Tropical Fish Keeping banner

Help on starting the cycle for 30g tank

2K views 15 replies 3 participants last post by  Angel079 
#1 ·
hey i have a 30 g tank here and i need some help starting the cycle. I started my first 15g tank with the stuff that you get in the bottle. Everything worked out well. Now with my 30 g tank i want to cycle it without purchasing bacteria. I know i can put "starter" fish in there but i dont want to be killing fish. I know i can also put pure ammonia in there to start the cycle. And i know i can also start it with fish food in there but it isnt a good idea because it can promote algae. my question is, can i put my NEW filter on the OLD tank and run it to get the bacteria in it, then put the NEW filter on the NEW tank to start the cycle? Also, is a filter required to run if i start the cycle with pure ammonia or fish food?
 
#2 ·
Safest & Quickest way: Take some materials from your old filter either rinse them out in the new tank OR stuff them in the filter of the new tank and replace what you took out of the old tank with new stuff (don't take out ALL filter media, just like 1 pad will be sufficient).

AND DONE, tank cycled & safe as you're adding all needed bacteria this way, no ammonia or bottles of whatever needed any more :)
 
#3 ·
To answer your first of two questions, yes, you can set up the new filter on an established tank, let it run for several weeks, and then transfer the filter to the new tank (without rinsing or cleaning it). Bacteria will have colonized the media. However, ammonia must be present in the new tank to feed the bacteria or they will die off. A few fish in the new tank, added when the filter is added, will work. The important thing is that the bacteria must be sufficient to handle the levelof ammonia produced by the fish. If it is, there will be no stress on the fish.

Yes to your second question, just in practical terms. If you use pure ammonia or fish food in the new tank, the bacteria will colonize surfaces, and it might as well include the filter media to get it started. With a new tank, the filter and heater should always be connected from the start. I never cycle new tanks like this because they are always planted, so I suggest you read the sticky on fishless cycling for information. Click on the sticky "Important Topics" at the head of this forum section and part way down you will find cycling topics.

Plants do the cycling immediately, if you intend on having live plants. I can explain that if you do.

Byron.
 
#4 · (Edited)
hey thank you very much but i just realized that my new filter is now running on my old tank. It has been on there for about a day and a half now. Is this ok? should i take it off soon and run it on the new tank? Thanks

EDIT: oh ok thanks for that info byron. I was actually hoping to put plants in there but im not sure what kind of plants would work in a 30 g. and now my mom just said to me that she wants to put that filter on the new tank now and put the fish in there with it. I dont think this is safe. Would it be?
 
#5 ·
hey thank you very much but i just realized that my new filter is now running on my old tank. It has been on there for about a day and a half now. Is this ok? should i take it off soon and run it on the new tank? Thanks

EDIT: oh ok thanks for that info byron. I was actually hoping to put plants in there but im not sure what kind of plants would work in a 30 g. and now my mom just said to me that she wants to put that filter on the new tank now and put the fish in there with it. I dont think this is safe. Would it be?
In my opinion, no, as outlined in my response to your PM, but mentioned here for the record. A new filter is unlikely to build up a sufficient bacteria colony in a day or two when it is in an established tank that probably has a balanced bacteria colony now. Bacteria will only multiply (increase) if their source of food increases, namely ammonia and nitrite for each bacterium type. B.
 
#6 · (Edited)
ohhhhhh ok that make COMPLETE sense now. my tank actually has too much ammonia and nitrates/nitrites in it. when the bacteria forms in the new filter wouldnt it eat the extra nitrates/nitrites and ammonia? I also am thinking of starting to run my old filter on the new tank. would this be a good idea?

EDIT: and also if it is a bad idea to run the old filter on the new tank what can i do in order to cycle my new tank.
 
#7 ·
ohhhhhh ok that make COMPLETE sense now. my tank actually has too much ammonia and nitrates/nitrites in it. when the bacteria forms in the new filter wouldnt it eat the extra nitrates/nitrites and ammonia? I also am thinking of starting to run my old filter on the new tank. would this be a good idea?

EDIT: and also if it is a bad idea to run the old filter on the new tank what can i do in order to cycle my new tank.
I do not think running the old filter on the new tank is bad. Just remember that you need ammonia in the new tank to feed the bacteria now living in the old filter. Alternatively, run the new filter on the existing tank for sufficient time to build up a good colony of bacteria.

When you say your tank has too much ammonia and nitrite, do you mean the existing tank? If it has been running several weeks or longer and the fish are OK, then I would assume the bacteria in that tank are at a level sufficient to handle the ammonia and nitrite produced by those fish. That will continue provided you don't do something to upset the balance (add too many new fish at once, overfeed, leave dead fish in the tank, use chemicals that affect it, etc).
 
#8 ·
yes i do mean the existing tank. I have actually learned that i have been overfeeding them and that is what is causing all of the extra ammonia. Im barely feeding them any now and the levels should drop. I wanna start the cycle in the new tank with the old filter but like you said, you need ammonia to keep it going. to do this, should i buy pure ammonia from the pet store (im not really sure where to get it) or should i drop a few fish granules in there once a day?
 
#9 ·
If you take the whole old filter on to the new tank and sowith give your old tank a brand new filter, then your old tank will go through SOME cycling now which depending on mulm & bacteria built up in the gravel could be more or less significant.
The easiest is really to simply use some of the established filter media for the new filter/ tank like I said further up top.
 
#11 ·
I would just exchange the filter temporarily; the old tank will be fine with the new filter as there is bacteria colonizing all surfaces in the tank and they will multiply to handle the loss of the bacteria in the old filter removed. In the new tank the old filter will bring bacteria with it. But this has to be done when the fish are added because the bacteria need ammonia and nitrite and it comes from fish.

Adding pure ammonia is OK if you know how to do it. I would go with the above in your circumstances. Then, after several weeks, exchange the filters back. Unless of course they each fit either tank.

B.
 
#12 · (Edited)
sounds great but i wouldnt i be hurting the fish if i put them in the new tank with the old filter or would they be ok? and also there wouldnt be anything in the old tank so the new filter wouldnt really be cycling....would it?

Edit: wait so your saying even without fish, my tank is producing bacteria??????
 
#13 ·
sounds great but i wouldnt i be hurting the fish if i put them in the new tank with the old filter or would they be ok? and also there wouldnt be anything in the old tank so the new filter wouldnt really be cycling....would it?

Edit: wait so your saying even without fish, my tank is producing bacteria??????
The old tank stays as it is, except the new filter replaces the old one. The old filter goes on the new tank with one or two fish to get the cycle started using the bacteria in the old filter.

There has to be at least one fish in any tank to keep it going long-term.
 
#14 ·
yes thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank youthank you thank you thank youthank you thank you thank youthank you thank you thank youthank you thank you thank youthank you thank you thank you

both byron and angel (sorry about your rummy's)

but thank you very much
 
#15 ·
yes thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you thank youthank you thank you thank youthank you thank you thank youthank you thank you thank youthank you thank you thank youthank you thank you thank you

both byron and angel (sorry about your rummy's)

but thank you very much
Most welcome:). Good luck. I'm off now for supper. B.
 
#16 ·
Just really start easy on the new tank, like Byron said 1-2 fish not a whole school, that load would be too much for the beginning. So start easy and then go from there in a few weeks to avoid any casualties.
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top