I wouldn't advise Dave Spenser's way of setting up a planted tank unless you are an experienced fresh water aquarist with a fully cycled fresh water tank from which to knick media if the silent cycle goes wrong
The Zeolite used can mess up the natural cycle, contrary to what Dave says, IME. His method of setting up a tank is valid for highly planted tanks, but the method will backfire unless it is a heavily planted tank, as his method works as the plants take up Ammonia quicker than the fish produce it, hence out-competing the filter and Zeolite. You can tell when this is happening, as your Nitrates will drop. Plants take Ammonia in preference to Nitrate. If your Nitrates remain constant after set-up, you are relying on the Zeolite, at least partly, for Ammonia removal. Once it's saturated, you'll enter a fish-in cycle unless you up the number of plants or find some way of getting better growth. Once the Nitrates are dropping, you can actually safely remove all the filter media, as the plants are doing all the Ammonia removal for you
Princess coral may not want a tank stuffed with plants. In this instance, if you stock with fish using Dave's method, find Nitrates stay constant and Princess says no more plants, you are suddenly forced to make a choice, remove the fish and revert to fishless cycling, do a fish-in cycle, or have a tank that relies on Zeolite for it's life, as the plants will not be doing the Ammonia removal and the Zeolite will Saturate on a bacterial colony that is far below that required, leading to an Ammonia spike.
All the best
Rabbut
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miss you 
you and Truck
