Just Started My Fishless Cycle

[Paavn]

hey everyone, so im pretty new to keeping fish... i knew nothing about them and am really glad i came across this forum. it probably saved several fish lives.

i have the following equipment and was wondering if there was something that i was missing:

1 - 30 gallon glass tank
2 - 100 watt heater (its a pretty cold winter for southern california)
3 - circular air stone
4 - air pump connected to air stone (got the anti siphoning valves too)
5 - bacterial supplement
6 - floating thermometer
7- the tank came with the whisper something filter but i got a Emperor 280 from a friend for free and it seems to be a lot better
8 - pH, ammonia, alkalinity, nitrate, nitrite, hardness
9 - de-chlorinator
10 - ammonia (its from walmart but i cant seem to find the concentration)
11- a dropper for the ammonia

i think thats about everything.

so far i've been following the fishless cycle guide and the water in the tank is pretty much crystal clear. Its been cycling for about 18 hrs as of posting this.

Oh yea the other question…. The filter came with another media cartridge and I know I can put in floss or more activated carbon but I was wondering what the best media would be.
Thanks

 

[OldMan47]

Have a hard look at that ammonia. I found only scented ammonia with detergents in it at my local Wally world. Give it a good shake outdoors, in case it leaks, and make sure it does not suds up at all, it should seem like it's just water except for the smell. If you open the bottle and do not sniff it, the smell should be so bad you want to get the cap right back on it. It is all I can do to keep the cap off mine long enough to measure some out.
Your best media for the extra filter basket in a 280 would be floss or sponge. I have a floss pad in mine. I don't think it will hold noodles very well and bioballs won't fit in it.
The air stone and air pump are nice if you like them but are not really needed.
Most people think the bacterial supplements are about worthless but if you already have it there is no harm using it.
The test kit needs to be one that uses liquid reagents for the tests. It will come with some small test tubes and color charts. The test strips are considered to be right next to useless because of accuracy problems.
I don't see a light hood or cover on your list. You will want a cover to keep fish from jumping out of the tank and you will want lights to look at the fish and to support any plants you decide to keep.
I also don't see any mention of any substrate. Although I have a tank that has a bare bottom, most of my tanks have sand or gravel on the bottom and most people like that look better.

 

[Paavn]

thanks for taking a look oldman47
i have a hood cover and light i forgot to add to the list. i also have the gravel on the bottom.
and you are definately right about the test strips. i got some with the tank and they are really off. i put in the ammonia (i checked to make sure it wasn't scented or colored. and it didnt bubble) and the test strips were showing the strenght at about 3ppm. i went and got the api water test kit and my ammonia levels were at 8 or above 8ppm.
for the filter media i got the fluval cereamic pieces. they fit nicely into the cartraidge. i thought id increase the area of bacteria cultivation for the time being till my biowheel matures

 

[LauraFrog]

If it doesn't foam up, it's fine. The other thing to look for is like a swirly iridescence in the middle of it, which means there is an undesirable in there (probably some sort of surfactant). I managed to snag some 2% ammonia, which does not stink as much, but it's still pretty pungent...

 

[Paavn]

Thanks laurafrog
im pretty sure i got the right stuff. i just dont think its very concentrated (bottle doesnt have concentration on it), but i might be wrong considering i was using the VERY VERY inaccurate test strips. they should just not sell them in stores