Seeding Filters

[Tory]

Im planning on changing filters, and am going to run an additional filter in my tank - How long do I need to run it for before it will be ready for use on its own?

Im also thinking about doing this for another new tank - is this ok??

Sorry If I sound daft, ive only ever fishless cycled so am unsure!!

 

[arobinson1984]

Its recommended 4-6 weeks and you could clone as many filters as you want from an established filter, I've never tried cloning more than 1 at a time before though.

Andy

 

[thefubar]

If you are going to continue to run both filters in separate tanks then as Arobinson says 4-6 weeks would be safe enough. I did this when moving from under-gravel to an external.

However if you are swapping filters over, then you could just move over the media and you're good to go straight from the off. (In fact you could also split the media between the two and could cut down the time that way.)

I'm not 100% sure whether you're closing the old tank or running 2.

 

[MHunt]

Good point made by thefubar. If you want to use both filters straight away, just split the mature media between the two filters and you're good to go. The bacteria will soon colonise the rest of the media. What filters are you using?