Fishfinder1973
Fishaholic
Ok,so you have got your first fish tank and you canāt wait to get fish in it,but you are a little apprehensive about the cycling process,donāt be,there is a way to cycle your tank that doesnāt involve bottles and numbers.
It does involve two other things though,something to create ammonia and patience
First things first,set up the tank,that means install the substrate,filter and heater,fill the tank with water and turn everything on.
Donāt bother putting anything else in the tank,no plants,no decor,no wood
Now we need something to creat ammonia,well anything that rots will do that,for example a dead fish.Now go buy yourself a mackerel from the supermarket and cut it into four bits,put one of the bits into the tank and the other three bits into the freezer.
Donāt go back near the tank for two weeks,donāt touch it,donāt look at it,donāt even think about it.
After the two weeks pass,pick the bit of fish out and add one of the other bits from the freezer and ignore the tank for another two weeks.
After those two weeks,itās time to remove that bit of fish and add the third bit from the freezer and ignore it for two more weeks.
Again,two weeks later and the third bit of fish can be removed and replaced by the fourth piece of mackerel thatās left in the freezer and left for the final two weeks.
Now is the time to order the api master test kit and water conditioner,in preparation.
It is now eight weeks,or two months down the line and itās time to remove that last piece of fish,congratulations your tank is cycled.
All you need to do now is a gravel vac,a 75% water change,clean down the tank and squeeze the dirt out the filter sponge in some of the water you have removed from the tank(not forgetting to turn the filter and heater off first)
Now refill the tank with conditioned water,turn the filter and heater back on and use the api test kit to check nitrate and ph levels,noting them down,as these are your tap water levels,your benchmark.
Now go introduce some fish and enjoy your tank,remembering to keep testing the nitrate level every couple of days.
The nitrate should never be allowed to get higher than 40ppm and weekly water changes are performed to deal with that,how much water?well the amount that gets the nitrate back down to your benchmark level.
It does involve two other things though,something to create ammonia and patience
First things first,set up the tank,that means install the substrate,filter and heater,fill the tank with water and turn everything on.
Donāt bother putting anything else in the tank,no plants,no decor,no wood
Now we need something to creat ammonia,well anything that rots will do that,for example a dead fish.Now go buy yourself a mackerel from the supermarket and cut it into four bits,put one of the bits into the tank and the other three bits into the freezer.
Donāt go back near the tank for two weeks,donāt touch it,donāt look at it,donāt even think about it.
After the two weeks pass,pick the bit of fish out and add one of the other bits from the freezer and ignore the tank for another two weeks.
After those two weeks,itās time to remove that bit of fish and add the third bit from the freezer and ignore it for two more weeks.
Again,two weeks later and the third bit of fish can be removed and replaced by the fourth piece of mackerel thatās left in the freezer and left for the final two weeks.
Now is the time to order the api master test kit and water conditioner,in preparation.
It is now eight weeks,or two months down the line and itās time to remove that last piece of fish,congratulations your tank is cycled.
All you need to do now is a gravel vac,a 75% water change,clean down the tank and squeeze the dirt out the filter sponge in some of the water you have removed from the tank(not forgetting to turn the filter and heater off first)
Now refill the tank with conditioned water,turn the filter and heater back on and use the api test kit to check nitrate and ph levels,noting them down,as these are your tap water levels,your benchmark.
Now go introduce some fish and enjoy your tank,remembering to keep testing the nitrate level every couple of days.
The nitrate should never be allowed to get higher than 40ppm and weekly water changes are performed to deal with that,how much water?well the amount that gets the nitrate back down to your benchmark level.
