It Has Begun!

[chimera_786]

I just added 5 fish to my aquarium. 2 are the zebra danios and the other 3 are the rasboras heteromorpha. I got them from a LFS. They seem okay for now. Now here is the thing. This fish are supposed to be hardy fish and can be used for fish cycle i.e. they are going to help the bacterial colonies grow. I don't have cycled tank and hopefully, these fish will start the process. I am aware of the risks involved in adding fish to a non-cycled tank. I read many articles and one of them, which kind of made sense to me is this : [URL="http/www.bestfish.com/breakin.html"]http/www.bestfish.com/breakin.html[/URL]

Any advice as to how to keep these fish alive and help the cycling of the tank is greatly appreciated. I will update this thread regularly in hope that some one experienced can help me through the cycling process. Thanks!!

 

[Jaymz]

I was under the impression that fish-in cycles were extremely tough on the fish, I'd hazard a guess at massive daily water changes to keep the toxin levels in the water down, but I'm not entirely sure as I've never done this before, you might find it more hassle and problems (especially for the fish) this way.

Of course I may be wrong, if someone more experienced says otherwise, but I'm just saying what I know, that fishless cycles are better.

 

[Corleone]

Yep. Fish-in cycles are tough on the hardiest fish, and also a pretty tough workload on the owner. Fishless cycles just require some eyedropper work and regular testing. The article you link is pretty much the best advice that available in, say, 1980.

You'll want to review this thread:

http/www.fishforums.net/content/New-to-t...eady-have-fish/

First thing's first, you need a test kit immediately if you don't have one. Skip the strips - expensive per test and unreliable, get a liquid test kit. You want ammonia and nitrite as low as you can get them, and you want to ensure they don't exceed .25 ppm between water changes. This might mean 25% daily water changes, it might mean 50% twice daily. Feeding lightly every other day will be enough for the fish, and will reduce waste production, but you'll still need to change water quite a bit. Any measurable level justifies a 20-30% water change, even if it's isn't over .25.

An alternative is mature filter media (not water or gravel) from an established tank, which will transfer bacteria into your tank and immediately provide a partially established biofilter. If you haven't had the fish long, I'd still recommend returning them and reviewing this thread, which will establish a biofilter safely, without putting fish through the stress of a cycle or putting yourself through the stress of hauling buckets all day long.

http/www.fishforums.net/content/New-to-t...shless-Cycling/

 

[n3ont3tra]

The size of your aquarium makes a difference in the ammount of water changes you'll have to do.