Filter Media Instant Cycle Question

I'm thinking about getting my 2 yo a 10 g fish tank and want to use my sponge filter from my 5 gallon frog tank to seed the new tank. Can I just remove the established filter and add in a new 1 or do I need to run the old and new filters together for a while to establish the new filter first. I am leaving 4 of the 8 live plants and all the sand in the frog tank.

 

Have to run the new one with the old one for 4 weeks.

 

Most of the bacteria that is your cycle lives on that sponge. Removing it could cause the frog tank to lose its cycle or at least go through a minI cycle.

I agree with AquaticJ I would run the new sponge in the cycled tank first.

 

What if I cut the sponge in half leave half the sponge in the 5 g with a new sponge and add the other half and a bottle of starter culture to the 10 with another new sponge? Today my son asked for fish and a shark when asked what kind of shark he said a whale shark!

 

What if I cut the sponge in half leave half the sponge in the 5 g with a new sponge and add the other half and a bottle of starter culture to the 10 with another new sponge? Today my son asked for fish and a shark when asked what kind of shark he said a whale shark!

That should work. If you are planning on making sure the 10 gallon is cycled before adding the fish you will need an ammonia source to feed the bacteria. Fish food will work by breaking down to ammonia but I don't think it is very reliable. Pure ammonia is a better choice in my humble opinion. If you are planning a fish in cycle the fish will provide the ammonia. The seeded media should cycle it quickly even without the addition of bottled bacteria.

I don't think a whale shark will work in a 10 gallon tank