Weird Cycle

[smurfyy_2k3]

my brother in law has introduced me to tropical freshwater fish, he says to get the water ready i should put a couple of gold fish in there
he also says with the warm water the fish will grow bigger then the ones from my childhood
however from going through alot of the articles on this site no one has said to put in a gold fish any comments on this would be great as its my first tank and i really want it to work (it took me two days to convince my mother to let me get a tank

 

[rdd1952]

Hello and welcome to the forum.

Cycling a tropical tank with goldfish is a bad idea. First, goldfish are coldwater fish and don't fair well in a heated tank. Second, cycling with fish takes longer and puts the fish at risk from the ammonia and nitrite poisoning. Then, once you did finish cycling it, you'd have goldfish and no place to put them. The grow big (can easily grow to over a foot long), are very messy (lots of poo) and you need a minimum of 30 gallon for just 2 goldfish.

I would suggest a fishless cycle (see link in my signature for directions on how). It is much easier on you (you won't have to do water changes every day to keep the toxins down) and also your fish. It will take about 3 weeks but once you finish, you will be able to add all your fish at once.

If you choose to cycle with fish, there are some that are hardy and can live through the cycling process. How big is your tank? Some of the better fish for cycling need at least a 30 gallon tank.

 

[smurfyy_2k3]

thanks for the heads up
tank=30-32 gallons

 

[rdd1952]

For a 30 gallon tank, you could use danios to cycle with if you want to go that route. Don't start with more than 3 or 4 though as the ammonia will build up pretty quickly. You will need test kits (a liquid master kit is the best way to go) so you can test the water during the cycle (you'll need these whether you do it with or without fish).

Once you add your fish, start checking th ammonia and nitrite every day and do water changes as needed to keep the levels below .5 ppm. Once you get to the point that the ammonia and nitrite are 0 fr 7 straight days, your tank will be cycle for those fish only. You will be able to add 3 or 4 more fish and repeat the process. With a cycle with fish, you get to add fish right away but it will be longer before you will have the tank fully stocked.

 

[Inchworm]

Hi smurfy

Does your brother-in-law have a tank going himself? If so, he could help you cycle by giving you some of the beneficial bacteria from his tank. This would speed things up greatly.