Angelika

Im cycling my tank with the fish in there, not becuase Im beaing mean and barbaric but out of the necessity of saving them from my angel fish......
as per my post in a different category on fishlore Awesome surprise & some advice needed


so yesterday fish and tank started up....

I went this morning and bought a test kit versus the strips and so far my readings are:

22 gallon tank
temp: 78
PH 7.6
Amonia 0
Nitrite 0
Nitrate 10


Shall I test daily or every other day... and usually when am I going to spike? and when I do, is that when I do a water change?

Lucy

In the other thread, you said you were going to seed this tank. did you?
Those readings look like a cycle tank. I would continue to test daily to look for any signs of ammonia or nitrites, just to be on the safe side.
If you do get readings, do a water change then re-test the next next day.

sirdarksol

Given that you've moved cycled stuff from old tank to new tank, you may not see an ammonia or nitrite spike. I would test daily for one week. If you're doing water changes (a good idea), test immediately before the water change. If, for the period of a week, you see no ammonia and no nitrite, your tank cycled immediately with the transfer of filter media.

And, for expediency, I'm going to answer a question you asked in your other thread here:
You don't have to use the filter media that the filter company suggests. As I said earlier, most of us don't use AC anymore. I have my carbon cartridges in one filter filled with ceramic bits instead. Filters are just fancy contraptions that move water past the media. As long as you can get the media to fit in the holding chamber, it should be good. I've done a lot of jury-rigging my filters over the past year, since I have numerous kinds of filters, but I periodically need to share cycled media between tanks.

Lastly, Thank you thank you thank you thank you! for posting a link to your previous thread. Having that there was really helpful in remembering what, precisely, was going on in your tanks.

Angelika

Thankyou Lucy and Sir... I did seed it with those white cylinders and i took out the carbon and put them in the pouch instead.. and Sir, I am mod on a worldwide parenting community site, I know how frustrating it is when people refer to old posts with no reference point.....

1 last question.

The new tank (well it is used) came with an under gravel filter as well as a top fin filter that is on the outside of the tank. I did some reading last night on filters etc... and didnt read great things about the UG filtrations...shall I take out that undergravel filter system... right now I have them both going... so before I get the gravel all set with its good bacteria, shall i whip out the UG... and then Id also like to buy a new filter as the top fin that came with the tank is a bit cranky and old....

jdhef

Sometimes tap water contains nitrates, so if you test your tap water and nitrates are zero, I guess you had a quick cycle. If you do have nitrates in your tap water, you may or may not have cycled.

Lucy

Good catch, John.

Angelika

I just tested my tap water and it had zero nitrates.....

what about the UG filtration, shall I remove it?.....I have the other filter in use, anso Im thinking shall I just get rid of it, and get a new filter.

Lucy

I had an UG filter on a small tank many years ago and I found that the bottom really got nasty before I ever noticed. I won't use one again.
I don't know if they've changed over the years.
Someone else with more knowledge can answer your question better.

Sorry, not much help, I know.

sirdarksol

Unless you attach powerheads to the UGF columns, I would suggest getting rid of it. When they're run by air pumps, they get gunked up, like Lucy said, and can actually kill the fish in really bad scenarios.