Fishless (or Shrimpless) Cycling

[fish.com1]

Hi all,

i am going to start cycling my shrimp tank soon using the add and wait method described in the pinned thread on fishless cycling. I have a few questions.

Because it is going to house shrimp, which need 3 month old mature tanks, after i have done the fishless cycle,which won't take 3 months, can i carry on adding the ammonia after the fishless cycle to fee the filter bacteria, and give everything else in the tank time to mature, like bogwood, sand and plants?

And can i add the plants at any point, start, middle or end, in the fishless cycle? does it matter at what point i add them?

Thanks.

 

[Colin_T]

if you plan on adding shrimp several months after the tank is cycled you will have to add something (ammonia) to keep the filter alive. Otherwise the bacteria will starve and the cycling process start again when you add the shrimp.

Plants can be added any time but will use ammonia to grow. This means they will compete for the ammonia with the filter bacteria.
One option is to plant the tank up and let it run for a month. Then add a few shrimp but only feed them a small amount. Any ammonia produced by the shrimp should be taken up by the plants. The plants should also settle in and become quite well developed during the first month if they are given good conditions.

 

[Syphoniera]

Hi, fish.com1,
Colin_T gives good advice, as usual, especially (I personally think) as regards the second suggestion for setting up a planted tank, which also enables you to get shrimp much earlier, depending on plant health and growth.
That's what I did with my Cherry shrimp, plunked them in a plant grow-out tank I'd set up and they're very active and lively, female always saddled and berried.
They swim around and perch in the Wisteria 'trees' like tiny birds, cling upside down to the rather lengthy duckweed roots overhead, etc., providing hours of amusement.
Not only do the plants suck up ammonia, but provide further surface area for nitrifying bacteria - and a playground the shrimp will enjoy.
And it sounds as though you were planning on having plants anyway...

Edit: of course, this is coming from someone who misses the fact she missed a letter typing until after she posts...

 

[fish.com1]

if you plan on adding shrimp several months after the tank is cycled you will have to add something (ammonia) to keep the filter alive. Otherwise the bacteria will starve and the cycling process start again when you add the shrimp.

Plants can be added any time but will use ammonia to grow. This means they will compete for the ammonia with the filter bacteria.
One option is to plant the tank up and let it run for a month. Then add a few shrimp but only feed them a small amount. Any ammonia produced by the shrimp should be taken up by the plants. The plants should also settle in and become quite well developed during the first month if they are given good conditions.

I am a bit confused here. Do you mean to plant the tank up, leave it for a month without doing a fisless cycle then after a month add the shrimp?

Or do you mean plant the tank up then do the fishless cycle and after a month when the cycle is complete add the shrimp?

You said to plant the tank up and let it run for a month. Should I do the fishless cycle in this month too?

Thanks for your help

 

[Colin_T]

you can do it either way but if you are concerned about water quality then it is probably best to cycle the tank with plants in, and when it has finished cycling, add the shrimp. The shrimp won't eat much or produce much waste. This means any ammonia they produce will probably get used by the plants before it gets used by the filter bacteria.

 

[fish.com1]

you can do it either way but if you are concerned about water quality then it is probably best to cycle the tank with plants in, and when it has finished cycling, add the shrimp. The shrimp won't eat much or produce much waste. This means any ammonia they produce will probably get used by the plants before it gets used by the filter bacteria.

Will all the other stuff in the tank like bogwood substrate and rocks have time to mature?

 

[Honeythorn]

If you have another fishtank or know someone who has, you can pop your filter in the other tank for a month and cycle it in there, and while you are waiting for that to complete, you can plant your tank up and keep the plants healthy with good light and root tabs or some flourish.


When you say leave the bogwood and rocks to "mature" what do you mean? They don't need to do anything but sit there. You might need to soak your bogwood in buckets of water to get rid of excess tannins ( which turn water a brownish/yellow tea colour ) but that's it really.

 

[Colin_T]

Yep but the driftwood might take a bit more time depending on how much air is in it and if it was soaked before you add it to the tank.
The maturing part is more about having stabile filtration that doesn't allow ammonia or nitrite spikes to occur whenever you feed the tank. A properly cycled tank should prevent ammonia and nitrite spikes from occurring and causing stress to the tank's inhabitants.

 

[fish.com1]

what i mean by maturing is it having o good growth of micro-organisms and algae for the shrimp.
And yes i am going to soak the bogwood first.

So if i put my new sponge filter in my established tank and leave it for a month and at the same time put everything (except shrimp) in the new tank like substrate wood plants heater and lighting and add some liquid ferts should the plants be ok and the bogwood and rocks have time to get some micro-organisms for the shrimp. I suppose i could leave the filter for longer in the established tank, to give the micro-organisms a chance to grow.

Thanks.

 

[Colin_T]

a month is usually sufficient for bacteria and algae to grow in most tanks, especially if live plants are added.

 

[Honeythorn]

what i mean by maturing is it having o good growth of micro-organisms and algae for the shrimp.
And yes i am going to soak the bogwood first.

So if i put my new sponge filter in my established tank and leave it for a month and at the same time put everything (except shrimp) in the new tank like substrate wood plants heater and lighting and add some liquid ferts should the plants be ok and the bogwood and rocks have time to get some micro-organisms for the shrimp. I suppose i could leave the filter for longer in the established tank, to give the micro-organisms a chance to grow.

Thanks.

Yep that's it. Much quicker and easier than fishless cycling ( which I think is quite complicated personally, I won't resort to it while I have established tanks to use ) . If you want algae for the rocks, just put them in a clear tub or old glass tank and leave it on the sunniest/brightest windowsill in the house. Or under a small clip on arcadia aquarium light if you happen to have one spare. You'll soon have some alage.

 

[fish.com1]

what i mean by maturing is it having o good growth of micro-organisms and algae for the shrimp.
And yes i am going to soak the bogwood first.

So if i put my new sponge filter in my established tank and leave it for a month and at the same time put everything (except shrimp) in the new tank like substrate wood plants heater and lighting and add some liquid ferts should the plants be ok and the bogwood and rocks have time to get some micro-organisms for the shrimp. I suppose i could leave the filter for longer in the established tank, to give the micro-organisms a chance to grow.

Thanks.

Yep that's it. Much quicker and easier than fishless cycling ( which I think is quite complicated personally, I won't resort to it while I have established tanks to use ) . If you want algae for the rocks, just put them in a clear tub or old glass tank and leave it on the sunniest/brightest windowsill in the house. Or under a small clip on arcadia aquarium light if you happen to have one spare. You'll soon have some alage.

Sorry to bring this up again. When i am setting up the shrimp tank with lights and heater and plants, do i need to add any water conditioners to the water, and should i do any water changes in the month that the filter is cycling in my old tank? Will i need to do a big water change at the end of the month in the shrimp tank before adding the filter and shrimp? If so how big?

Also because the sponge filter i have is only one sponge so instead of replacing it should i just wash it in tank water every week?

And when i am placing the heater in the tank does it matter how i place it (horizontally or vertically) as long as it is not touching the substrate and so the bottom of the heater is below the thermostat at the top?

Thanks.

 

[fish.com1]

Anyone?

 

[fish.com1]

Anyone?