Cycle Not Complete - But Have Larger Tank

[eduller]

So I bought a used 55 gallon tank. It didn't come with any gravel, used filter media, etc. so it's a brand-new setup. My current 5.5 gallon tank is not finished cycling. I've only had it about a month. The ph is good, water hardness is fine, the temperature is about 78 usually. I have 2 glofish, 1 leopard danio, 2 apple snails. The nitrates and nitrates are below 1, but the ammonia hasn't settled yet. It wavers between .5 and 1, providing I do a 1 gallon water change twice a day.
 
So the new tank - do a fishless cycle first? Wait for the cycle in the current tank to complete? Or is it better and healthier to move the fish to the bigger tank and finish the cycle in that? The fish seem healthy. They are active and have good color,etc. They get along and are calm. I don't want to stress them, but I know they will be happier in a larger tank where I can get 3 more fish. Any advice would be great. Thanks!

 

[eaglesaquarium]

This is a great question, and there will be opinions on both sides...
 
 
So, I will weigh in with my answer:
 
A fish-in cycle is never ideal.  A fishless cycle is always a better option, so cycling the larger tank is the better choice, even though it means that the fish must stay in a smaller uncycled tank in the meantime.  Up the water changes on the smaller tank to 2 gallons - as this is a short term solution now.  The goal is to keep the ammonia as low as absolutely possible.
 
 
I would amend this if you are looking to ONLY keep 6 danios fish in the 55 gallons.  In that case (which I can't believe you would want to do), I'd say to add the fish to the larger tank immediately and continue with the fish in cycle.  DO NOT ADD MORE until the ammonia and nitrites stay at zero for a solid week.  When they do, then you could add more, but only 3 at a time.   Finally, if you go this route, upping the number from 3 to 6, then to 9, then to 12, then to 18 if you choose could take you 3-6 months.  Doing a fishless cycle you could add 18 fish to that tank in as little as 3-6 weeks.

 

[eduller]

Thanks very much for the thorough response. I've upped the water changes to 2 gallons per your suggestion. I plan on keeping the new tank small for a long while - I'll add 3 more danios and maybe add a school of guppies or neon tetras or something else bright and lively. Maybe a couple more snails too. I like small fish and want to keep it simple for myself while I learn. 
 
I think on your advice, I'll do a fishless cycle in the big tank while I finish out cycling the small one. It's simple to do water changes with a couple of gallon pitchers for right now, and I don't have any fancy equipment just yet. This way I can take my time picking out the right extras. The 55 gallon is super clean looking, came with a nice magnum 350 filter, a light with extra bulbs, a heater, air pump, and some unidentified other thing which I'll have to figure out I will need to get some new tubing for the filter, as it is grody. I also need to get some bigger plants, as my 2 little java ferns are probably too small to get proper light in the larger tank. I was toying with the idea of a planted tank, but I think it's over my head right now. I also have a 3 year old girl in the middle of the princess phase, and all the accessories she has picked out for the little tank are crazy colors which would really take away from the natural look of a planted tank.