dmm28

I wanna start cycling my new 40 gal tank but I don't have a heater yet. Should I just wait or can I start now?

Amanda

If the water is pretty warm at room temp., it should be fine.
If it's ice cold, then the bacteria won't live.
What cycling methos are you going to use?

dmm28

Here's what I wanna do,........ I'm going to switch out my bio media from my cycled tank then use cycle to help out. I think I can maintain at the least room temp. I figured if it dropped below that, that I would be wasting my time. I might just wait till I have the heater.

Amanda

If you can get a heater soon, I would just wait. Better be safe than sorry.
Some people on the forum say the cycle actually does more harm than good for cycling a new tank. I used Tetra Safestart, which worked like a charm.

mlfly

I originally used the heater that came with a 29g aquarium kit. It was not keeping up with the temperature I wanted so I added a "Stealth" heater and it is great. So, if you decide to get a heater, the good ones aren't much more than the mediocre heaters, especially if you have the patience to buy online.

Mike

CoreyCat

remember to get fish to start your cycle within 2 days.. make sure they're Hardy fish (Blue&Gold Gouramis are the best)
after a month or so when the tank is done cyclying if your looking to put fish that follow strict needs to live like a "Knife" then i would get a heater.
hope i helped
corey

Amanda

NO!!
DO NOT cycle with fish!!
Do a fishless cycle

Nick G

No Corey. Cycling a tank with fish is cruel, not keeping them in a 20gal. Dmm, don't cycle your tank with fish in it if at all possible.

Nicolas Rodriguez

Ok i have a bit too say, this is a touchy subject so i will watch my words.

Cycling with fish is OK as long as you have Tetra SafeStart, it is a product that actually does worked, i did it with mine and only lost one fish but that was because he swam into a sharp rock ad cut himself open, and i would recomend danios (Zebra) beacuse they are cheap and VERY hardy.

As long as Tetra SafeStart is used you will have No problems with cycling, but i would wait for a heater.

Another Note, Do NOT buy cycle, the bacteria will out eat the good bacteria, then die off so you will need to buy more to keep your fish alive, its a big scam.

Amanda

Tetra Safestart is an instant cycler. So I don't consider that cycling with fish.

Nicolas Rodriguez

Oh sweet, then i didn't offend anyone ( This Time)

Dozey

Tetra SafeStart is certainly a good product for people who find themselves in a bind. But it certainly does not “instantly” cycle a tank. And Tetra will even tell you this. On Tetra’s data sheet for SafeStart they claim that TSS will lower ammonia levels by 10 times and nitrite levels by 14 times. Although this certainly reduces the exposure to toxins it does not completely or “instantly” eliminate toxic exposure to your fish.

mlfly

Well. If you have already added the fish and they are hardy, then you can certainly cycle the tank with fish in it. I've lost no fish and have finally entered the cycling stage. There's been a lot of Prime used, frequent water changes, daily monitoring and lots of vitamin/garlic additives. But, it worked. If you can't take the fish back and have to go forward, do it with care and attention but do it - not much of a choice at that point

Mike

agabr123

if you dont already have fish, please don't get any until you are cycled! why take the chance when you have the option to cycle fishless?

oh, and i 100% agree with dozey, i believe that tetra safestart can complete a cycle in around 10 days (sometimes), but you still have to expose your fish to ammonia and nitrites. i'd use it, but without the fish

dmm28

OOOOOK Just a quick run down here. This isn't my first tank ever, I have no fish in the new 40 gal, I actually don't even have it set up at all yet, I used (cycle) on my last tank and it worked like a charm, I'm going to use media from an already cycled tank, I don't think that I can get tetra safe start where I am although I've never looked either.

I'm going to be patient and wait till I get a heater. I was just wondering if it was possible to start cyling the tank before hand.

Red1313

you can start cycling without a heater. Just be aware that adding the heater to the tank will cause anything decomposing in there (food, plant material, fish poop) to break down faster and cause an ammonia spike. Had it happen when I first added a heater to one of my betta tanks. If you're cycling fishless with ammonia then that wouldn't be an issue.
If your using established media you're tank will be cycled instantly so you'll have to add the fish right away or keep feeding the filter with ammonia.
For tetra safe start in canada try www.aquariumplants.com that's the only place that I've found so far.
As for the product cycle... it has non-aquatic bacteria that eventually die, hence why the tank needs to be dosed repeatedly. If you only dosed the tank once then it wasn't the bacteria in cycle which seeded and matured you're tank.
However moving an established filter to a new tank is the way to go in my opinion.
Good Luck!

dmm28

Thanks red that was the answer I was looking for. I dosed my other tank with cycle once a week for a month and it seemed to work very well imo.

I'm going to wait till I get a heater to get the ball rolling. Now I have another question. If I only took the bio media from my already established tank and put in with a non established sponge would I still be instantly cycled? I really don't want to take my sponge out of my established tank and replace it with a new one as I fear things could go wrong.

P.S I'm using aqua clear HOB 110's

Nick G

It should do. I use bio-media from my Oscar tank filter to instantly cycle other tanks and have had no problems so far. I also use 50% water from the Oscar tank and 50% tap water.