Surface Tension With The Aqua Starter 320

[mrp123]

hi guys,have just bought my new tank four days ago and i'm in the process of doing a fishless recycle which years ago when i kept fish i did'nt bother to do . infact when i look back the things that i would put in the tank to make it clear, never test the water, change the water cause the pump was so clogged put fish in the tank that were only suited to brackish water the list is endless that was 25 years ago now its its time to do it right.
so now i know, iv'e learned, im starting with a 320 aqua start , the water has been in for five days less a small water change today. the water is still milky and i know this may take some time to clear i think that the pump should be bigger and the spray bar longer it has a nice piece of bog wood to give the tank presence and the water a nice slight taint so should a put some plants in now to move cycle on i have added safe water,but i have not tested the water yet for ammonia nitrate ect, im going to leave the tank for another week before i do anything, by the way the tank is heated. the question is when should i start testing the water thanks for reading...............jonny.

 

[wrighty8529]

Hi Mate I do Mine each Week and i do a 25% water change before i test.

 

[fluttermoth]

Welcome to the forum, mrp123

To do a fishless cycle, you have to add a source of ammonia. Some people use fish food, or a prawn, to rot down and produce it, but the best way is to use household ammonia which is sold for cleaning.

If you tell us whereabouts in the world you are, we should be able to help you source some. Just leaving the tank to run won't cycle it, you need to add the ammonia.

Plants can be added at any point in the cycle, although it's probably est left until the end; it just makes things that little bit easier when you're dealing with a 'bare' tank (with no living things; bogwood and rocks don't really count).

Once you've started adding ammonia you can leave it for a week or so to give some bacteria a chance to start growing, then you'll need to test every day to see if the ammonia is going down.

We've got more detailed instructions on fishless cycling in our beginner's resource centre; the link for that is in my sig.

 

[mrp123]

Welcome to the forum, mrp123

To do a fishless cycle, you have to add a source of ammonia. Some people use fish food, or a prawn, to rot down and produce it, but the best way is to use household ammonia which is sold for cleaning.

If you tell us whereabouts in the world you are, we should be able to help you source some. Just leaving the tank to run won't cycle it, you need to add the ammonia.

Plants can be added at any point in the cycle, although it's probably est left until the end; it just makes things that little bit easier when you're dealing with a 'bare' tank (with no living things; bogwood and rocks don't really count).

Once you've started adding ammonia you can leave it for a week or so to give some bacteria a chance to start growing, then you'll need to test every day to see if the ammonia is going down.

We've got more detailed instructions on fishless cycling in our beginner's resource centre; the link for that is in my sig.

thanks for the info im in the uk,and ive read about ammonia in the tank to start the cycle off, but ive no idea what to buy perhaps you could put me on the right track.....cheers.

 

[mrp123]

Hi Mate I do Mine each Week and i do a 25% water change before i test.

thanks for that, come home to night and water is still milky however no worries i know it takes time and there is no way im going to use fish as guinea pigs to test my tank.