Cycling Filter But Not Tank?

[TopChip7]

Hi. Thought this would be worth starting a new thread instead of running into my other thread.

Was wondering for FUTURE upgrades, as I can't afford a large tank this side of Christmas, if I asked the wife for a filter off Santa prior to buying a tank, would it OK to simply cycle the filter in a bucket so once I can afford the tank I would be able to stock it immediately?

Thanks

 

[Schmill]

Probably not, I mean yes, the filter WOULD cycle, but you have to remember when adding your ammonia the guide tends to point you in the direction of a 5ppm level. That means there is 5 parts ammonia per million of water.
So if you cycle your filter in a 10L bucket (which will need to be aerated and at about 30 deg C) then your 5ppm will be based on 10L of water, (so roughly 0.05ml of PURE 100% ammonia).

If you then intend to move your filter to a 100L tank in the new year, although your filter is cycled, it is cycled to process 0.05ml of 100% ammonia, which is only going to be about 0.5ppm in a 100L tank, nowhere near the 5ppm you would want to achieve.

All in all, although it can be done, I'm not sure what you would achieve. i also don't believe you could even increase the ppm in the bucket to make the filter 'more ready' for the tank, as once the ppm goes too high the bacteria don't grow anyway
When a filter is cycled, it is correct that you cycle the filter not the tank, but it's also true that you cycle the filter based on the amount of water (and therefore ammonia) it is working on.

Sorry!

 

[TopChip7]

Thanks Schmill,

That's a real shame though

 

[Schmill]

To be honest my 300L tank has just taken 40 days to fishless cycle.That might seem like a long time at the outset, but it really isn't.
Over that time I've been enjoying my fish in their current 60L tank, and been dealing with the various trial, tribulations, births and deaths in that.
Then theres everything else to sort out as well, the first thing I did was to fill the tank with water and start the cycle, heater and filter plugged into a extension lead across the floor. THEN whilst the tank has been cycling I've been out and found the background for the outside of the tank, bought some ornaments, & the substrate, later added an airpump and some bogwood. Also built my syphon kit and refill hose.
Then set to work on the cabinet under the tank, drilling and fitting my electrics so that everything can be plugged into the 'cabinet' along with timers, and then fed from a single line fitted with RCD to the wall socket.
I don't have a lot of time in the evening for it, so 40 days is actually only 5 or so weekends, and of course there are always other jobs that need doing then too
I've now reached the point where I have a cycled tank, and I still don't have the plants I want, so I'm going to get those next, and then when I am happy with the tank I shall get the fish.
Yes fishless cycling of the filter does seem like a long boring job if you are just watching an empty tank, but there is usually so much else to be done too the time passes relatively painlessly

 

[waterdrop]

Reading this, I was thinking that besides the good comments of Schmill it might be useful to mention that TopChip already has been cycling a little 9G (I think?) and so may never again need to fishless cycle from scratch. Once you have done one fishless cycle, you theoretically have your own mature media for life!

You would still need to do the fishless cycling process and testing of course but you should be able to seed your new filter with some of the biomedia from your little filter. The rule is to never use more than 1/3 of your old biomedia. In your case I would use even less. I would run the new filter for a day or two, just to let things settle and be sure the filter is functioning properly and then I would start the ammonia and seed the mature media.

Also, I have the thought that if you -didn't- have mature media, either because you didn't have a prior tank or because you didn't want to use it, then TopChips idea does have some small merit if you wanted to work out the timing. What you say, Shmill, is true, about the tank volume, but its also true that the undersized colony resulting from a fishless cycle in a bucket would be similar to creating your own mature media.

The overall time line would be the same or longer than a normal fishless cycle done in the final tank, but the period of time fishless cycling in the "added late" tank would be shorter because you would effectively start cycling it with a filter that had grown its own mature media while cycling on the bucket. The important thing for TopChip to remember is that the filter would still have to pass qualification on the final large tank, there are no shortcuts to that aspect.

Overall, though, I agree with you so much! There are a ton of things to be done during fishless cycling and its a wonderful way for the beginner to be thinking about all these and getting used to their equipment and new habits prior to gaining the responsibility of the live fish!

~~waterdrop~~