Will it be instantly cycled?

[Squishiebabe]

I was thinking last night, about the next tank I'm going to get. I was wondering, since I am changing from gravel to sand with the new one, but using the same filter (its rated for up to 50gals) If I'm moving the filter over, and the gravel in a stocking to put on the sand, will my tank be safe for the fish right away? (The temp will be monitored until its the same as the old tank before moving fish & filter)
Also all the decor from old tank will be put in. I'm thinking yes, because all the benificial bacteria will be there with the exception of the stuff on the old tanks' walls, but I'm not sure lol. I could also use the old water, but I dont think that makes much difference.

 

[black_bull]

You're correct when you say that putting water from the old tank into the new one will help. The reason is that the bacteria that you want don't live in the water. They prefer to live in porous filter media and in gravel beds.

The answer to your question is yes...

If you run the filter from the old tank in the new one, and place gravel from the old tank in a stocking in your new tank, I'd say that you can add the permanent residents immediately.

One word of caution though: be sure that you don't keep the filter media without water (or unplug the filter) for more than a couple minutes, because without water the bacteria will die, which will mean you have to cycle you new tank all over again. Good luck!

 

[Squishiebabe]

Thanks, yeah...It'll be a case of, moving 3 feet over to the bigger tank once the sand settles, and I'm keeping the filter running on the ten as long as possible, then moving it over. I think I'll slowly take gravel from the other tank, put it in maybe over 2 or 3 days, until the cloudiness isnt too bad, then just move everything. Since the filter wont be running to clear it up faster in the new one, it may take longer but meh, I can wait (I dont want to muddle the filter either with the sand.)

 

[black_bull]

EDIT: Ignore this post.

 

[black_bull]

Good idea about letting the sand settle before you add the filter. I admire your patience!

You sound like you'll have no problems, and I'm sure you won't. I'm considering using sand for my next tank, so I'd appreciate if you could let me know if all the trouble is worth it. Again, good luck with the new tank.

 

[Squishiebabe]

Thanks...yep..I think actual switching within a tank would be worse lol, but my cories which I plan on getting more of, will love me for it lol. I'm just a rushaholic, and I found you cant be in this hobby, least I cant get away with it lol. (Too many disasters to date) Good luck to you as well.

 

[rdd1952]

You're correct when you say that putting water from the old tank into the new one will help. The reason is that the bacteria that you want don't live in the water. They prefer to live in porous filter media and in gravel beds.

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I think you meant to say that the water from the old tank won't help instead of will and that is correct. All that would be doing is filling it with dirty water.

As for being instantly cycled, you would be extremely close. If you move everything over, you will move probably 95 percent of the bacteria. There is some present on the tank walls that you obviously wouldn't move but only a minor amount. You will need to move it quickly and not let it dry out though as black_bull suggested. As long as the filter media, substrate and decorations stay wet, you won't experience much bacteria loss even if there isn't any water flow for a few hours.

As far as letting the sand settle, without a filter running, it may take a while depending on how you add it in. If you can cover the cup (or what ever you add it with), place it in the tank and then let it come out gently against the bottom, you probably won't have much cloudyness. If you just pour it in, you will get a big cloud that will take a while to settle.

 

[Squishiebabe]

lol, I read it as you corrected , and I thought he meant won't at the beginning. I do plan on this....adding sand first, the putting some garbage bag over it, then the water. Will that help?

 

[black_bull]

Oops I meant that adding old water to the new tank won't help with the bacteria levels. Sorry about that.

 

[Shari800]

Oops I meant that adding old water to the new tank won't help with the bacteria levels. Sorry about that.

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Hi you guys, I was reading over this topic for I have found I am going to need to set up a 2nd tank due to over stocking. I am a little confussed as to why it would not help to add some of old tanks water to the new one to help it estabish faster for I tought the bacteria from an established tank lives within the water in addition to the filteration system. Please share

 

[Tolak]

A small fraction does live in the water, so small as to be for all practical purposes useless. The benificial bacteria need to attach themselves to something, the more surface area an object has, the more bacteria it will hold. That is why the filter media & substrate hold most of the bacteria.

If water held that much of the nitrobacters necessary to convert fish waste to nitrates, you would have a cycling problem every time you did a water change.

Tolak

 

[Shari800]

A small fraction does live in the water, so small as to be for all practical purposes useless. The benificial bacteria need to attach themselves to something, the more surface area an object has, the more bacteria it will hold. That is why the filter media & substrate hold most of the bacteria.

If water held that much of the nitrobacters necessary to convert fish waste to nitrates, you would have a cycling problem every time you did a water change.

Tolak

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Oh!!! wow thanks Tolak for the answer... )

 

[Squishiebabe]

Lol, well I just got the tank...So excited and I think the fish will be happy as heck in all nice clean water.. Thanks everyone

 

[Yenko]

What you are describing is the method I used to move my fish from a 10 gallon tank to a 32 gallon tank; although the gravel and water in the 32 gallon was new, I transfered over the filter media (I just dumped it into the new, larger filter and added fresh media on top of it to fill the media compartment.

I did the same thing with the move to the 70 gallon tank, except instead of transferring fish I bought the first few fish to go into the tank.

I find that fish do not like the tapwater in my town, and although water changes are no problem, it stresses them to move into completely fresh water, even though it is dechlorinated and at the correct temperature, so I actually used water from the backyard pond to fill my 70 gallon tank - the fish are perfectly happy in the pond, and I feel there's no risk of parasites from the pond since all the fish were commerically raised.

In reality I think fish are far better off in aged water - my planted 32 gallon tank went 6 months without a water change, and even though the water was brown from tannins, the fish and plants thrived.

 

[Squishiebabe]

I agree too, I find my betta bites his tail the worst right after a water change...Great, a new issue has come up..
My subdivision is on well-water at the moment,(Hard, very high Ph) which will be switched to my lake's water very soon, and it is softer. Should I be worried? I'm thinking as soon as we're notified I'll watch very carefully after small water changes..I dunno what else I can do