Tank Cycled Overnight (Fishless)? Not Possible.... Right?

[mozcheez]

So... I'm happy to finally join FishForums instead of lurking all the time and reading everyone else's posts! Finally making one of my own. I've had a 10 gallon freshwater tank at work for 3-4 years now but have always used fish to help cycle the tank.

Recently, I purchased a 55 gallon tank for my home and wanted to try the fishless cycling method. Got the stand set up Tuesday night and then set up the tank Wednesday night. 50 pounds of new gravel, 1 new centerpiece, 1 new smaller decoration, then about 5-6 new fake plants (small to large). I set up the filter (penguin 350 hob), heater (eheim jager 150w) and an air pump to help keep water moving on the side of the tank where the filter is NOT (the top of the tank is portioned off for 2 lids/lights and so I was not able to put the filter in the center of the tank). Filled up the tank to the lowest level possible for the heater (so the water would dump harder into the tank from the filter to promote even more oxygen/movement), added the dechlorinator and added some Tetra StartZyme tablets (5 tablets previously dissolved in warm water). I know the tablets are more for trying to immediately start a tank with fish, but I already had them and it supposedly will help establish bacteria sooner. I also added a small knee-high hose with some gravel from my established tank at work into the filter chamber. It was a very small amount of gravel (just a bit larger than the size of a golf ball).

After an hour, I started with the ammonia and managed to work the reading up to 4ppm (my API test offers a reading for 4ppm and 8ppm, was shooting for 5ppm) and then added what I thought would be enough additional drops to get me up to 5ppm.

Got home last night (it had almost been 24 hours) and tested the ammonia to see if it was down to 1ppm yet for me to add more. It read 0. So I tested the nitrites - but they were at 0! Then I tested the nitrates - 0 also! I really do NOT think it's possible that the tank cycled overnight, and so I'm curious as to what happened? Even though I used the small bit of established gravel and the startzyme tablets, I would think I'd at least find some nitrites or nitrates left in the tank, right?

Well, also it turns out my ammonia has some surfactant in it. In the 4-5 different fishless cycling instructions I found before starting, they had no recommendations for ensuring the ammonia had no additives. I just had bad luck in the directions I checked out, I guess. A search last night for more instructions turned up lots that strongly stress making sure the ammonia has no surfactants. Good news is that there are no bubbles in the tank and nothing feels soapy/slimy. I may have dodged a bullet. Will be going out tonight to search for the correct ammonia. Could that have something to do with the 0 readings? I mean, ammonia is still ammonia - it would have had to go somewhere?

I will be trying the ammonia process again tonight (up to 5ppm) with surfactant-free ammonia (hopefully) and test again Saturday evening to see where the levels are. It just seems too good to be true...

Thanks for anyone's help/tips.

 

[Prime Ordeal]

The Start Zyme is a dry product so can't contain the bacteria generally accepted as true aquarium nitrifiers because they can't survive drying. It does contain other bacteria and enzymes though which will process ammonia and nitrite and that explains your 'one day' cycle. The tank (filter) isn't really cycled of course, that'll take a few weeks.

The small amount of gravel you have isn't enough to cycle the tank but it won't harm either.

Not all surfactants are bad but the soapy ones always are. Getting an ammonia source without surfactants is the best option.

 

[mozcheez]

Thanks, Prime. That makes sense re: Start Zyme being a dry product. Now that you mention what you did, it probably would have been best if I hadn't used the product at all. This would have allowed the ammonia to hang around in the tank longer to help build up the bacteria in the appropriate places.

Thanks for your help.

 

[Prime Ordeal]

You could of course take a small amount of the media from your filter at work and put that in your new filter that'll considerably shorten the cycle time.

 

[mozcheez]

An update, in case anyone comes across this thread and is interested. I ended up draining the tank and rinsing it twice. I went out and found different ammonia (an off brand at a dollar store) and did not use the zyme tabs. I started the cycle again, adding more media from my established tank at work, and within one day I already had my nitrite spike (woohoo for fast!) and the bacteria was converting 5ppm of ammonia to 0ppm in 24 hours. I'm going into day 6 of the NO2 spike (NO3 continues to rise a bit each day and I dose back up to 4-5ppm ammonia each night) and am hoping for a 0ppm NO2 reading soon Looking forward to stocking sometime in the near future.

 

[Prime Ordeal]

All's well that ends well!