Fishless Cycle - Plants Or No Plants?

[Alex.]

Hi guys.

I finally move house this coming week and will be able to set my tank up ready for my fishless cycle!

One question I have - do I do my fishless cycle with or without plants in the tank? What's the general consensus here?

A kind member has offered to donate some filter media so I should hopefully have a much easier cycle. A chap at a small tropical store also offered a bag of used gravel - is it worth taking him up on this used offer or sticking just to the media?

Thanks for the help!

 

[CezzaXV]

Leave the plants until just before your tank is ready for fish.

 

[Cazgar]

No plants while you're fish less cycling as you'll have to use ammonia which won't do plants any good.
I'd just use the media as only a very small amount of good bacteria will be in the gravel

 

[snazy]

I cycled my tank with plants and there was no algae issues and the plants were just fine. If you already have the plants they put them in. Ammonia is a source of food for them. If you don't have plants yet, then skip them for now so you don't have to turn your lights on during the cycle and risk an algae problem.

 

[-Jo-]

I have plants in a bucket waiting to be put into my tank when my fishless cycle is complete

 

[waterdrop]

If you go the route of having the plants in during a fishless cycle I recommend that you keep the light periods to a bare minimum, 4 hours per day and definately below the 1.5 watts per USgallon of fluorescent light if you can make that work out. While it is true that some people come through without algae problems, it is also true that many have problems: ammonia plus light is the main trigger for algae spores and they are as universal as our beneficial bacteria are - juat about any water you have is just waiting to provide them!

Congrats on choosing to set up and do a fishless cycle. It is a wonderful way to get a feel for your new tank and how to really know if the biofilter is working or not. The members here are great at helping you get through this. You can also do back searches and find hundreds of fishless cycling threads to read using my name or many of the other members - reading real world experiences can be helpful at times if your questions aren't quite answered.

~~waterdrop~~

 

[Alex.]

Many thanks for the replies so far guys! I might aswell leave the plants till I stock the tank if i've not already got them by the sounds of it...

The tank is a 125 litre which is about 80cm long and 45 wide by 45 high... I have had some ideas regarding stocking, but would appreciate your inputs here:

cardinal tetra
3 opaline / blue gourami (2 f 1 m)
1 x betta male
bristlenose pleco / zebra (or if anyone has any suggestions to smaller plecs)

maybe something like synodontis petricola if i can find any....

Also what is the deal with angel fish? I'm aware they should be kept in large / tall aquariums and aren't the most friendly things - but would I be able to keep 2 of the smaller ones?

Any help appreciated!

 

[Alex.]

Any advice guys ?

 

[waterdrop]

You've probably already gone past this question since it was a while ago, but I'll comment:

In my opinion you are right at the bare minimum volume and height where you could consider keeping a pair of angels. Others would disagree but I think it would be ok. That having been said, many of your plans above would overstock your tank so you'll need to work things out via discussions with other members. In my opinion, those particular gouramis might be a bit rough on other fish in some situations and they are also fish that are better off in tanks larger than yours but I don't mean that to completely rule them out. I doubt both they and the angels would all fit. You realize the cardinals will need to be 6 or 8 or 10 in number as a minimum.

I'll leave the questions of male bettas and the other things to others.

~~waterdrop~~

 

[cerberus0250]

Thanks for this, I am also trying to work out a nice combination of fishies for my tank that is the same size.

Im considering 8 Cardinal Tetra, 2 dwarf Gourami, 8 Glow Light Tetra, 6 Rummynose Tetra.

Any feedback would be nice

Thanks for your time.

 

[The Taffy Apple]

Thanks for this, I am also trying to work out a nice combination of fishies for my tank that is the same size.

Im considering 8 Cardinal Tetra, 2 dwarf Gourami, 8 Glow Light Tetra, 6 Rummynose Tetra.

Any feedback would be nice

Thanks for your time.

Hi there..i have a 120L tank (same dimensions of yours) and find the Cardinal Tetra a lovley looking fish in groups of 6+. The Rummy Nose Tetra would look fanastic also.
My full stocking list can be found below in my signature.

Terry.

 

[Alex.]

Thanks for the time to reply waterdrop, really appreciate it.

I set up my tank yesterday and today got some donated media from a kind member! I've put as much as would fit in my filter (ceramic tubes) and had some left over so left them at the bottom of the tank til the fishless cycle is complete. I take it this is okay? I got the ammonia up to 4-5ppm last night so will keep an eye on it.

I may leave Angels out, it was just an idea. Does anyone have any suggestions as to stocking?

I do quite like the style of gouramis, but are there any nice colourful ones which are more suitable than the opaline / blue ones?

Also things like bristlenose plecos - do they need to be kept in groups?

 

[cerberus0250]

Thanks for this, I am also trying to work out a nice combination of fishies for my tank that is the same size.

Im considering 8 Cardinal Tetra, 2 dwarf Gourami, 8 Glow Light Tetra, 6 Rummynose Tetra.

Any feedback would be nice

Thanks for your time.

Hi there..i have a 120L tank (same dimensions of yours) and find the Cardinal Tetra a lovley looking fish in groups of 6+. The Rummy Nose Tetra would look fanastic also.
My full stocking list can be found below in my signature.

Terry.

Many Thanks Terry and I must say your tank is stunning. Please can I ask how many of each fish you are keeping in your tank? I will be stocking my tank very similar to yours I think

Thanks for your time.

 

[The Taffy Apple]

Yes, no problem... i currently have 8 Goldfinch (Xray) Tetra, 6 Cherry Barb (4F, 2M), 8 Cardinal Tetra, 4 Ember Tetra, 12 Chilli Rasbora, 1F Dwarf Gourami, 3 Albino Cory and 3 Otto's.
Granted, my tank is 'a little busy', but i continuously keep on top of my water changes, changing 40-50% every week, with a 'deep clean' once a month, where EVERTYHING (except the sand) gets taken out and cleaned, as well as my monthly filter maintenence.
Keep us posted how the cycle and eventual stocking goes...

Terry.

 

[OldMan47]

Welcome to the forum Alex.
BN plecos do not need to be kept in groups. I have a few of the albino ones in my 45 gallon along with the cave structures they seem to like for breeding. One of the males has taken possession of a cave and always seems to be guarding eggs. If only that male and a few females existed in my tank, I am sure he would be thrilled. The other BN pleco male is simply regarded as a challenger, not a companion. These guys have no desire for others of their own species, but do appreciate a female for breeding purposes. Be aware that a male that is guarding eggs is not much in terms of the visible fish in a tank. Instead he will spend all of his time out of sight in his breeding cave caring for the eggs.
The donated media that you have in your filter will give you a huge leg up in cycling the tank but must be treated as a seeding media that needs to be verified using regular fishless testing methods. I use media and "squeezings" from existing filters to cycle new tanks but always end up verifying the cycle before adding fish. Although a donation from a mature tank gives me a huge leg up, I cannot replace a proper cycle verification with my own feel for things. Nothing replaces actual measurements that confirm the cycle.