Set Up

[danon]

I will be setting up my first tank next week if it arrives on time!!

Obviously i will be doing the fishless cycle but, do i add the substrate, plants and rocks then the de-chlorinated COLD water or do i have to heat the water up before adding to the tank? Thank you.

 

[waterdrop]

I will be setting up my first tank next week if it arrives on time!!

Obviously i will be doing the fishless cycle but, do i add the substrate, plants and rocks then the de-chlorinated COLD water or do i have to heat the water up before adding to the tank? Thank you.

None of these details are critical to the basic idea of fishless cycling, as currently talked about here on the forum. Initial water temp should make no difference, just let your aquarium heater bring it on up to something like 82 to 86 degrees F.

Elsewhere in the threads today, as it happens, we were discussing the very thing of pros/cons to having substrate and plants during fishless cycling. One con is that fishless cycling often produces lots of brown stringy algae (although this may be dependent on things like phosphates in the water and the high temp and all the light that must be on for the plants obviously) ... so if you leave the substrate and plants out, you don't have to clean them at the end of fishless cycling! But, a pro of live plants -may- be as an extra "introducer" of good bacteria (this is not accepted practice to say, just a thought going around.)

The newly added water does not have to have the dechlor product added beforehand either, simply rest a hose over the side of the tank, making sure it is weighted or somehow won't swing up when the water force starts, fill up with water and add the directed amount of dechlor. If you do any water changes during fishless cycling (say, to keep your pH above 6.0) then often members say they will add half the dechlor at the beginning of the fill, half later or after. Even not doing it at all probably wouldn't kill the bacteria, but personally I wouldn't take that chance! Also, temp swings at such a water change probably wouldn't harm the developing bacteria either but I usually roughly match temps anyway.

Bottom line: what you ask doesn't matter.

~~waterdrop~~

 

[OldMan47]

If you are having to heat the water much, it would be quicker to get the tap water up to about the temperature you want. That way your little electric heater won't need to be on constantly for hours or even days to get the temperature where you want it. As waterdrop said, you could use colder water and just wait but to me that seems expensive. The house water heater is much faster and I hope is more efficient.
As far as plants, substrate, decor and such are concerned, if you fill your tank a few inches deep before adding everything else you won't need to struggle with dust in the air while moving the gravel, dry plantings that threaten their ability to survive, etc. Once you get the plants and decor in place, put a bowl in place on the gravel and pour the rest of the water slowly into the bowl. It will keep the water flow from destroying the plantings and decoration that you have worked so hard to set up.

 

[waterdrop]

If you are having to heat the water much, it would be quicker to get the tap water up to about the temperature you want. That way your little electric heater won't need to be on constantly for hours or even days to get the temperature where you want it. As waterdrop said, you could use colder water and just wait but to me that seems expensive. The house water heater is much faster and I hope is more efficient.
As far as plants, substrate, decor and such are concerned, if you fill your tank a few inches deep before adding everything else you won't need to struggle with dust in the air while moving the gravel, dry plantings that threaten their ability to survive, etc. Once you get the plants and decor in place, put a bowl in place on the gravel and pour the rest of the water slowly into the bowl. It will keep the water flow from destroying the plantings and decoration that you have worked so hard to set up.

Yes danon, in fact when I do my water changes I use a python and am able to adjust the water temp such that my aquarium heater does little work afterwards. Sorry, I may have been influenced by remembering that I used an outdoor hose on my first fill before I had a python and my son and I actually had a lot of fun sticking our arms in the very cold water! But using the aquarium heater is probably a little less efficient than the household hot water tank.

And I completely agree with oldmans description of a decorative fill, have done many just like that in my time. You can also stop the water filling at various levels if you want, planting larger plants at a later stop when the water supports them more.

~~waterdrop~~