Cycling With Fish Food?

I just took a visit to petsmart to pick up some things to start my new hobby.
When I spoke to an assosciate about cycling a tank (She was very educated in biology, and had a life revolving around fish-keeping), I was told you could cycle a tank with fish flakes as your ammonia source? Seems peculiar. I don't see how Fish flakes can be used for a substitute for ammonia. Certainly fish flakes do not contain ammonia, considering fish eat the stuff. Will this work?

Thanks!
Ellen

When the flakes degrade and rot they produce ammonia. However, it is impossible to measure how much fish food you need for any given amount of ammonia you want to create so best to buy it in a measurable liquid form.

Homebase sells their own brand of ammonia. Also, it takes some time for the flakes to produce ammonia - so once again it is easier and less time consuming to add it directly. Though this does seem to be popular way - it is less precise.

I did my (one and only!) fishless cycle with fish food many years ago, before the ammonia method was widely recognised and the main problem is is that if you read zero ammonia on your tests, is that because your filter's cycled, or because the fish food isn't rotting?

Ammonia is so cheap (I think most people pay less that £3 a bottle) and easier to work with, plus more accurate and easier to monitor, I would go with that method every time.

Like others said - you cant get the correct amount of fish food in there for the right amount of ammonia to be produced. Go to your Boots or Homebase if your in the UK or go to Lowes or Home Depot in the US.

lucasluke said:

Like others said - you cant get the correct amount of fish food in there for the right amount of ammonia to be produced. Go to your Boots or Homebase if your in the UK or go to Lowes or Home Depot in the US.

Click to expand...

I couldn't find the right ammonia in Lowes or Depot but found this at Ace.

This is the stuff I used

That is the stuff I use, no surfactants. Got it from ace as well.