kimmiecat- Here’s another excellent post on doing it correctly with Safe Start. This one comes from Fishlore.
How to cycle your aquarium using Tetra Safe Start
What you will need:
- A bottle of Tetra Safe Start (TSS) appropriate to the size of your tank
- Seachem Prime or other dechlorinator.
- API Master Liquid Test Kit
- 1 gallon jug of water treated with 2 drops of Prime and allowed to sit for 24 hours.
- Fish – These should be ones you want to keep, not ones to just cycle the tank. You should have enough fish to sustain the bacteria from TSS. This will depend on tank size and the type of fish you are getting. Example: 20 gallon tank is good for 1 group of 6 to 8 Long Fin Zebra or Leopard Danio, which is a perfect group to start out with.
What you will not need:
- Bottled ammonia – This will kill the good bacteria in TSS. TSS is meant to be used with fish.
- Ammonia Binder – Adding AmoLoc or other similar product to the tank during the cycling process will remove the ammonia needed to sustain the nitrifying bacteria.
- Chemicals to raise the pH - Unless you are starting a cichlid tank, or have pH below 7 from the tap, do not add anything to alter the pH. If you need to alter your pH for any special reason and you would like some advice before you begin the cycle, start a new thread and we'll help you with it.
Getting Ready - : Fill tank with water and add filter,
heater,
thermometer,
substrate and ornaments. Dose with
Prime to remove
chlorine or chloramines. Watch tank for any leaks and ensure filter is working properly.
Note: if you are using
sand for a substrate, extra time may be needed for the water to clear up.
Wait 24 hours for Prime to dissipate from the water column. Dechlorinators will kill the good bacteria in TSS.
Test The Water: Using your
API Liquid Kit, run tests for
ammonia,
nitrite,
nitrate, and
pH. pH should be no less than 7
ppm (anything under 7 ppm can hinder the
cycling process). Ammonia, nitrite,and nitrate should all read 0 ppm. If not then you will need to run tests on water directly from the tap. If you have any readings at all please post a new thread so we can advise you on where to go from there.
If all tests are good then proceed to shake the bottle of
TSS and add it to the tank. Always add the entire contents of the bottle. You cannot overdose.
Wait 1 hour and then slowly
acclimate your fish. (Skip this if fish are already in the tank.)
Day 1 through 14: No
water changes. Doing so will stop the cycling process. If there's any water evaporation then use some water from the 1 gallon jug of pretreated water to do a top-off.
It is very important during the 14 day cycle that you feed your fish normally. If you underfeed you risk lengthening the cycle. If you overfeed you risk the bacteria not being able to keep up with all of the ammonia, which will stop or stall the cycle. High amounts of ammonia can hinder the nitrifying bacteria.
TSS is designed to facilitate a safe and effective cycle while fish are in the tank. The water chemistry is going to be all over the place during the first week or so and will settle down during the second week. There's no point in running any tests during the 14 day cycle unless you notice visual signs of distress or illness in your fish, which should not happen.
Day 15: Do a regular water change being careful not to disturb the substrate. Allow another week or more for the nitrifying bacteria to settle and stabilize in and on the bio-media of your filter before you begin regular
gravel cleanings.
kimmiecat- this is spot on. Hope it helps and cuts the confusion down. Good luck. Let me know if I can help any further.
