Cycling With Platy's?

[purplesnakegirl]

Just wondering how tough platy's are when cycling a tank. I've been having some problems trying to fishless cycle my tank so I thought I would go the old fashioned way and get a couple of fish at a time. Are platy's quite tough when it comes to cycling? I was thinking of starting out with three in a 30g tank.

 

[Alexis]

I've cycled with platies, and they seem fine. People here could probably give you better advice than me, but from my experience, they're fine.

 

[donna123]

hi,
a lot of people use platy, i did ,although there is a chance of a shorter life expectancy because of the high ammonia and nitrites they have to go through, my first platy i used to cycle with only lived for 8,months
as long as you test the water every other day and do water changes as needed it should take 4-6 weeks.
all the best with it donna

 

[sussexgirl]

hi,
a lot of people use platy, i did ,although there is a chance of a shorter life expectancy because of the high ammonia and nitrites they have to go through, my first platy i used to cycle with only lived for 8,months
as long as you test the water every other day and do water changes as needed it should take 4-6 weeks.
all the best with it donna

I cycled with 6 platys and so far they're thriving and the 3 females have all had babies. I set up my tank mid April and I lost my male yellow platy 2 months later but couldn't work out why. I think he got some sort of bacterial infection and treated my tank and all has been well since.

 

[CBTF]

On the flipside all of mine died when i used them..

 

[nmonks]

Cycling with fish doesn't harm them in the long term, assuming that they aren't killed in the short term. So if your platies survive the first 6 weeks, they should go on to live a happy and healthy life. People have been cycling tanks with fish for decades, and if it's done right, it is perfectly safe.

When cycling with fish there are three things to balance:

1. You need ammonium and nitrite to "feed" the filter bacteria; too many water changes, and you'll slow down the rate at which the filter will mature.

2. Too much ammonium (and to a less extent nitrite) will kill fish, so you can't have so much that it kills the fish.

3. You need a certain number of fish to provide the ammonium and nitrite; too few fish, and there isn't enough to "feed" the filter bacteria.

In practical terms, a 40 gallon tank needs 4 mollies or platies to be cycled properly. They should be fed primarily on vegetable or algae foods, which are low in protein but high in calories. This keeps the fish healthy without overdoing the ammonium and nitrite (which come from protein metabolism, not carbs or fat). Feed small amounts regularly rather than one normal sized meal per day. Water changes should be done weekly. Measure nitrites or ammonium at least every 3-4 days. Remember, the goal through the first stage of the cycling period isn't zero nitrites, but a low level of nitrites (5-10 mg/l). Fish die above 20 mg/l. Without the nitrites, bacteria can't grow. After about 3 weeks nitrites should begin to drop, and after 6, should be zero.

Cheers,

Neale

 

[The Lady Raven]

I put 4 platies (3 females and a male, apparently this is a good ratio) in my Fluval Uno 500 to cycle it. This was on the advice of my lfs. They have been thriving for a few weeks now and the levels are settling out. The fish all eat well and I think one is pregnant. I was told not to do any big water changes for a while because it will affect the natural cycle of the tank.

 

[nogsnellin]

Whats the highest level of Ammonia they can tolerate before you should do a water change during cycling?

 

[LouiseRat]

we cycled our 32 us gallon tank with 3 swordtails and they are all still happy alive and kicking

 

[vidiots]

Just wondering how tough platy's are when cycling a tank. I've been having some problems trying to fishless cycle my tank so I thought I would go the old fashioned way and get a couple of fish at a time. Are platy's quite tough when it comes to cycling? I was thinking of starting out with three in a 30g tank.

There are many alternatives that don't harm any fish. If you insist on cycling with platies, change the water frequently and keep the ammonia low. You don't need much ammonia in the water for the bacteria to estabolish. Water changes will not harm the cycle.

Run your filter in an estabolished tank for a while.

Get some gravel or dirty filter from an estabolished tank.

Try fishless cycling with ammonia, or rotting meat.

Just my suggestions.