Is My 45g Tank Ready?

Hey guys,

Last time I came on here was when I needed help with my pond I put up for the spring and summer. So far that has been doing great, I have a 35 gallon pond with one fantail goldfish that has grown extremely well over the past few months. The plants are also doing really well. Now that it's getting a bit cooler up here in Connecticut, I need to move my fish somewhere else.

This morning the water in the pond was 66 degrees, much cooler than it normally is because at night it gets pretty cold. The fish is still alive and well, but my plan for this fall/winter was to put my fish in a 45 gallon tank inside. I got this tank mid August and it's been "cycling" with two sponge filters, and I put fish food and some hornwort and salvinia to help the cycle.


My question is should I wait for the water parameters to show high nitrates before I introduce my goldfish here? If I added another goldfish to this tank would two sponge filters be enough or would I have to get more? I know the more filters the better, but would these two sponge filters be enough if I were to do weekly water changes? I don't want to introduce my goldfish to this new tank unless I'm confident it's ready, but I know most people cycle wrong or don't really know how to do it properly. There's a bit of algae growing on the glass and the fish food has been slowly decomposing.

Is this tank ready? I can't wait much longer because it's starting to get too cold outside, especially at night. Below are some pictures of my pond, my fish, and my 45 gallon tank. Thanks!

 

How are you testing your water?

No, please don't wait for high nitrates before you add your fish. Thats not how we determine if a tank is ready.

Make sure that your ammonia and nitrite levels are zero and that nitrate is being produced and is rising.

Its going to be hard to gauge all of this with the fish food and the plants because you can't control how much ammonia you are adding and the plants are helping to eat it up out of the water. So how much ammonia is left for the bacteria to handle that the plants didn't consume. It's kind of a catch 22 because on one hand the plants help the water by removing the nutrients but the bacteria need the nutrients in order to colonize and grow to handle the bioload.

My main concern is the fish....gold fish produce alot of waste.

Having said that....if you need to move him, Consider a fish in cycle and be prepared to test a bunch and change water accordingly.

 

You should invest in the api mater test kit for checking parameters if you haven't already. If ammonia and nitrites are at zero and nitrates are showing on the test then its cycled. I would also consider a different kind of filter, as the other reply said gold fish make a ton of waste so a sponge filter is not the best way to go. Sponge filters are best for tiny animals and/or small fry. I would look at getting a canister or hob filter, make sure it's meant for a tank slightly bigger than what you have as it's better to be a little over filtered than under.

 

A HOB filter would be really beneficial I think, especially as Gilbert grows, and if you get another.

 

How are you testing your water?

No, please don't wait for high nitrates before you add your fish. Thats not how we determine if a tank is ready.

Make sure that your ammonia and nitrite levels are zero and that nitrate is being produced and is rising.

Its going to be hard to gauge all of this with the fish food and the plants because you can't control how much ammonia you are adding and the plants are helping to eat it up out of the water. So how much ammonia is left for the bacteria to handle that the plants didn't consume. It's kind of a catch 22 because on one hand the plants help the water by removing the nutrients but the bacteria need the nutrients in order to colonize and grow to handle the bioload.

My main concern is the fish....gold fish produce alot of waste.

Having said that....if you need to move him, Consider a fish in cycle and be prepared to test a bunch and change water accordingly.

I have my freshwater test kit and have been testing frequently, for the most part everything stays roughly at zero. The salvinia seems to be growing more already, so that's a good sign. I decided to also put one of my water lettuces in the tank to see if that ends up growing as well. If it does, I think I should be fine adding the fish, but I'll continue to frequently test the water and do more water changes. Thanks for the reply

You should invest in the api mater test kit for checking parameters if you haven't already. If ammonia and nitrites are at zero and nitrates are showing on the test then its cycled. I would also consider a different kind of filter, as the other reply said gold fish make a ton of waste so a sponge filter is not the best way to go. Sponge filters are best for tiny animals and/or small fry. I would look at getting a canister or hob filter, make sure it's meant for a tank slightly bigger than what you have as it's better to be a little over filtered than under.

Thanks for the suggestion, I've looked into hob filters and I think that'll be my next move, especially since I want to add another fish. I already have my master test kit and will continue to test often

A HOB filter would be really beneficial I think, especially as Gilbert grows, and if you get another.

I think that's exactly what I'm gonna do

 

I have my freshwater test kit and have been testing frequently, for the most part everything stays roughly at zero. The salvinia seems to be growing more already, so that's a good sign. I decided to also put one of my water lettuces in the tank to see if that ends up growing as well. If it does, I think I should be fine adding the fish, but I'll continue to frequently test the water and do more water changes. Thanks for the reply

Thanks for the suggestion, I've looked into hob filters and I think that'll be my next move, especially since I want to add another fish. I already have my master test kit and will continue to test often

I think that's exactly what I'm gonna do

if all your test results stay at 0, then there is no cycle.

 

if all your test results stay at 0, then there is no cycle.

There was some ammonia a couple weeks ago but that's gone away since

 

There was some ammonia a couple weeks ago but that's gone away since

Did you get any tests for nitrites?

 

Did you get any tests for nitrites?

Not yet

 

Then your cycle never completed, it’s barely even started if it’s just showing ammonia. You’ll want high levels of ammonia first, followed by nitrites, then into nitrates.
Max Strength Ammonia - 500ml
this might be a bit more beneficial

 

Just want to point out that there are plants in the tank, so nitrate reading 0 may not be anything of surprise.

Especially, if I am not wrong, there was just some fish food added wayyyy back and that was all the ammonia source there was?

 

Then your cycle never completed, it’s barely even started if it’s just showing ammonia. You’ll want high levels of ammonia first, followed by nitrites, then into nitrates.
Max Strength Ammonia - 500ml
this might be a bit more beneficial

the thing is I can't wait for much longer bc the fish will freeze to death

 

the thing is I can't wait for much longer bc the fish will freeze to death

If it's a matter of life or death, I would suggest moving the fish into the tank and proceeding with a fish-in cycle.

 

If it's a matter of life or death, I would suggest moving the fish into the tank and proceeding with a fish-in cycle.

I might do this next week depending on how cold it'll get, right now he's ok with the heater keeping it around 66 at night and low 70s during the day.

 

I might do this next week depending on how cold it'll get, right now he's ok with the heater keeping it around 66 at night and low 70s during the day.

In the meantime, see if you can bolster your nitrification capacity. See if you can get your hands on ammonium chloride to dose the tank while it is still fishless. Otherwise, fish food I guess works too, but ammonium chloride is preferable. The ammonia would promote the growth of nitrifiers.