Differance Between A Cycled And A Mature Tank

[sean0151]

Hi Everyone
While reading and researching possible stock for my cycleing tank i have come across quite a few fish that are only recommended for a mature tank.
So my question is if youre tank is cycled and removing ammonia and nitrite as it should then what else apart from time sets a mature tank aside from a cycled one? What else goes on in there that isnt happening in a newer but cycled tank.

Regards
Sean

 

[Katty]

Totally just my opinion, and "cycled" vs. "mature" probably means different things to different people, but I think cycled simply means there are bacteria present that are converting all of the ammonia and nitrite produced in the tank. Mature means that not only are the nitrifying bacteria, but other bacterial populations, algae, pH, and other unseen values have been thoroughly established have leveled out and are rather stable, and not likely to undergo sporadic changes that might occur when the tank is initially set up or cycled. Not to say a mature tank isn't capable of different swings.

 

[Mikaila31]

A mature tank usually means it has been cycled and running for 6 months. As stated above a mature tank is more stable then a newly cycled tank, not only in ammonia, nitrate, nitrate, but it has more stable ph, hardness, and ect.

 

[ajs2294]

A mature tank has been stable for many months along with all the bacteria the pH and other readings stay level. You really start to know the boundaries of each tank after awhile, in a mature tank you should be able to figure out your own stocking level by know how well the filters work and your water change regime also. That's my idea of what "Mature" means haha

 

[waterdrop]

Agree with the others, particularly Mikaila's nice concise answer. Tanks keep maturing all through the first year, long after they've cycled in the first months.

What else goes on after cycling? Some other aspects of maturity have been mentioned and of course the bacterial colonies continue to become more robust, but in truth the various natural cycles and substances we measure are probably pretty trivial compared to all that really goes on in an environment like an aquarium. Maybe some day we'll have the tools to measure and more fully understand some of them!

~~waterdrop~~