Fishless cycling

[Timmy]

Two questions on getting the nitrogen cycle going.

1/ I have a fully mature external canister filter, could I just move that to a new tank to get the cycle going straight away? (I guess I'd need to add a few fish at the same time to feed the filter.)

2/ Do you think putting a turtle in a new tank would get the nitrogen cycle going - I don’t see why not?

 

[Phantom Thief]

1) Is the canister filter currently running on a tank? And if you move it, what will you do with the tank that it is currently running under? i think it would be better to get a new filter, and run it under your old tank. That way, you kinda clone the filter bacteria, and its ready to go.

2) Sure! As long as it poops , it will. But i am not sure how much ammonia they release though?

P.T.

 

[Timmy]

Yes the cannister is on a tank, but the fish in it may be going to the new larger tank. Running two filters off one tank for awhile sounds a good idea - cloning, that's a good way of putting it.

I would imaging my turtle produces a lot of ammonia so that should work too.

If anyone wants to borrow a softshell turtle for a different way of fishless cycling........

Cheers P.T.

 

[daisycat]

While it is true that turtles are generally less affected by poor water quality than fish it doesn't mean they are immune - how would you like to swim through a load of ammonia?! We fishless cycled without our turtle in there as the ammonia water could irritate its eyes and other mucus membranes so I would object to your suggestion on moral grounds (granted our turtle is fully aquatic but still).

However, I do take your point that they could be an alternative source of ammonia - they have a great output and we have an extra filter just to cope with the demands of our turtle!

 

[Timmy]

Daisycat, thanks for replying with some possible downsides to the turtle idea. My initial reaction is that I would suspect (based on no evidence whatsoever) that the level of ammonia tolerance would be much higher in a turtle than a fish and that a couple of weeks (?) in 400 litres of unfiltered water would not be a problem for a medium sized turtle. And if my soft-shell turtle could bargain she’d probably agree to it for some extra turtle treats! After keeping turtles for a few years I’ve come to the conclusion they are completely daft and uncaring of their own discomfort if it means getting some food!

BTW I’m probably going to go for the filter cloning plan. If I go the turtle route I’ll do some research and check ammonia and nitrite levels.

 

[Phantom Thief]

Keep us posted!

P.T.