Ph Crashes In Fishless Cycle
- Thread starter ellena
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Hi Ellena,
When doing a fishless cycle, we are effectively flooding the filter bacteria with food (ammonia) which encourages them to reproduce. This is done to establish a bacteria colony larger than will be required when the tank is stocked with fish, so we can be sure that when the fish go in there will be no problems with ammonia or nitrite (a safety net if you like).
When the fish are added, the bacteria required to process the waste produced by the fish remain, and any excess bacteria which has been built up during the cycle dies due to lack of food. The bacteria colony will only ever be as big as its food source dictates.
In practice, a fully stocked tank of fish won't produce nearly as much ammonia as we use for the cycle.
It is the process of turning the ammonia into nitrite and then nitrate which creates acids and drives the pH down, so when the fish are added and the ammonia being produced is less, the acids being produced are also less. Therefore, the pH won't crash so quickly after the cycle has finished.
The pH can crash once the fish are in, but it is a slower process because the acid is being produced more slowly, and so long as you are on top of regular water changes, you need not concern yourself with it too much.
It's always a good idea to keep an eye on your pH, but you needn't test it so regularly after the cycle.
Hope that helps you.
BTT
When doing a fishless cycle, we are effectively flooding the filter bacteria with food (ammonia) which encourages them to reproduce. This is done to establish a bacteria colony larger than will be required when the tank is stocked with fish, so we can be sure that when the fish go in there will be no problems with ammonia or nitrite (a safety net if you like).
When the fish are added, the bacteria required to process the waste produced by the fish remain, and any excess bacteria which has been built up during the cycle dies due to lack of food. The bacteria colony will only ever be as big as its food source dictates.
In practice, a fully stocked tank of fish won't produce nearly as much ammonia as we use for the cycle.
It is the process of turning the ammonia into nitrite and then nitrate which creates acids and drives the pH down, so when the fish are added and the ammonia being produced is less, the acids being produced are also less. Therefore, the pH won't crash so quickly after the cycle has finished.
The pH can crash once the fish are in, but it is a slower process because the acid is being produced more slowly, and so long as you are on top of regular water changes, you need not concern yourself with it too much.
It's always a good idea to keep an eye on your pH, but you needn't test it so regularly after the cycle.
Hope that helps you.
BTT
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