Old Into New?

[Vivid-Dawn]

I've technically been keeping fish for a year now. But I think I'm still new at some stuff! Like this for instance...

I had a 15 gallon tank that's been sitting (yes, with water in it...I'm lazy!) for a good four months. Weirdly enough, one Java plant was still alive, and I hadn't got anything plugged in - filter, lights, etc.
Anyhoo... I finally got some extra money, and am gonna re-start this tank. There were some rock decorations, in there. I cleaned them off with hot tap water, and they've sat dry for at least 24 hours now. I assume there's no viable bacteria to maybe hasten up my cycling?

I'm not in a rush, just impatient LOL

 

[andywg]

If they have been rinsed and dried out then there's next to no chance of the bacteria being on it I'm afraid. Cloning from another tank is still a good way though.

 

[Vivid-Dawn]

I cleaned off all my gravel, too...sigh! And added new media to my filter.
The only reason everything is getting cleaned (too lazy to do a bleach disinfecting, even though I think I probly should), is that as I said..stuff was sittin' in water for a few months, and I'm worried about bad bacteria forming. I even went to get a new tank... too cold to go outside and wash the old one. But I'll use it when it warms up, for my guppies probably

 

[fish4meplz]

Well if ur that impatiant just go ahead and start the tank up only buy a few fish and see how they do and if they survive then i guess ur good to go

 

[RoyalGrammaPrincessHannah]

No whatever you do, dont use bleach to clean things and dont put fish in! The tank has uncycled because there has been no ammonia for the bacteria to eat, therefore they have all died and fish would not live in there. There is bacteria you can buy to cycle the tank, its called Biospira. The stuff on the shelf doesnt work in my experience. But Biospira can work if it has been taken care of properly.

 

[ncjharris]

You can use bleach so long as it is a very weak solution and you rinse, rinse, rinse after.

I would reccomend not putting in a couple of fish and seeing what happens - A fishless cycle is the way to go.
If you have another tank, try seeding from that, with existing filter medium.

 

[Vivid-Dawn]

I'm trying a fishless cycle this time (I had danios for my last go at it). Well, technically fishless...I did splurge on a few ghost shrimp. There's also two bunches of plants (Anacharis and "frill"). I feed the ghost shrimp a couple tiny fish food flakes every other day. So I guess it's mostly fishless... anyhoo!

The water is crystal clear, after 9 days, with no water changes. Isn't it supposed to be clouding up by now? I have an aerator, but I don't think that should hinder anything. My filter's new, since I wanted the bacteria to form in it. I have a bio-wheel from my established 50 gallon tank, positioned in the flow of filtered water, so I figured there'd be at least a little bit to "seed" my tank with. And ghost shrimp should be adding a bit with their waste (partly why I got 'em).
I wonder if I need actual ammonia. Been too lazy to go out and buy some. Plus, it might be too strong for the shrimp.
Tank size: 17 gallons (20 gallon tank, but only holds 17)
Temp: 68F
Ammonia: 0
Nitrite: 0
Nitrate: 0
(added AmQuel Plus and NovAqua Plus for the shrimp's sake, when I filled the tank)
pH: 7.8 (gonna put peat moss in, a week before fish...or maybe I should do it now?)

Am I just being impatient, or did I mess up? LOL


Royal
There were a few live pest snails on the java moss! LOL And I'm too cheap for Biospria, I'll just wait.

ncjharris
I use about 1/4 cup bleach to at least a gallon of water. Rinse three times, and then let it air out for at least 24 hours... I was told that should be safe enough. But I just went and bought a new tank, anyway.