Rorie]

quick question, does anybody use a filter aid/bacteria starter when doing fish less cycling?

 

[doresy]

What would be better is to try and get some matured filter media from a cycled system. If you do not have anyone you know who keeps fish then you could try your LFS (local fish shop) with the promise of being a future good customer.

 

[Newmwono83]

Yeah you can buy the microbials and add them yourself perfectly fine, but your best bet is to start stocking after atleast a week of no fish with the tank up and running. Then start with your less expensive fish put two in the tank and leave it alone for atleast two weeks. Then add fish slowly one per week if you can be patient untill your fully stocked

 

[Rorie]

What would be better is to try and get some matured filter media from a cycled system. If you do not have anyone you know who keeps fish then you could try your LFS (local fish shop) with the promise of being a future good customer.

I am running breeding sponge filters, so adding new media isn't an option with this

Yeah you can buy the microbials and add them yourself perfectly fine, but your best bet is to start stocking after atleast a week of no fish with the tank up and running. Then start with your less expensive fish put two in the tank and leave it alone for atleast two weeks. Then add fish slowly one per week if you can be patient untill your fully stocked

That is 'fish in cycling' where as with ammonia i am doing 'fish less cycling'

I am wondering if adding a filter aid has any benefit while running fish less cycling.

 

[Em29]

From what I can gather - it does not do any harm to add it. However, if it has any benefits - then they appear to be negligible. I have Cycle Filter start to my fishless cyle....and it still took 6-7 weeks to fully cycle 3ppm ammonia over 12 hours.

I wouldn't waste the money unless it comes with the tank
Many of the very experienced fish keepers on here do not advocate there use because there doesn't seem to be any significant positives to using them.

 

[4seasons]

Yeah you can buy the microbials and add them yourself perfectly fine, but your best bet is to start stocking after atleast a week of no fish with the tank up and running. Then start with your less expensive fish put two in the tank and leave it alone for atleast two weeks. Then add fish slowly one per week if you can be patient untill your fully stocked

Do NOT do this. This is the old way of killing off your first fish or at least seriously shortening their lives. Fishless cycle is the way to go. Fish-in cycle like is referred to above is lots more work and will harm your fish.

 

[fluttermoth]

Yeah you can buy the microbials and add them yourself perfectly fine, but your best bet is to start stocking after atleast a week of no fish with the tank up and running. Then start with your less expensive fish put two in the tank and leave it alone for atleast two weeks. Then add fish slowly one per week if you can be patient untill your fully stocked

Wow, it's like 1976, all over again!
Sorry, Newmwono83, but we don't recommend fish-in cycles. Fishless is a far better option, now we know it works.

 

[Rorie]

I normally mature all my filters in existing tanks and then swap filters about. This is my 25th aquarium haha. Fishless cycling is by far the best. I did this for my 5ft tank and added 50 cardinals and 6 discus in one go. Absolutely no problem, no ammonia spikes, perfect. Had rams and discus breeding within 2 weeks.

Just wanted to know if cycle start would make a difference, so the answer is obviously 'no' from what Em29 is saying.

Agree that fish-in cycling is a tad old now. I remember being told to buy a goldfish as they poop lots and are hardy. I said i wanted to keep tropicals....i was told to flush the goldfish once my filter was established. Not really the right ethics for fish keeping!

 

[Em29]

Agree that fish-in cycling is a tad old now. I remember being told to buy a goldfish as they poop lots and are hardy. I said i wanted to keep tropicals....i was told to flush the goldfish once my filter was established. Not really the right ethics for fish keeping!

Poor fish! I suppose many people think of fish as decor not pets


I am not an experienced fish keeper at all - so please take what I say pinch a hefty pinch of salt. However.....the cycle start did nothing for my new tank with new media. The ONLY way I managed the cycling process to start was by introducing some mature media after 5-6 weeks. Then it all happened within a week - like magic

 

[fluttermoth]

TwoTankAmin swears by Dr Tim's One and Only, but I've never used it myself. I have used Nutrafin Cycle (because I got it free with a tank) and it did diddly squat.

 

[Rorie]

TwoTankAmin swears by Dr Tim's One and Only, but I've never used it myself. I have used Nutrafin Cycle (because I got it free with a tank) and it did diddly squat.

I used nutrafin cycle on a couple tanks. No idea if it was of use though, would really need tests against another tank i guess

 

[Aqua Tom]

If its free, chuck it in, if it costs money then that is entirely up to you.


Tom

 

[vigosh]

TBH best filter aid would be chucking in a tight with a small amount of gravel etc from an established tank, least you know you will have bacteria on it. The bacteria starters as far as I'm aware are very dependent on being stored at your LFS/supplier at specific temps etc to make sure it doesn't die in the bottles. Used them on a couple of tanks in the past and didn't bowl me over with the results.