Fishless Cycling Of A Newbie

[Efren]

hiya!

my tank is a bit cloudy and i haven't put any live plants yet.
the API master test kit is yet to arrive, i'm worried that it might be
the mopani wood that's causing the trouble. but retailer said mopani is
good in maintaining the ph inside the tank. the filter "compact super"
is working well so is the hydor air pump - the only thing that bothers
me is the cloudiness in the water -

can anybody help me please...
thanks -

 

[Miss Wiggle]

have you got any fish in? how are you planning on cycling the tank?

you often get a bit of cloudy/m ilky water in new tanks, it's generally a bacteria bloom and will clear up shortly.

 

[Efren]

thnx miss wiggle,

i don't have any fish yet.
and i haven't decided what fish to put yet.

i put nutrafin cycle yesterday. but according to some members
here, nutrafin cycle is rubbish... i read the link about fishless cycling
and that prompts me to buy the API freshwater master test kit.
which i ordered this morning at seapets.com. might arrive in 2 days
time or so.

my tank is not that big. it's the juwel rekord 60 -
any idea what fish is best for me to keep...

thanks - -

 

[Miss Wiggle]

Definatley go with a fishless cycle, it is without a doubt the best way to do it.

Don't worry too much about what the tanks doing while you're waiting for your test kit to arrive and getting some ammonia etc, only need to start thinking seriously about what it's doing once you've started your fishless cycle.

A fishless cycle takes on average 4-6 weeks so you've plenty of time to investigate fish choices.

The tank is 16 gallons, so you should be looking to start with around 16" of fish in the tank.

My personal choice would be something like this

5 - pgymy cories
3 - apistogramma cacatuoides/agasizzi/borelli etc (1m/2f)
5 - harlequin rasbora

but you've got loads of options, best bet is to look through pics of peoples tanks and look through the fish profiles, just compile a list of the fish that you like the look of, then post the list up and we'll go through it and let you know what would eb suitable from your list.

 

[Efren]

4-6 weeks!

thanks for the infos ms wiggle...
i hope 4 weeks cycle is enough
cos my kids (3yrs and 2 yrs)
are buggin' me already where the fish
are.. that's why they're still
stucked with the "finding nemo" film
hahaha...


does the API master tesk kit includes bottle of
ammonia already or do i have to buy a seperate ammonia kit?and i manage to took a shot at my
tank - - seems the cloudiness is vanishing every hour..
looks like i worry to soon...

 

[Miss Wiggle]

no you'll need to buy ammonia seperatley.

yeah it can be a buit frustrating, but the alternative is to get fish, struggle with big daily water changes and run the risks of your lovely new pets getting ill or dying because you've been impatient.

I know it can be hard but you're making the right choice by doing a fishless cycle. You just have to think of it like this, once you're into fishkeeping you'll probably keep fish for the rest of your life, if you always have a tank then you can clone on from the other so you'll only need to do a fishless cycle once, so imagine you're keeping fish for the next 20/30 years or even more, 4 weeks or so to make sure that you have the best possible start is nothing.

 

[JenCliBee]

does the API master tesk kit includes bottle of
ammonia already or do i have to buy a seperate ammonia kit?and i manage to took a shot at my

API test kit comes with an ammonia tester but 2 do the cycle u wll nee actuall pure ammonia , its very cheap and usually u can get it from ur lacol DIY shop/branch.


jen

 

[Efren]

i'll take your every word ms. wiggle, you're right..
instead of making it a hobby i'll convert it to passion..
what is 4-6 weeks of waiting....

thanks jen for the additional infos...
i read in some links here that pure ammonia
might or is available in BOOTS?
and some found it in ROBERT DYAS -

thanks again - -
i'll be in touch with my progress...

 

[SJ2K]

Yup, boots, wilkos etc Just look in the cleaning isle, i know wilko sell a product called 'klean-off' which is what you'll need.

 

[Miss Wiggle]

yup the larger boots stores sell it as do homebase, robert dyas and some other diy/hardware type stores

 

[Efren]

aside from "kleen off" what else can we use...
can't find one in boots - - i'm trying to
locate the nearest wilko in my place
and upto now "frustrated"

i read these in one of the sites:

"The best sources for Pure or Clear Ammonia are discount grocery stores or hardware stores. Often, the no-name brand is the stuff you're looking for. Some other people have reported success with the following brand names of ammonia: Top Crest or Whirl Clear Ammonia. To paraphrase RTR: If it doesn't list the ingredients, or say Clear Ammonia (or Pure Ammonia or 100% Ammonia, or Pure Ammonium Hydroxide), then leave it on the shelf and look elsewhere. Shake the bottle if you're not sure about it... ammonia with surfactants will foam, while good ammonia will not."

i tried shaking them.. and the sales people seems to be unhappy with it - - hahaha



and another question before i undergo with my fishless cycling - -
do i have to search for a good source of bacteria before the cycle
or let the cycle commence without it - - well i put 3capfuls of
nutrafin cycle just incase - - dunno' if it helps..

 

[Miss Wiggle]

no, just add ammonia, the bacteria will come by themselves.

 

[Efren]

thanks again ms. wiggle - -

i might change the water tonight..
the mopani wood is causing trouble.
the water in the tank is not cloudy anymore but
a bit shady - i guess it's the wood..
cause the color of the water is turning into
the same color as the wood - -

hopefully, the master test kit will arrive by thursday
so i got plenty of time to prepare the tank for
cycling---

i'm looking forward of doing it. haha (excited)

 

[waterdrop]

Hi Efren,

We often describe two phases of fishless cycling (just for ease of discussion here in the "New" group.) During the first phase the ammonia oxidizing bacteria (A-Bacs) are growing and you watch for your added ammonia to go down. During the 2nd phase, which we often call the "nitrite spike" phase, the nitrite oxidizing bacteria (N-Bacs) are growing more and you see the amount of nitrite go very high (spiked or "off the chart") because the A-Bacs are producing a lot of nitrite now.

In the 2nd phase, it helps to begin to do water changes just as you will after you get fish. Those water changes will probably take care of the "yellow/brown water" that your wood is causing. If those water changes don't take care of it, then its a fairly simple matter to pull the wood out and give it a treatment where you pour boiling water over it in a bucket a few times and then let it sit in the bucket to see if any more yellow/brown water shows up.

~~waterdrop~~

 

[Efren]

thanks for the additional info waterdrop...

let's say i'm on the 2nd phase now - (N-Bacs)
how much water do i have to change in order to
get the correct stats? and how often?
is it up to me - or is there any procedure to be follow?

and regarding about the wood - - i boiled it a couple of times -
and still affecting the clarity of the water - - so i decided to
remove it from the tank - i soaked it in a bucket
of water for the time being - - and i'll treat it with
boiling water from time to time - -

thanks again - - -