kennya

All right!!! We have the tank going now! We did end up purchasing 3 plants, one is a fern, another is something on a peice of driftwood and I don't know what the last one is. I am at work, so I don't have the names with me. Anyway, did have to buy a new hood and it came with a 32 watt bulb and it is only a one bulb hood. So, do I need to find a 75 watt bulb? Another question, or 3, do I need "plant food"? The guy at petco tried to get us to buy some but I thought I would ask on here first. What kind of chemicals should I keep on hand? I saw a whole bunch, but not sure what I need and don't need. I have the aqua clear 110 power filter, how often would you all recomend to change the filter media? At our local Wal-Mart they have the tubs of the carbon, can I make my own carbon media? Seems like it would be cheaper to do that. I purchased the Visi-Therm Deluxe 300 Watt Heater, which on the site says is submersible, but on the back of the heater there is a max fill line! So can I not submerse it underwater? Last one for now, cycling, lets just say I started up the tank and thought it would happen on it's own. How wrong was I, went back and re-read the cycle guide here and now I understand. So, which would be better, a peice of shrimp or the fish food to help this process?

I am sure there is something else I was needing to ask, but can't think of it right now.

THanks for all the help!!!

Lucy

Hi kennya,
When I first started I used pure ammonia to fish-less cycle my tank. If I were to choose between food and shrimp, I think I'd go with the shrimp. It's like set it and forget it. lol
I use visi-therm stealth heaters, there's a line on it that says Minimum Fill line, I don't know about the Deluxe.

The type of lighting you need would depend on the types of plants, some have different requirements. Same with ferts. I believe.

Personally, I don't use carbon and just rinse my filter media (when needed) in used tank water. Carbon expires so I would replace the carbon only as per the directions.
I don't think you can make your own activated carbon, perhaps someone who knows more about that can address that further.

At this point, you just need a good dechlorinator such as Stress Coat.
Since you don't have fish, I wouldn't worry about one that detox's ammonia.

Congrats on the fish less cycle. Less work for you, healthier for fish.
Good luck

kennya

Thanks Lucy! I think I am going to go with the shrimp, main reason being is we are going to be gone for a week starting the 22nd, so this method will allow me to keep the cycle going while I am gone.

Yea, I looked at the heater again and it does say minimum.. Guess I need to read a little better!

Well, I think I am going to stick with the 32 watt for now. I re-read my other thread and someone said they don't make a 75 watt lamp, so I may get the 40 later if I need to.

Thanks again for the info. I KNOW I will have more questions when I get back and it gets close for us to add fish....! I can't wait!!!!

Lucy

Oh, yeah, def. go the shrimp route if you're going out of town.
Here's a great resource for info about plants and light requirements:
PlantGeek

Getting a tank up and running is exciting! Ask all the questions you need, the members are always happy to help.

Good luck

kennya

Thanks for the plant site! We have one plant that we forgot to get the name of, so hopefully I can find it on that site.

With the shrimp, do I need to peel the shell and legs off and de-vein it or just throw it in as is?

This is a 75 gallon, should I throw more than one in?

Put them in a peice of panty hose or just toss them in? Someone did mention a mesh bag...

When will I know when to stop putting shimp in?

Lastly, is there a average time frame it takes using this method?

I am going to do some searching but thought I would throw it on here and see if anyone knows already.

Thanks!

Lucy

I'd peel it...legs off, don't know abiut the de-veining. Wouldn't hurt, I guess. Not sure about how many shrimp, in that size tank you'll want a good bed of bacteria so a couple wouldn't hurt.
I think I suggested a mesh bag, that way as it's decomposing you hopefully won't have rotting peices of shrimp floating around.

What'll happen is the shrimp will decompose and create ammonia.
The ammonia will rise
In a few weeks bacteria will begin to develop and you'll see the nitrite levels rise and the ammonia levels start to drop.
After a few more weeks another type of bacteria will begin to develop and you'll see the nitrate levels rise and the nitrite levels drop.
You'll know when to take the shrimp out when your readings are 0 ammonia, 0 nitrite with some nitrates showing.

Cycling can take up to a month, sometimes more sometimes less so be patient.

Shawnie cycled with shrimp, I'll pm her and ask her to take a look at this thread.

Good luck.

kennya

Thansk for the info Lucy! I will definitely pm her.

Shawnie

whahooo another shrimpy cycler LOL

I would put either one large raw piece in a mesh bag and hang it near the filter area...or two med size pieces...you can put them whole without doing anything and it will be fine...the mesh is better so you dont have to clean up a bunch of decaying parts

goodluck and have a nice trip!!

kennya

Thanks Shawnie...!

Do you remember how long it took for the cycle to complete? The only reason I am asking about time frames is as I said in my other thread, I live about 2 hours away from a good fish store. And as busy as we are, I can't just say, lets go. Want to try and plan a little, if I could, on when we can go get some fish. I know it isnt an exact sience and the time frames will differ, but just something I can go off of.

Shawnie

unfortunately, there is no set time frame wish I could give you that but cant

I can say crank up that heater tho ...the warmer temps seem to cycle faster....

when I did my shrimp method, it was about 3-4 weeks ....I since either use tetra safestart, (intant bacteria) or established media that I keep in all my tanks...

if you can find the safestart, you can have an exact date provided the setup is correct and its a new tank...you add the safestart the same day you add your fish...theres a bunch of more things to do as well so I wont go all into it but if you decide that route, ill be glad to go into detail....otherwise the shrimp method does work but you do need patience as well

kennya

I will check tonight when I go to Wally World if they have the Safe Start. We have a PetSense also, so I may run by there. They have a 1/4 of an aisle of fish stuff, so I wont count on them.

So if I go the TSS route, is that easier? If you don't mind and have the time, could you go into detail on the TSS method? Is this method safe for the fish? I absolutly do not want to kill any of the fish.

jdhef

Basically you add the SafeStart then immeadiatly add the fish.Then in 7 to 10 days test your water and you should be cycled.

The SafeStart contains the same bacteria the forms when you cycle, so you don't need to wait for the bacteria to grow (which is what takes all the time when cycling). It is safe for the fish, assuming it works correctly, which it should. But nothing works 100% of the time.

If after 7 to 10 days you haven't cycled, you would then need to do daily 50% waterchanges until it does. I (and I think most on this forum who used it) have had success with it.

Steve420

Walmart will not carry TSS...at least all the ones by me do not. You'll need to find a decent LFS or order it online.

TSS is fairly simple to use and really doesn't require much thought process (thats why I liked it). Since you already have fish in you tank, here is pretty much all you need to do:

1) Dump TSS into your tank
2) Wait 7 days and test your water.

You can test the water prior to the 7 day mark, but it will be waaayyy out of whack and probably worry you more than needed. TSS is completely safe for fish.
TSS has worked well for some and not so good for others. I happen to be one of the lucky ones where it worked well for me.

On a side note, 32w of lighting over your 75g tank isn't really going to cut it. That is barely 0.5w per gallon. 0.5w per gallon might be okay in a small shallow tank, but 75g is way to big for that little light (IMHO).
Is it at least a flourescent light? Do you know what kelvin rating (i.e 5500k, 6700k, 10000k)?

jdhef

I think he only has plants in his tank, so he will have to add the SafeStart and the fish at the same time.

Beth1965

When you add TSS, should carbon be removed, I think YES? Also, you want to make sure you do not add any other additives to the tank while using TSS

Shawnie

wallys place usually doent have it..so not sure about yours.....dont let anyone talk you into any other live bacteria product either...its got to be tetra safe start ONLY....

if used properly, it does work..ive used it on 6 tanks now...ive used it from scratch and added fish the same day, as well as used it from scratch with established media and fish....you could also use it with your shrimp as well...but heres the scoop

you want to fill up your tank with newly treated (dechlorinators/chlorimyde removers) tap water...put all the deco in and everything you are going to have in the tank (minus the fish) ...let it run 24 hours to let the water conditioner do its job (although conditioners work immediately, they do not do well with TSS ) after 24 hours, add the appropriate amount of TSS for your size tank, with your ammonia source (either your fish, or your shrimp) ...
you do NOTHING for 7-10 days..if you are curious about the testing of the water, you can, but it will drive ya crazy during that week so its recommended to not test it...having the proper test kit is going to be a must also..alot of us rely and use the API liquid master kit as it very accurate and has everything you need ...after the 7-10 days, it should be cycled...depending on your readings , will depend on your water change schedule ...there will be a rise in ammonia and nitrites and the spikes should be small ones...so I wont say the fish are not exposed to it because they are...but the speed in which the TSS does the breakdown of the ammonia and nitrites, is what keeps the fish alive....so exposure time is minimal...some do not want this for their fish at all so keep that in mind...if you feel strongly about this, using the shrimp method is fine also...ive not tried TSS with anything but fish, so the shrimp is something im taking a guess on not a fact from me...

some things we have found lately is this

pH should be 7 or above as below 7, produces ammonium not ammonia..and the TSS bacteria needs ammonia to do a proper cycle or it will starve and slowly die off...so test the ph of your tank after its been running for the 24 hours with just the water conditioner

get the right amount of TSS for your size tank and use the entire bottle...they have them in sizes of up to 15 gals, up to 30 gals, and up to 75 gals...so if you have a 55 gal tank, id get the bottle for 75 gals and use the entire bottle...

check the expiration date on the TSS ..it shouldnt be older than 6 months old....and it should be on the shelf at room temp..not in the fridge or super heated up near a window in the store...

im sure if I left anything else, another member will help

If you are going away and the tank is already running, id go the shrimp method and make a decision on the TSS when you get back and see where your readings are then...


No it does not have to be removed ...but of course changing out the carbon only every 3-4 weeks is a must ..I run carbon in my tanks and it doesnt effect the cycle with TSS

kennya

Hmmm... I guess if I can find the stuff at Pet Sense then I may go that route. I could make the two hour drive down to the pet store this weekend. If not, I will go the shrimp route and then when I go to the pe store when I get back, I may get the safe start stuff just to have.

dechlorinators/chlorimyde removers, is this a one product thing or two products? Any recomendations for brands? I am making an order today of some suction cups for my airlines, so I want to get anything else I need too. Oh, is there a test for these? How do I know when they are gone?

Seems like the TSS method is a good method and not to bad for the fish.

My pH is about 7.6 and I have zero's on Nitrite, Nitrate and ammonia. I have the API Master test kit too.

Thanks for the info on the lamp too. All we have right now is plants. The lamp is flourescent but since I am at work I dont have the Kelvin's. Will ask the wife when I call her. I figured we would need a stronger lamp. Is 40 watt as big as they get?

Shawnie

your condtioner can be one product...theres a few out there ...stress coat+, amquel +, prime, tetra aquasafe, are just a few...no need to test for it just add it with your water and wait 24 hours before you add TSS (if you go that route)

all 0's is the result of a new tank..it will be cycled when you have 0 ammonia, nitrites, and under 20 nitrates..although some plants will eat up yoru nitrates, so that could be 0 also but not before a rise and fall in ammonia and nitrites...