cycled tank or water changes?????

[Bryan]

Someone asked me

Is it a cycled tank, or do you do weekly water changes?

i'm not sure what a cycled tank is, could someone explain this to me...

 

[kev_kb]

Not sure what the quote is getting at, but a cycled tank is one where the filter has matured and your getting 0ppm for Ammonia & Nitrite with readable Nitrates above the level of your tap water, but this can also be very low or 0 if lots of plants are present.

You will need to perform regular water changes on a cycled tank, so the quote is confusing. If your unsure about cycling there are lots of posts on here about it already.

 

[Bryan]

thanx, you answered my question. I have a mature tank, but I still do water changes, only about 10 gallons a week on a 55 but everything seems good. I thought maybe there was a way to get a tank running without having to change water the way they stated that question.

 

[clutterydrawer]

i think that person was a bit confused. in a cycled tank you still do water changes every week or so (depending on tank) but in a UNcycled one you would have to do them every day!