Fishless Cycling

[eaglesaquarium]

That's the smell of success! Just don't inhale too deeply. It will burn your lungs for a couple of hours! (Trust me on that one.)

 

[blagger]

That's the smell of success! Just don't inhale too deeply. It will burn your lungs for a couple of hours! (Trust me on that one.)

lol, I can hardly get my nose near it let alone breathe it in deeply. May try to get high off it tonight

 

[Coco]

Thank you two soo much! I'll order that ammonia stuff of eBay tonight. Eagle- does that mean I can't add fish for 7 weeks i'm a bit confused?

 

[Coco]

Oh ignore that comment I get it now!

 

[HayzH]

yes i use kleen off Ammonia and its fine. Sorry to put a dampner on things too...but i am currently on day 104 of my fishless cycle!

 

[eaglesaquarium]

Thank you two soo much! I'll order that ammonia stuff of eBay tonight. Eagle- does that mean I can't add fish for 7 weeks i'm a bit confused?

Yup, unfortunately. If you could get some mature media can greatly reduce that time frame. Ask around at your LFS... check into your local fish club... post the question on here... lots of folks have some. If you iived in eastern PA or NJ, I could give you some of mine.

 

[Aqua Tom]

There is a link to boots ammonia in my sig.


Tom

Sorry I'm new here what's a sig?
Many thanks

No need to apologise, sig is short for signature. This is the information underneath this message


Tom

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[Coco]

Thank you two soo much! I'll order that ammonia stuff of eBay tonight. Eagle- does that mean I can't add fish for 7 weeks i'm a bit confused?

Yup, unfortunately. If you could get some mature media can greatly reduce that time frame. Ask around at your LFS... check into your local fish club... post the question on here... lots of folks have some. If you iived in eastern PA or NJ, I could give you some of mine.

Okay I'll try that but thanks so much for the advice! if It turns out that I can't find any, what's the minimum it could take? Am I right In thinking that 7 weeks is a maximum?

 

[eaglesaquarium]

Okay I'll try that but thanks so much for the advice! if It turns out that I can't find any, what's the minimum it could take? Am I right In thinking that 7 weeks is a maximum?

As I stated before there are a lot of variables, some we understand, some we don't even know exists. There are some things you can do to help the bacteria a bit.


The sweet spot for pH is 8.0-8.4. You can add some baking soda (sodium bicarbonate) to help raise the pH.
The temp needs to be around 84F (~30C).
But, warmer water needs extra oxygen because warmer water just can't hold as much oxygen (necessary as the bacteria you are trying to cultivate are aerobic - need oxygen). The easiest way to do this is keep your tank water level a little lower than the return from the filter, so that the water splashes back into the tank. This disrupts the surface, creating more surface area and allows for more gas transfer into the water.

When filling the tank, use your dechlorinator at 1.5x-2.0x the recommendation by the manufacturer. Sometimes the water companies add a little more chlorine, so the extra dose helps. HOWEVER, don't go above the double dose level as the sodium thiosulfate can disrupt the N-bacs.

 

[Coco]

There is a link to boots ammonia in my sig.


Tom

Sorry I'm new here what's a sig?
Many thanks

No need to apologise, sig is short for signature. This is the information underneath this message


Tom

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V
V
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Oh silly me haha, I'm on my phone so there's nothing down there haha thanks for pointing it out

Okay I'll try that but thanks so much for the advice! if It turns out that I can't find any, what's the minimum it could take? Am I right In thinking that 7 weeks is a maximum?

As I stated before there are a lot of variables, some we understand, some we don't even know exists. There are some things you can do to help the bacteria a bit.


The sweet spot for pH is 8.0-8.4. You can add some baking soda (sodium bicarbonate) to help raise the pH.
The temp needs to be around 84F (~30C).
But, warmer water needs extra oxygen because warmer water just can't hold as much oxygen (necessary as the bacteria you are trying to cultivate are aerobic - need oxygen). The easiest way to do this is keep your tank water level a little lower than the return from the filter, so that the water splashes back into the tank. This disrupts the surface, creating more surface area and allows for more gas transfer into the water.

When filling the tank, use your dechlorinator at 1.5x-2.0x the recommendation by the manufacturer. Sometimes the water companies add a little more chlorine, so the extra dose helps. HOWEVER, don't go above the double dose level as the sodium thiosulfate can disrupt the N-bacs.

Oh okay thanks for the advice I really appreciate it ! looks like I'm just going to have to be patient haha

 

[eaglesaquarium]

Oh okay thanks for the advice I really appreciate it ! looks like I'm just going to have to be patient haha

Patience is the most important ingredient to a good fishless cycle.