Starting A Fishless Cycle

[danb]

Yes, this is normal. Sometimes, me included, people do not start to see a drop in Ammonia until around 20 days. Patience plays a huge part in a fishless cycle, where the happiness and ease of mind comes in the end when you know you did the best thing for your fish!

What kind of ammonia are you using? Are you sure it is only water and ammonia (maybe some bonding agent) listed in the ingredients, if there are ingredients listed that is. lol

-FHM

Nah no ingredients, no bubbles at all etc. Apparently people have used the same stuff from homebase on here successfully! I decided i wasnt going to test for ph as this will just set back to my tap water when i do the 90% change at the end. Is this correct? Basically just keep testing ?

Danny

 

[fatheadminnow]

I would test the pH, as this plays a huge role in the cycle! If your pH is at 6.5 or lower, then you can consider your cycled stalled; same as if it were over 9. A pH of 8-8.4 is optimal for the growth of the beneficial bacteria.

-FHM

If you have good ammonia, as it sounds like you do, you have added a good water conditioner, and you pH is above 6.5 and lower than 9, then your tank will cycle.

These are essentially the requirements of a fishless cycle.
pH, 6.5-9
Water conditioner added
Pure Ammonia
Good test kit

-FHM

 

[danb]

I would test the pH, as this plays a huge role in the cycle! If your pH is at 6.5 or lower, then you can consider your cycled stalled; same as if it were over 9. A pH of 8-8.4 is optimal for the growth of the beneficial bacteria.

-FHM

If you have good ammonia, as it sounds like you do, you have added a good water conditioner, and you pH is above 6.5 and lower than 9, then your tank will cycle.

These are essentially the requirements of a fishless cycle.
pH, 6.5-9
Water conditioner added
Pure Ammonia
Good test kit

-FHM

Thanks, just tested the ph - its between 7.4-7.6 - this should be okay? Water conditioner was added, the ammonia and i have api master test kit x 2; incase my ammonia testing runs out, which is looking likely !

 

[waterdrop]

Yes, 7.4 to 7.6 will be fine. It probably won't be until later that the pH might drop, if it does. Its dependent on the temporary hardness level.

~~waterdrop~~

 

[NinjaSmurf]

This may sound a little dumb but why are you cycling if you already have a tank and filter with mature media in it? Why not just set the new tank up, add the old filter and then add the fish after about an hour? That's how most people do it when they have to move a tank, I'm not really sure why this would be any different.

 

[danb]

This may sound a little dumb but why are you cycling if you already have a tank and filter with mature media in it? Why not just set the new tank up, add the old filter and then add the fish after about an hour? That's how most people do it when they have to move a tank, I'm not really sure why this would be any different.

Im doing it this way becuase my 240l tank has been setup with fish since october and the ammonia never budges from 0. Everything else is 0. Its just not cycling; so i wanted to get a properly cycled tank for the fish.

 

[waterdrop]

Well, the test results that indicate a properly cycled tank are as follows:

If its a Fish-In tank then if it can go two days with zero ppm ammonia and zero ppm nitrite(NO2) without any water changes, its cycled. (Nitrate(NO3) doesn't matter, it could be anything from zero ppm to 160ppm or more and the tank could still be cycled, technically, because the technical defination of "being cycled" only has to do with the bacteria being able to maintain zero on the ammonia and nitrite.)

If its a Fishless tank then its "cycled" if it meets the following tests: If you can add a 5ppm concentration of simple household ammonia and the filter then drops that concentration to zero ppm ammonia and zero ppm nitrite(NO2) within 12 hours, and can repeat these test results for a week, then its "cycled" for a full bioload of said tank.

If you have a mature tank (cycled either Fish-In or Fishlessly) then up to 1/3 of the biomedia can be safely removed and transferred to seed a new filter. That 1/3 of the bacterial colonies will grow back into any new biomedia you put in the donor filter without causing mini-cycles in the donor tank. The level of maturity of the donor tank is important though, its better if its at least a 6 month or 1 year old tank at least.

~~waterdrop~~

 

[danb]

yeah. I mean i asked on here and people said it wont be cycled. Whenever i test the ammonia its 0. I dont bother with anything else as its always nil.

 

[danb]

oooo exciting. Its starting . . . I tested the nitrite just now and its not blue, faint purple, not quite .25 but its not blue!!!!

 

[fatheadminnow]

Congrats!

-FHM

 

[danb]

OK so it appears my cycle is starting. Now, there is some cat litter moved its way to the top of the sand. I was planning on just gravel vaccing it once the cycle is done and adding more sand in. Now would i be better to do this just now so im not getting rid of any beneficial bacteria by sucking the sand and cat litter up?

Danny

 

[waterdrop]

The only beneficial bacteria you care about is that which is in the filter. You can do whatever you want out in the tank with your substrate and everything else to make things look the way you want.

~~waterdrop~~

 

[fatheadminnow]

Yup, agree with WD!

If you gravel vac, the only thing you would be doing at this point is reducing your ammonia and nitrite level. Of course then you would add ammonia back up to the appropriate amount when the time is right; so no harm done.

-FHM

 

[danb]

ah i see, thanks for the replies.

Ill wait for the 90% water change an do it then.

 

[danb]

Just took a full reading. How does everything look to you guys? Should i be doing anything or just letting it take its course?

Danny