How to Cycle a Tank Without Fish

[markwayne]

Hello

I am new to fishkeeping and want to make sure I set up my aquarium properly before adding any fish. I’ve heard about the nitrogen cycle and how important it is but I’m a bit confused about how to cycle a tank without fish. What’s the best method for adding ammonia to kickstart the process & how do I know when the tank is fully cycled?

I’ve also read that using bottled bacteria can speed things up; but some people say they aren’t always reliable. Are there specific brands that work well / is it better to let the cycle develop naturally? I want to avoid common mistakes; like adding fish too early or not testing the water correctly. What should I be monitoring during the cycle & how often should I be testing for ammonia, nitrites, and nitrates? Checked the forums guide for reference and found it quite informative.


Lastly, I’m wondering if there are any safe ways to speed up the process without harming future fish. Can adding live plants or using filter media from an established tank help? If anyone has experience with fishless cycling, I’d love to hear about what worked best for you and any pitfalls I should avoid. Thanks in advance for any advice!



Thank you !!

 

[Naughts]

Can adding live plants or using filter media from an established tank help?

Definitely. Do you have an established tank? Are you planning to heavily plant the new tank?

 

[Essjay]

This is how to do a fishless cycle with ammonia.

Cycling Your New Fresh Water Tank: Read This First!

Cycling Your First Fresh Water Tank What is Cycling and Why is it Important? Fish waste, and especially fish breathing, plus uneaten food and other organic matter breaking down in a tank all produce Ammonia. This can quickly become toxic to fish if it is allowed to build up to any measurable...

www.fishforums.net

Other methods say to add ammonia too often. This causes so much nitrite that the cycle stalls. If our method is followed, there can never be enough nitrite to stall the cycle. The method tells you when to test and when to add ammonia.
You'll know the cycle is finished as the last step of our method says to add ammonia and if ammonia and nitrite are zero 24 hours later the cycle has finished.




There are many brands of bottled bacteria and many people who say every brand is wonderful. Historically it was thought that the nitrite eaters were the same as the ones found in water with high nitrite, then it was discovered that different species grow in aquariums. The work was done by Dr Tim Hovanec while he was working for Marineland. The use of these bacteria was copyrighted by Dr Tim and Marineland. Dr Tim set up his own company and Marineland was taken over by Tetra so those two companies now hold the copyright. Other brands cannot use the correct nitrite eaters.
The two products made by the copyright holders are Dr Tim's One & Only and Tetra Safe Start.

Ammonia is becoming hard to buy. Many bottles also contain detergent or perfume. The usual source these days is Dr Tim's Ammonium Chloride. The bottle gives the dose rate in drops per gallon.




Mature media can help as it already contains colonies of the ammonia and nitrite eaters. The new tank just needs to grow more of them. Care should be taken choosing the source of the mature media - if it not from another tank of yours ask yourself if the fish in the donor tank are healthy. Getting mature media from a fish store is not advisable.
A tank can be cycled with just plants. These take up ammonia as fertiliser and they don't turn it into nitrite. With this method, a lot of fast growing plants are used - just a couple of slow growing plants isn't enough. Once the plants are actively growing, the first batch of fish are added. It is sensible to keep an eye on ammonia and nitrite for several days to make sure the plants are taking up all the ammonia made by the fish. More fish can be added after a few weeks, and so on till the tank is fully stocked.