Any Way To Speed Up Cycling?

[xptweakerntn]

Some fish waste helps speed it up. If you wanted, you could buy a cheap goldfish (12 cents i think), and leave it in a while. You can then donate it back to the aquarium, problem solved. I'd say that would work better than some of these commercial products. Even though you can't speed up the biological process, adding fish waste makes it start faster!

 

[Underwurlde]

erm, what are you talking about?

 

[Erikson45]

I've heard products like Cycle and Stress-Zyme works as a primer for cycling. They'll help speed up the process.
OR
Get Bio Spira. Excellent product and prefered over Cycle and other products as such.
OR
Borrow some mature filter media and use it in your aqurium filter to speed up the beneficial bacteria growth.

Ps. I would really recommend adding in some plants now during or before cycling to help with the bacteria growth.

Black Skirt Tetras are very hardy fish I enjoy them even to this day and they survived my cycling even though everything else died.
ADFs are sensitive to high ammonia and nitrates and can die easily under cycling during my experience with them. Same with shrimp.

 

[Cazangel]

I'm using Stress Zyme at the moment and this along with daily 10% water changes is bringing my ammonia levels down and things seem to be going well.

 

[Underwurlde]

People have mixed results with Stress-Zyme and BioSpira... Save your money and just wait the extra week or so.

Ps. I would really recommend adding in some plants now during or before cycling to help with the bacteria growth.

I would say that adding plants would actually INHIBIT bacterial growth, because the plants will readily take any ammonia in the water, thus starving to some degree the bacteria of this food source. In fact in heavily planted tanks there is no need for a filter!

Also I would say that Shrimp are VERY sensitive to ammonia & nitrite and tend to jump out of tanks if things are not 'just right'.

Andy

 

[hollyp0p]

once again i recommend Safestart by Tetra Aqua

 

[andywg]

Safestart appears to be good. The thing thaqt worries me is how they keep the bacteria alive at room temperature for up to a year (as they claim) without any source of oxygen or food other than what is originally in the bottle.

It may be that they are in a spore form.

I would prefer to use something like BioSpira, but at least Safestart has Nitrospira and not Nitrobacter (like all others, including bactinettes).

If you can get some safestart, it would be interesting to see how it goes.

 

[Igniseus]

I bought some Safestart, so i will be putting it in the same time as my fish. Up to that point i will have done 2 weeks of adding Ammonia (i will stop just before of course and change water to make sure its at 0), so the bacteria should be well on its way with the ammonia process atleast. Then when i get my fish i will add the bottle of Safestart as well as Seachem Prime that apparently works great with it and makes ammonia and other things non-toxic for 24 hours while still leaving them to be consumed by the bacteria, which will give the bacteria 24 hours to adjust and grow to the new fish.

I'll let you guys know how it goes

 

[hollyp0p]

I bought some Safestart, so i will be putting it in the same time as my fish. Up to that point i will have done 2 weeks of adding Ammonia (i will stop just before of course and change water to make sure its at 0), so the bacteria should be well on its way with the ammonia process atleast. Then when i get my fish i will add the bottle of Safestart as well as Seachem Prime that apparently works great with it and makes ammonia and other things non-toxic for 24 hours while still leaving them to be consumed by the bacteria, which will give the bacteria 24 hours to adjust and grow to the new fish.

I'll let you guys know how it goes

You might wanna put it in before, it can't hurt to get things going before the fish get in there

but good luck!!!!

 

[briobug]

Well, someone said it. Black skirt tetras!

Even..OMG, let me count back in years.....I have to get my toes out, how friggen old am I? Even 12 or 14 years ago I was told and learn about the cycle of a tank. And what was recommended to me was black skirt tetras. Yes they are very hardy, I still tell my friends today that get tanks about the cycle cycle. It won't speed up the cycle but you can enjoy the fish. Actually I really like them too. They aren't fancy but you'll get to know them cause they never die.

Actually, I never knew you could cycle a tank with out fish until I joined this forum so I guess...what do I know, hee hee.

 

[Igniseus]

You might wanna put it in before, it can't hurt to get things going before the fish get in there
but good luck!!!!

How about i put a bottle in now then, and grab another and put that in the same time as the fish next week? I'm not bothered about the small extra cost, just don't want to have any side-effects from possible overdose (though it does say add more when water changing, which i will be doing when i get the fish of course).

Oh btw, when am i supposed to start seeing nitrite and nitrate? I have a 5 in 1 test kit but unfortunately it doesnt include Ammonia (need to get a test kit for that soon). Tank has been running for 8 days now, and the strip still shows absolutely no colour on the NO2 and NO3 patches. I put flake food in a few days prior to getting Ammonia, which i have been using a couple of days now, and i have also tried other bacteria-in-a-bottle products.

Thanks

 

[hollyp0p]

You might wanna put it in before, it can't hurt to get things going before the fish get in there
but good luck!!!!

How about i put a bottle in now then, and grab another and put that in the same time as the fish next week? I'm not bothered about the small extra cost, just don't want to have any side-effects from possible overdose (though it does say add more when water changing, which i will be doing when i get the fish of course).

Oh btw, when am i supposed to start seeing nitrite and nitrate? I have a 5 in 1 test kit but unfortunately it doesnt include Ammonia (need to get a test kit for that soon). Tank has been running for 8 days now, and the strip still shows absolutely no colour on the NO2 and NO3 patches. I put flake food in a few days prior to getting Ammonia, which i have been using a couple of days now, and i have also tried other bacteria-in-a-bottle products.

Thanks

Yeah use as much as it says for your tankload and don't add it to water under 20 degrees celcius, at the moment I still add some with each 25% water change i do weekly too.

When the tank is fully cycled you should see no ammonia, no nitrate, but the nitrate should be no more than 40ppm.
(At least from advice I've been reading on here the past few weeks that is right)

You might wanna put it in before, it can't hurt to get things going before the fish get in there
but good luck!!!!

How about i put a bottle in now then, and grab another and put that in the same time as the fish next week? I'm not bothered about the small extra cost, just don't want to have any side-effects from possible overdose (though it does say add more when water changing, which i will be doing when i get the fish of course).

Oh btw, when am i supposed to start seeing nitrite and nitrate? I have a 5 in 1 test kit but unfortunately it doesnt include Ammonia (need to get a test kit for that soon). Tank has been running for 8 days now, and the strip still shows absolutely no colour on the NO2 and NO3 patches. I put flake food in a few days prior to getting Ammonia, which i have been using a couple of days now, and i have also tried other bacteria-in-a-bottle products.

Thanks

Yeah use as much as it says for your tankload and don't add it to water under 20 degrees celcius, at the moment I still add some with each 25% water change i do weekly too.

When the tank is fully cycled you should see no ammonia, no nitrate, but the nitrate should be no more than 40ppm.
(At least from advice I've been reading on here the past few weeks that is right)

I forgot to say also....you have to shake up the bottle before applying the safestart!