(06-09-2016, 10:22 PM)Ram Wrote: Fishless cycling takes more than just a week or so. Unless you use a live bacteria product such as Tetra Safestart or some other form of heavy seeding to get it jump started, it will take more than a month to complete. You also need a source of ammonia just to get it started. There is no ammonia in an empty fish tank if you do not add it.
PH balance is also not the concern here when it comes to a uncycled aquarium. It is the ammonia and nitrite, since they are both toxic to the fish. Only in a fully cycled aquarium the PH might drop when there is too much nitrate converted from ammonia and nitrite.
Precisely. Which is why I told BhreeO to leave some of the original fish water inside the tank before starting the cycle. I also mentioned starting from scratch by adding some ammonia to the water, but of course, you have to watch the mix carefully so you don't add too much. Routinely checking the PH balance and water changes can take care of that problem. Also, I want to repeat that fishless cycling CAN happen relatively quickly if you have a good starter batch of bacteria to begin with. If you start from scratch it will, naturally, take a lot longer. It all depends on your time frame. If you are the patient type who likes to spend forever checking and re-checking the chemical balances of the water, then by all means, take your time with it. But if you're like me, and you'd like to add some fish some time this century, the process can be sped along a bit through re-using some of the old water... unless the old water is filled with nasty disease causing protozoans that caused the original fish to die in the first place... in which case I'd recommend starting from scratch and letting the water cycle more slowly with the aid of a little ammonia dripped into the tank. I may get slammed for this comment, but I firmly believe that we aquarists spend way too much time purifying, cleaning, checking and gauging everything. Not a speck of algae dares set foot in a tank like that. Problem is, some fish LIKE a nibble of algae from time to time. It's a healthy little salad for them, and a nice change of pace from nuggets or flakes. If the water is too pure, even the beneficial bacteria may have trouble moving in. Fish in the wild don't get that much spoiling and they do just fine. Another way to fishless cycle, by the way, is to simply add a few snails. They will eat ordinary fish food and poop ordinary happy bacteria food.
