Cycling New Tank With Old Media

Hey all, I was curious about how cycling a new tank with old filter media works. I was thinking of putting my 3 gallon tank back into use and putting a Betta in there. I already have a fully established 5.5 gallon tank that I’ll be borrowing media from. Both the filter in the 5.5 gallon and the one for the 3 gallon are Marina SlI'm S10 filters, so the media should fit just fine. My biggest concern would be how much BB I will be sacrificing in the 5.5 gallon, since I’ll essentially be halving it due to the filter only having two media slots.
I’ve never seeded a tank this way, so I was curious about how it worked, and if this would be a good idea.

 

you split the media between the two tanks then put a new piece of new media in each filter that's taken care of the filters, then take 25% of water from the 5.5 and put it in the 3 gallon, top up the 5.5 as you would with a normal water change and top up the 3gall to full, if one of your media was to break down in the 5.5 you would only change that part still leaving you with 50% so splitting them between two tanks is the same, you can add some BB to help it along, ide also monitor for a week or so to be on the same side, i'v just done exactly what you want to do with a new shrimp tank and I added the shrimp 24hr later and have not lost a shrimp.

 

if have any bad situation that u don't need at new tank..I say don't ever get the media to the new tank..or u will get same problem..if not like that..so its good running new setup tank using old media..its help your new water cycle fast..but not mean your water become good as old tank since u use the old media..pls chek it first the water parameter..have a nice day

 

You have a good plan and it should work perfectly. The bacteria in the bigger tank will be back up to full steam within 24 hours from the time you removed half of the media. Be sure to add an ammonia source to the 3 gallon at the same time you move your seeded media to it to prevent a die off of bacteria. If you already have the Betta, put him in there along with some of the water he is used to..

Since the bacteria isn't free floating in the water there is no need to transfer any of the water from the 5.5 to the 3. Bacteria grows on every surface in the tank but not in the water.

 

The good news is that once bb colonies are established, they reproduce rapidly. So the colony in your 5 gallon will be back up to full strength in less than 48 hours.

I read in a post on bb that the nitrate eating bacteria usually reproduce within 1 hour and the nitrite eating bacteria can get back up to full strength in 24 hours.

 

Since the bacteria isn't free floating in the water there is no need to transfer any of the water from the 5.5 to the 3. Bacteria grows on every surface in the tank but not in the water.

Exactly this. Moving water is an unnecessary hassle. I use AC 20 sponges as prefilters, and if I set up a new tank, I just replace the existing one with a new, and move the existing one to the new filter. It speeds up cycling dramatically.

Now, I'd still recommend testing ammonia, nitrites and nitrates daily on the new tank until it consistently shows the right values, so you can be ready for a water change when necessary.

 

The good news is that once bb colonies are established, they reproduce rapidly. So the colony in your 5 gallon will be back up to full strength in less than 48 hours.

I read in a post on bb that the nitrate eating bacteria usually reproduce within 1 hour and the nitrite eating bacteria can get back up to full strength in 24 hours.

Nitrate eating bacteria take a long time. They're anaerobic. The ammonia eating bacteria is fastest, doubling in size in hours. The nitrite eating is slower, doubling in size in a few days. That said, not all of your beneficial bacteria is in your filter media. It'll be on the hard surfaces as well.

 

I read in a post on bb that the nitrate eating bacteria usually reproduce within 1 hour and the nitrite eating bacteria can get back up to full strength in 24 hours.

Since normal home tanks don't have a bacteria that eats nitrates I am thinking you meant ammonia eating bacteria. ?

 

Both the filter in the 5.5 gallon and the one for the 3 gallon are Marina SlI'm S10 filters, so the media should fit just fine.

Since you have Marina Series filters, here is how to **** those filters for best results and not use their cartridges. Make sure you add a BIGGER prefilter to the intakes.

 

Since normal home tanks don't have a bacteria that eats nitrates I am thinking you meant ammonia eating bacteria. ?

You're right, that's what I meant. I plead lack of coffee

 

Thanks to all of you for your wonderful responses! The reason I had asked about this is because I saw a Betta that I absolutely fell in love with on Sunday, but was unsure if it would be okay to add him to a tank that hadn’t gone through the whole Nitrogen Cycle from scratch. Now I feel much more confident that I’ll be able to take care of him properly with my old filter media without hurting my other Betta. I’ll definitely be checking the water parameters for the first few days and changing the water as necessary. Thanks again!

 

I would check daily for the first couple weeks, then weekly, after.