Help With Cycling A New 5G Tank

[provwise]

Hey all!

First time aquarium owner here setting up a new Fluval Spec 5G Aquarium and I've got some quick questions about cycling the tank!

Like a lot of people, I was told at the shop earlier today that I just needed to add the proper amount of Nutrafin Cycle and Nutrafin Aqua plus, give the tank 24 hours, and I could come back to pick up the fish I wanted. I'm glad I did all the reading I've done before doing this, as it seems I might have ended up with some unhealthy little guys!
 
I've done a bunch of reading on the cycling process, and I have a firm grasp on the purpose & science behind doing it, but the problem with doing so much reading is that you end up coming across a bunch of conflicting information! I've read that a 5G tank will take a week or two to fully cycle, and I've also read that it will take anywhere from 4 to 8 weeks. How long can I actually expect the process to take, if all goes according to plan?
 
The Nutrafin Cycle (which, again, I've read conflicting things about - some say it does nothing, some say they've had total success with it) is added over a 3 day period at various doses. Today was day one - should I continue the next two days?
 
When it comes to adding flakes of food to bump up ammonia levels and encourage the growth of the good bacteria you want, is there anything in particular I should pick up to use, or will any old fish food do?
 
Last up, as far as testing levels go, what do you pros recommend? I've read that liquid systems are more accurate, but does that mean strips aren't accurate enough, or just less precise?
 
I guess the overall issue I'm running into here is that I'm a total newbie on this one (literally just got the tank today), and a lot of what I read seems like it assumes a bit of knowledge, of which I have none. Any guidance, advice, tips are all hugely appreciated! I just want to make sure I do it totally right and give my future fish a great home
 
Thanks so much in advance!
 
 
Tim

 

[Gruntle]

Hi, welcome to the forum, and glad to see you've not listened to the advice given from your fish store. You're a step ahead of where I was initially!
 
Start by having a read of the fishless cycling article at the top of the forum (Cycling a Tank). If you follow the instructions, it goes like clockwork.
 
I've never used the Nutrafin Cycle or Nutrafin Aqua Plus, from what I've heard they can be very hit-and-miss depending on how your store has kept them and for how long.  You might get lucky, you might not.
 
Get some ammonia, there's a link in the New To The Hobby Questions and Answers section on ammonia sources depending on where you live, you should be able to find some ammonia fairly readily. Fish flakes are a poor source of ammonia, if all else fails you can use some raw shrimp (although it can make a mess of the tank).
 
Get a liquid test kit, the API Master Kit is reasonably priced.
 
If you have friends with a tank, you can ask them to donate some of their filter media (no more than 1/3 of their media or there will be issues with their tank). You can give them some of your media in return, I swapped out some of the ceramic rings to good effect. You may get lucky if your local fish shop sells/gives away used media.
 
As for time, you can expect anywhere from 3-6 weeks if you follow the instructions in the cycling article. It may seem like forever, but I did my tank in December and have all but forgotten the time taken, I have healthy, happy fish which makes me forget the first few weeks of empty tank.
 
Post your results so we can help wherever we can.  Best of luck with it.