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Aqueon QuietFlow 30. I'm more interested in what type of media you used to house your bacteria. You mentioned a sponge, I've also heard of bioballs, carbon filter pads, and others. Would just a normal sponge do it?

I installed and cycled my tank using the included cartridge, but I wanted to use my own media so that I don't need to keep buying filter cartridges, which can also harm my cycle, and so that I can transfer media to my Quarantine tank after sterilizing it between uses. How should I do this? I...

No, just gravel. Didn't have too much more room for more decorations, so I didn't get any rocks.

Threw it in. Having trouble getting it to stay down, I just let it float at the top, and as it gets waterlogged it will hopefully have less resistance to the point that I can get it to stay

Thanks for the help. Do I need to be worried about tannins? I'll put it in right now if I'm able to, that way I can get started on my partial rescape.

Ok. I have tons of fishing line, I assume that clear is best? And will do. I can add it as soon as it sinks, right? Or do I need to wait longer?

Hello all, since I last posted asking for help, my tank has since cycled and I've added fish, things are going great! I bought a piece of spiderwood driftwood, and I'm wondering what I should do to treat it. It says it's already heat treated, so I'm currently soaking it to waterlog it. Should I...

Ok, I've been adding ammonia following a fishless cycle so far. I'm not planning to buy a ton of plants (I got 8 species and will propagate them as needed to help my budget out), so I was using a fishless cycle. I can add more plants from my old tank before I transfer the fish, as there are a...

Ok, in that case, then I should be good, as it did 3ppm in 18 hours and cleared (3.5ppm of ammonia) worth of nitrite in 1 and 3/4 days. That last sentence is kind of confusingly worded, hopefully it got the point across. I'll let it sit for a little bit longer, and then run another test for 24...

Hey everyone, Things have changed a lot since I last posted here. Plants are in the tank -- some are melting, and others have already started growing. I added 3.5 ppm ammonia two days ago. 18 hours later it was down to 0.5ppm, and nitrites were more than 5ppm. Today, nitrites are zero, ammonia...

I ordered 8 plants, in addition to the few I already have, and the 2 from my old tank that I'll transfer. Ammonia tested as zero for the first time, as I went away for a few days and didn't re-dose. Hopefully the tank is almost cycled and the plants will just push it the last bit, but I suspect...

This area where my tank is does get some natural light. I flipped off my lights for now. I might go for a planted cycle, especially since I kind of need to move my fish from the old tank into this one -- the sealant on the old one is starting to come off. Not in anywhere it would leak, but a...

Hello everyone, I'm back with another update, and a request for advice. My ammonia has been dropping, quite rapidly, from about 2ppm to 0.5 ppm the following day 24 hours later, although this has been accompanied by a huge bloom of diatoms (I assume that's what they are, as it's brown algae)...

Ok cool, thanks. I figured that basically the only thing that matters is the tank's ability to process the fish waste, whether it's through bacteria, or plants. Glad to hear that confirmed.

Thanks, I gleaned that from articles online. Is it OK if I do a hybrid cycle? Basically using some number of plants, but following the fishless instructions?

Ok, thanks for the help. I just added some more plants, figured that since I'm going to be adding them at some point later, may as well do it now to help the process along.

I wasn't able to get a picture, but I just wanted to add that my ammonia hasn't been going down either, so I doubt this is the case. And my ammonia tests definitely work, as they changed after I did a partial water change

I can post a picture later, but there are very very few plants, only one little one I cut into 3 pieces.

I have a few plants in this tank, planning to put a number in. I'm a big admirer of planted tanks, so that influenced my username.

Well, I'd honestly be happy if my nitrites even start to move, they've been stuck at zero. At least then I'd know something is happening. Lol. But in all seriousness, thanks for the advice, I'll go slow on the ammonia.

Did the water change, retested, ammonia was at 1 PPM. I then added a quarter dose, where a full dose brought me to 4 PPM originally, so that should be an additional 1 PPM, so I should be at 2ppm now.

Ok, I have a 150 watt non adjustable (it's been fine keeping the temp at 78), as we keep the house quite cold, so at some point I'll just go to a 150 watt adjustable.

Same type of filter. Went from a quietflow 10 to a quietflow 30. I didn't change out filter cartridges until they had significant issues (like tearing). Also, I've kind of exceeded my budget already, will an adjustable heater make that much of a difference? I also have a 50 watt adjustable I can...

With my old tank, yes, that's what I did, although I only changed my cartridge very infrequently. I missed your last question, I was planning to slowly add a few schools of tetras, along with a group of bottom feeding fish for variety.

Aqueon Quietflow 30. Unfortunately the heater I'm using is a preset one, as it was all the store had, so I can't do anything about the temp. But I'll do a water change, try to get it down to 3.

Yep I've read there, I have my filter going, which is designed for tanks up to 45 gallons, so it definitely creates quite a bit of flow. And the temp is 78.

I'm using the API freshwater master test kit, and Aqueon water conditioner.

Hello everyone, I'm upgrading my tank from a 10 gallon to a 29 high, and I was trying to cycle my tank. I added enough Fritz brand ammonia to get to 2 ppm (according to their directions), but my tests are reading 4ppm. (I'm having trouble differentiating the colors, as they're very similar...