New 30 Gallons Tank, How To Used Tetra Safe Start

Hello, and good morning to everyone:

First of all, I am new so I really don't have experience as an aquarist. I have a new 30 gallons tank, dimensions are 36" L x 12.5" W x 17" H. I got a Marineland Bio-Wheel PENGUIN 200 for up to 50 gallons aquarium. I put double filter cartridge by suggested in the instructions. I filled my tank, put the indicated amount for a 30 gallons tank of this products (recommended by the pet store person): Tetra Aqua Safe (to make tap water safe), API Stress Coat + (to help reduce fish stress and help with the slime coat) and Pristine (natural organic Waste Management). I was under the wrong impression that after those 3, my water was safe to put fish in and I would have jump start my cycle...(realized I was misinform, or so I think). My tank was empty with the filter running for about 2 days and yesterday I add some fish to help with the cycle. So I am a little confuse because every pet store I go they tell me something different and I don't know what product I REALLY need and which products they are just trying to sell me. I have been seen a lot of recommendations of the Tetra Safe Start here and I would REALLY APPRECIATE if somebody can explain to me how this work and exactly which products I really need to help my new tank cycle. I don't want to be putting chemicals in the water that are not needed. I will like to cycle my tank in the fastest but safe way possible. Please Help me...

 

If you do a fish in cycle, you can either try to control the ammonia until the bacteria develops naturally or you can buy it.

Tetra safestart plus is the aquatic bacteria you are trying to grow. If you add it before your ammonia is 3 ppm then all you will need to do is add it and leave it for about 1 week. Every couple of days, you should test your nitrates and do a small water change if they're too high. Do not use this product with any kind of ammonia controller like ammo lock.

If you choose to do it so the bacteria develops on it's own, you'll need to use prime or ammo lock regularly to detoxify the ammonia and do frequent water changes to keep the ammonia and other things under control.

 

If you do a fish in cycle, you can either try to control the ammonia until the bacteria develops naturally or you can buy it.

Tetra safestart plus is the aquatic bacteria you are trying to grow. If you add it before your ammonia is 3 ppm then all you will need to do is add it and leave it for about 1 week. Every couple of days, you should test your nitrates and do a small water change if they're too high. Do not use this product with any kind of ammonia controller like ammo lock.

If you choose to do it so the bacteria develops on it's own, you'll need to use prime or ammo lock regularly to detoxify the ammonia and do frequent water changes to keep the ammonia and other things under control.

OK so I am going to buy it. Now .. question, Is safe to put it in the water with my fish? I'm guessing yes but I just want to be absolutely sure I am not going to hurt my little friends.

 

Welcome to FishLore!

Okay, lets start with the products you have purchased first. Tetra AquaSafe and Stress Coat are both water conditioners, meaning the remove chlorine, chloramines and heavy metals from the water. But unlike AquaSafe, Stress Coat also contains aloe. But you do not need to use both products, one or the other would be fine. If you want to have the also added to the water, use stress coat, if you don't want the aloe added to the water, use AquaSafe. Really, there is no need for the aloe. I imagine if your fish had their gills burned by elevated ammonia levels, the aloe would be soothing, but other than that, there is no real need.

But that said, many members (myself included) use Prime as our water conditioner. Prime, like the others will remove chlorine, chlorimines and heavy metals from the water. But a standard dose of Prime will also detox up to 1ppm of ammonia and/or nitrites for 24 hours. Plus because Prime is so concentrated you only need 2 drops per gallon (though I always use 3 drops per gallon just to be on the safe side).

As far as the Pristine, I'm not familiar with the product, but just from the description it sounds like another product called StressZyme. These products are supposed to break down sludge in the substrate (does anyone really have any sludge in their substrate?) and will not help with your cycling of the tank. But don't feel bad, I think every fish keeper has a used once bottle of StressZyme (or in your case Pristine). It seems like a right of passage to buy a bottle of it, only to realize after one use it isn't needed, but because you used it once, you can't return it.

If you are not fully aware of the nitrogen cycle, I highly recommend you read up on it (The words should blue, and they would be a link to an article explaining it. The system may only create the link one time per thread, so if it's not blue in this post, just go up to your psot and click the blue word "cycle"). The nitrogen cycle is the most important thing to understand when keeping fish.

Now on to the last part...cycling the tank. Hopefully at this point you are aware of how the cycle works. In a cycled tank there is bacteria in your filter media that "converts" the toxic ammonia your fish are constantly producing into toxic nitrite and there is a second bacteria living in your filter media that "converts" that toxic nitrite into far less toxic nitrate. So you will need to develop those two bacteria colonies. Once ammonia is present in the water for several weeks, the ammonia "converting" bacteria develop in your filter media. But until the colony develops, your ammonia levels will keep rising. If you are cycling with fish in the tank (they would be the source of the ammonia) the levels can get so high the fish will be killed.

But if somehow the fish manage to get thru the ammonia phase of the cycle, now they have to deal with the nitrite stage. Once the ammonia converting bacteria colony develops, your ammonia level will drop to 0ppm. But since all the ammonia was now converted into nitrites, you have a tank with toxic nitrites which can also kill your fish. But after several weeks of having nitrites in the water, that second bacteria will develop that converts the nitrite into nitrates. Your nitrite will now drop to 0ppm. But because fish constantly produce ammonia, which is constantly converted into nitrite, which is then constantly converted into nitrates...your nitrates levels keep rising. So you perform weekly partial water changes to keep you nitrates under 20ppm at all times (assuming you have 0ppm nitrates in your tap water).

Tetra SafeStart is basically a bottle of the bacteria that would develop over the course of several weeks to cycle your tank. I'm a big fan of TSS and have used it many times myself. It is by far the easiest way to cycle a tank with fish. If you want to use it here is what you would need to do:
1) Since your tank is already set up with water, just add an entire, well shaken appropriate size bottle of SafeStart, then immediately add some fish. (Tetra recommend 1" of fish per 10 gallon of water). So for your 30 gallon tank you could start with 3 fish.
2) Do nothing but feed your fish for the next 14 days. On day 14 test your water and if all worked correctly, you'll have a cycled tank. (i.e. 0ppm ammonia, 0ppm nitrites and some nitrates).
3) You can now slowly finish stocking your tank (maybe two or three fish, depending on size) every 10 to 14 days until you are fully stocked.

One word of caution, you cannot add TSS less than 24 hours after any water conditioner has been used. It can cause the TSS to fail. So if you need to top off your tank before adding TSS, make sure you do it 24 hours in advance.

Well sorry for such a long post, but I was trying to be through.

Best of luck and ask any additional questions you may have.

 

Welcome to FishLore!

Okay, lets start with the products you have purchased first. Tetra AquaSafe and Stress Coat are both water conditioners, meaning the remove chlorine, chloramines and heavy metals from the water. But unlike AquaSafe, Stress Coat also contains aloe. But you do not need to use both products, one or the other would be fine. If you want to have the also added to the water, use stress coat, if you don't want the aloe added to the water, use AquaSafe. Really, there is no need for the aloe. I imagine if your fish had their gills burned by elevated ammonia levels, the aloe would be soothing, but other than that, there is no real need.

But that said, many members (myself included) use Prime as our water conditioner. Prime, like the others will remove chlorine, chlorimines and heavy metals from the water. But a standard dose of Prime will also detox up to 1ppm of ammonia and/or nitrites for 24 hours. Plus because Prime is so concentrated you only need 2 drops per gallon (though I always use 3 drops per gallon just to be on the safe side).

As far as the Pristine, I'm not familiar with the product, but just from the description it sounds like another product called StressZyme. These products are supposed to break down sludge in the substrate (does anyone really have any sludge in their substrate?) and will not help with your cycling of the tank. But don't feel bad, I think every fish keeper has a used once bottle of StressZyme (or in your case Pristine). It seems like a right of passage to buy a bottle of it, only to realize after one use it isn't needed, but because you used it once, you can't return it.

If you are not fully aware of the nitrogen cycle, I highly recommend you read up on it (The words should blue, and they would be a link to an article explaining it. The system may only create the link one time per thread, so if it's not blue in this post, just go up to your psot and click the blue word "cycle"). The nitrogen cycle is the most important thing to understand when keeping fish.

Now on to the last part...cycling the tank. Hopefully at this point you are aware of how the cycle works. In a cycled tank there is bacteria in your filter media that "converts" the toxic ammonia your fish are constantly producing into toxic nitrite and there is a second bacteria living in your filter media that "converts" that toxic nitrite into far less toxic nitrate. So you will need to develop those two bacteria colonies. Once ammonia is present in the water for several weeks, the ammonia "converting" bacteria develop in your filter media. But until the colony develops, your ammonia levels will keep rising. If you are cycling with fish in the tank (they would be the source of the ammonia) the levels can get so high the fish will be killed.

But if somehow the fish manage to get thru the ammonia phase of the cycle, now they have to deal with the nitrite stage. Once the ammonia converting bacteria colony develops, your ammonia level will drop to 0ppm. But since all the ammonia was now converted into nitrites, you have a tank with toxic nitrites which can also kill your fish. But after several weeks of having nitrites in the water, that second bacteria will develop that converts the nitrite into nitrates. Your nitrite will now drop to 0ppm. But because fish constantly produce ammonia, which is constantly converted into nitrite, which is then constantly converted into nitrates...your nitrates levels keep rising. So you perform weekly partial water changes to keep you nitrates under 20ppm at all times (assuming you have 0ppm nitrates in your tap water).

Tetra SafeStart is basically a bottle of the bacteria that would develop over the course of several weeks to cycle your tank. I'm a big fan of TSS and have used it many times myself. It is by far the easiest way to cycle a tank with fish. If you want to use it here is what you would need to do:
1) Since your tank is already set up with water, just add an entire, well shaken appropriate size bottle of SafeStart, then immediately add some fish. (Tetra recommend 1" of fish per 10 gallon of water). So for your 30 gallon tank you could start with 3 fish.
2) Do nothing but feed your fish for the next 14 days. On day 14 test your water and if all worked correctly, you'll have a cycled tank. (i.e. 0ppm ammonia, 0ppm nitrites and some nitrates).
3) You can now slowly finish stocking your tank (maybe two or three fish, depending on size) every 10 to 14 days until you are fully stocked.

One word of caution, you cannot add TSS less than 24 hours after any water conditioner has been used. It can cause the TSS to fail. So if you need to top off your tank before adding TSS, make sure you do it 24 hours in advance.

Well sorry for such a long post, but I was trying to be through.

Best of luck and ask any additional questions you may have.

I REALLY LOVE the long response. When we are new we are afraid to make mistakes, (we will anyway ) but understanding is a VERY important part of learning and being successful at keeping an aquarium ( or anything in life for real). So thank you so much for being so through. Now the questions... I have not put any chemicals or anything in my tank since Thursday, so I think it will be safe to put the TSS tonight after work. (correct me if I am wrong please) What should I do with the fish I have in the tank right now? do you suggest I take out some of my fish and let only 3? I have 5 red eye tetras and my snail pet Garry. (again pet store person said snails are strong and I could put it there) I have a 10 gallon tank with some fish right now but I am fighting a small snail infestation and I didn't want to mix anything from that tank to the new one trying to avoid any possibility of infestation on my 30 gallon tank. To be honest that problem with the snails is driving me crazy, I haven't find a way to control them and they reproduce like crazy. I had to clear the tank almost completely. How I got the snails? I got natural plants (that I love by the way) but one of them was attached to a wood piece and I think that's how they got to my tank. I can't find a way to get rid of them and that is very frustrating because my fish in that tank are suppose to be moved to the new tank once is cycle but again... I am afraid to move the infestation with the fish or plants or even décor. Please give me some advice on all this again... is GREATLY APPRECIATED!!! Thank you soo so soo much.
Sol

 

This is what you do. So easy.
Make sure that you have Plus ( +), and .
Get your tank fully setup.
Once fully setup, add the Seachem .
Wait 24hrs then add the whole bottle of TSS+...yes the whole bottle. The TSS is a one shot deal, and once you open the bottle, the bacteria will start to die off. Also it's best to get the big bottle. Make sure that you shake the mess out of the TSS.
Once that you put the TSS in, it's best to add your fish within 30-45 minutes. It's best to start with only a few fish at first.
For the next two weeks you don't have to do anything but sit back, relax, watch your fish, observe, and feed them.
Don't do any water changes, no testing, and no topping off evaporated water. All you are gonna do is feed them...that's it.
After two weeks is up, do a water change of about 50-75%, then test your water, and you should be cycled.

Note: The reason why I say don't test thewater, is because the test will show crazyreadings during the process, and you may think that it not working, and you may do something to try to "fix" it. Let the TSS doits majic.
Some people will say that after a week you may be cycled, and that you should do a water change after a week...DO NOT DO THIS. The TSS+ is not meant to work that way. You must give it two weeks, and not do anything but feed your fish...I can't emphasize this enough.
If you use the TSS within 24 hours of the Prime, it's possible that you will kill the bacteria that's in the TSS

 

This is what you do. So easy.
Make sure that you have Plus ( +), and .
Get your tank fully setup.
Once fully setup, add the Seachem .
Wait 24hrs then add the whole bottle of TSS+...yes the whole bottle. The TSS is a one shot deal, and once you open the bottle, the bacteria will start to die off. Also it's best to get the big bottle. Make sure that you shake the mess out of the TSS.
Once that you put the TSS in, it's best to add your fish within 30-45 minutes. It's best to start with only a few fish at first.
For the next two weeks you don't have to do anything but sit back, relax, watch your fish, observe, and feed them.
Don't do any water changes, no testing, and no topping off evaporated water. All you are gonna do is feed them...that's it.
After two weeks is up, do a water change of about 50-75%, then test your water, and you should be cycled.

Note: The reason why I say don't test thewater, is because the test will show crazyreadings during the process, and you may think that it not working, and you may do something to try to "fix" it. Let the TSS doits majic.
Some people will say that after a week you may be cycled, and that you should do a water change after a week...DO NOT DO THIS. The TSS+ is not meant to work that way. You must give it two weeks, and not do anything but feed your fish...I can't emphasize this enough.
If you use the TSS within 24 hours of the Prime, it's possible that you will kill the bacteria that's in the TSS

OK.. So after 2 week a huge water change? why? to get rid of the nitrate I'm guessing... it won't get rid of the bacteria I have been growing right lol (sorry for my lack of knowledge)
do I have to take the fish I have in the tank out to put the TSS? or it won't hurt them? I know.. I was silly and I couldn't resist to put something in it. I have 5 red eye tetras and a golden snail.

 

It will help get rid of the ammonia and to lower the nitrates.
You will not lose any beneficial bacteria doing water changes. Most people do weekly water changes, some people may go longer in between water changes. A lot depends on your particular situation.
You can keep the fish in while using the TDS+, its supposed to be used with fish.

 

The 2 posts on TetraSafeStart is great advice, only thing left out is add it directly to your filter, that’s where you want it to attach itself to start to colonize.

And please buy an API master test kit. The test strips are worthless IMO.

After the 14 days you will want to test to ensure your ammonia/nitrites are 0. And you’ll want to know your nitrate levels.

 

The 2 posts on TetraSafeStart is great advice, only thing left out is add it directly to your filter, that’s where you want it to attach itself to start to colonize.

And please buy an API master test kit. The test strips are worthless IMO.

After the 14 days you will want to test to ensure your ammonia/nitrites are 0. And you’ll want to know your nitrate levels.

I already order my apI master kit from amazon.. should be here in a couple days directly to the filter... got it... just in the filter or part in the filter and part over the decorations?

 

add it directly to your filter,

You can do this, but it works just as good by pouring it directly into the tank. Did it like that three times, worked like a charm.

 

In the filter on the upstream side so it flows through your media where your beneficial bacteria will eventually grow.

IMO the amount of B.B. on decorations, in the substrate is minimal compared to your filter.

I do have a couple of tanks with old school underground filters. In that case I believe there is more B.B. in the substrate since the water flows through it. But not more than the filter media.

 

Okay, so you currently have fish in the tank you want to cycle using TSS+.

So that will change things a little bit. Here's what you should do:
1) do a large water change to get ammonia down as close to 0ppm as possible
2) Wait 24 hours
3) Pour in an entire, well shaken, appropriate size bottle of TSS+
4) Do nothing for 14 days but feed your fish
5) Test on day 14 and you should be cycled.

BTW, Tetra recommend pouring the TSS right into the tank, not the filter. I don't know that pouring directly into the filter will hurt anything, but it is not necessary. I've always poured directly into the tank.

 

Follow the above but make sure you shake TSS first. After the two weeks, begin weekly water changes doing aaminimum of 25 percent a week. Your filter no doubt has instructions to replace the cartridges monthly. I wouldn't. As mentioned you'll be doing a water change 2 weeks after adding the TSS. Don't pour the old water out into the sink or anyplace until you use it to rince the old filter media in it (Never rinse it with tap water). Then put it back in your filter. If you do replace the media with new at some point, don't replace all of it at once. Do some one week and the rest a couple weeks later. You're on the right track.

 

Follow the above but make sure you shake TSS first. After the two weeks, begin weekly water changes doing aaminimum of 25 percent a week. Your filter no doubt has instructions to replace the cartridges monthly. I wouldn't. As mentioned you'll be doing a water change 2 weeks after adding the TSS. Don't pour the old water out into the sink or anyplace until you use it to rince the old filter media in it (Never rinse it with tap water). Then put it back in your filter. If you do replace the media with new at some point, don't replace all of it at once. Do some one week and the rest a couple weeks later. You're on the right track.

When you say "replace the media " you still talking about the filter cartridge right? My filter can fit 2 cartridge for keeping bacteria purpose ... so I put 2 filters in there.
Another question,... my tank have been up since Thursday, add the fish last night for the first time...do I still need to do that 25% Water change before putting the TSS?

 

Yes to the first question. Test your ammonia and post the results before I answer the second question

 

Yes to the first question. Test your ammonia and post the results before I answer the second question

I ordered my test kit at amazon but I still haven't received it yet. I can stop at the pet store after work and get an ammonia test kit and test it, then I will post my result. Any suggestion what ammonia test I should get? The kit I order through amazon is the API FRESHWATER MASTER TEST KIT but I ordered august 7 and its not been deliver until august 13-17.

 

I would say if you were going to add the TSS+ now, that would be fine. But if you are not doing until tomorrow, then do a 50% water change then add the TSS+ 24 hours after the water change.

That way you can just wait it out until your test kit arrives.

 

I would say if you were going to add the TSS+ now, that would be fine. But if you are not doing until tomorrow, then do a 50% water change then add the TSS+ 24 hours after the water change.

That way you can just wait it out until your test kit arrives.

OK So I am going to follow your advice.. which one you think is safer... put it tonight or do the water change and wait 24 hours...

 

Sorry for not getting back till now...had to go out. Well your ammonia shouldn't be too high yet if you just out in the fish yesterday. So I agree, go ahead and add it now. Shake it well first.

 

I'd say it's pretty much a toss up.

 

Ok I did it.....

 

View attachment 465871 Ok I did it.....

Now I just continue my normal routine for 14 days correct? Feeding.. no water changes?

 

OK so I am going to buy it. Now .. question, Is safe to put it in the water with my fish? I'm guessing yes but I just want to be absolutely sure I am not going to hurt my little friends.

Tss plus is completely safe for your fish. My fish swam through it while I was pouring it in with no issues. All it is is the live bacteria you're trying to grow in your cycle and a low ammonia suspension to keep them alive until it gets in your aquarium.

 

Now I just continue my normal routine for 14 days correct? Feeding.. no water changes?

Yep. Keep your eye on things. Post the progress. If your fish look obviously sick let's us know that too.

 

Now I just continue my normal routine for 14 days correct? Feeding.. no water changes?

You'll want to start testing your nitrates after 3 days and do a small water change if that goes over 40 ppm. Other than that, just let the tss do its thing. It will probably take 1 to 2 weeks for the ammonia to go down to 0.

 

You'll want to start testing your nitrates after 3 days and do a small water change if that goes over 40 ppm. Other than that, just let the tss do its thing. It will probably take 1 to 2 weeks for the ammonia to go down to 0.

Should I keep an eye on the ammonia? What do I do if the ammonia get high? Water changes? Or prime? I heard so much about prime but I still not completely sure when it should be use..

 

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Should I keep an eye on the ammonia? What do I do if the ammonia get high? Water changes? Or prime? I heard so much about prime but I still not completely sure when it should be use..

Once you add the tss plus, the ammonia will stay around 1 to 1.5 while the bacteria colonize. So leave the tank alone if it stays in that range. If it goes above 2, do a small, around 25%, water change.

 

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Once you add the tss plus, the ammonia will stay around 1 to 1.5 while the bacteria colonize. So leave the tank alone if it stays in that range. If it goes above 2, do a small, around 25%, water change.

That's normally what you'd do. However according to a Tetra representative, when cycling with TSS, if after 7 days you aren't seeing the results you want, re-dose with TSS and wait out the rest of the two weeks before doing a water change. Doing a water change before that will cause you to start the process all over because the Prime will kill the bacteria in the TSS. The Tetra representative says if the ammonia gets over 4 or so, you need to get it under that so in that case you'll have to do a water change. He reminds us that TSS is a bacteria, not a chemical so you have to give it 5 to 7 days at least. Here is a link to the Q and A with the Tetra spokesperson:

Q & A With Tetra about Tetra SafeStart

Moderators, perhaps we could make that a sticky?? this subject comes up frequently and because its somewhat complicated, the advise is all over the place.

 

Now I just continue my normal routine for 14 days correct? Feeding.. no water changes?

Yes, don't do anything for 14 days. I recommend against even testing the water during those 14 days (unless you fish look like they are suffering the effects of ammonia/nitrite poisoning) since the test results can make you do something that will cause the TSS+ to fail (such as a water change). When you use TSS+ it is a little bit of a leap of faith. But like I may have said previously, I've used it several times and was successful every time.

But I will say, the one thing that can be a problem is if your pH is too close to 6.0. This is due to the fact that at a pH close to 6.0, the ammonia converting bacteria goes dormant. This isn't a TSS+ thing, it's an ammonia converting bacteria thing, whether it came from a bottle of developed naturally on it's own. But the good news is that at a pH close to 6.0, all the ammonia has converted to ammonium which is far less toxic to fish than ammonia (some claim it is non-toxic). The bad news is that it can make it impossible to cycle a tank. But I think I'm getting ahead of myself. But if I made you become concerned, you can just test your pH level. There are ways to fix that if it is a problem.

 

Yes, don't do anything for 14 days. I recommend against even testing the water during those 14 days (unless you fish look like they are suffering the effects of ammonia/nitrite poisoning) since the test results can make you do something that will cause the TSS+ to fail (such as a water change). When you use TSS+ it is a little bit of a leap of faith. But like I may have said previously, I've used it several times and was successful every time.

But I will say, the one thing that can be a problem is if your pH is too close to 6.0. This is due to the fact that at a pH close to 6.0, the ammonia converting bacteria goes dormant. This isn't a TSS+ thing, it's an ammonia converting bacteria thing, whether it came from a bottle of developed naturally on it's own. But the good news is that at a pH close to 6.0, all the ammonia has converted to ammonium which is far less toxic to fish than ammonia (some claim it is non-toxic). The bad news is that it can make it impossible to cycle a tank. But I think I'm getting ahead of myself. But if I made you become concerned, you can just test your pH level. There are ways to fix that if it is a problem.

Oh I'm not concern,... yet at least lol as long as I see my fish swimming and behaving normal I am good... if I see something weird then I will run here and get help ( ) I was reading last night about prime vs safe ( I think its the name of the product, is from seachem too and is like powder I believe) and they were saying that prime lower the ammonia but it really don't .. what this product do is convert ammonia into ammonium like you mention above.. it doesn't harm your fish. But they were saying the bacteria still can cycle even with the extra hydrogen atom in the ammonia= ammonium. They were talking about how safe is for bigger tanks and you need less amount of the product also because of it concentration. The difference is that apparently safe do get ammonia down. (Now .. it was very late when I was reading so I could be wrong .. bare with me on this. I'm not saying is a fact, is what I remember from what I was reading, I could have some facts backwards lol) Now a question for you... do you think is a good idea to re-treat my tank with another TSS bottle a week after I put the first one, to give it a bacteria booster? Please let me know what is your input on this.

Like always, thank you so much for all your help and time. (My success will be your success!!!!) ~Soly~

 

I've never used Safe, but other members here have spoken about it. From what I understand, it is just a dehydrated from of Prime. So it, just like Prime should only detox ammonia, not remove it. In reality, you do not want to remove the ammonia, since it is the food your bacteria needs. Without it, the bacteria colony starves to death. The reason it is meant for larger tank is because (I believe) you need to mix it up a gallon at a time. A gallon of Safe would last for years.

Many people claim that Prime converts ammonia into ammonium, but I have never heard SeaChem (the company who makes Prime) claim that is what it does. They just claim that it "binds" ammonia putting it into a non-toxic form for 24 hours. So I do not know that it turns the ammonia into ammonium, nor do I know why it only "binds" the ammonia for 24 hours or so, then the ammonia becomes toxic again.

I would not plan on adding another bottle of TSS+. If it were me, I would wait out the 14 days. If at that point the tank is not cycled, I might consider adding a new bottle. But it should work just fine with the one bottle.

 

OP, how did the TSS+ cycle go? I'm getting a 30 gallon and am thinking of doing the same thing you did.

 

OP, how did the TSS+ cycle go? I'm getting a 30 gallon and am thinking of doing the same thing you did.

Perfect!! In 2 weeks my tank was cycle. It have been great since then... I honestly recommend you to do it because it was a total success!!! If you have any question Jdhef was super helpful during the process. So we are here to help you. Just please make sure to read the instructions very careful and follow them step by step... you’ll do just fine.

 

So if I understand it correctly, here's what going to happen:

1. buy my 30 gallon tank next week, set up decorations/gravel, etc.
2. fill with Prime treated water, let stand for minimum of 24 hours.
3. I think I will get 3-4 zebra danios first (unless folks think others are better).
4. shake and dump the TSS into the tank.
5. for 14 days just feed the fish and test (and do nothing basically).
6. after 14 days, do a 50%+ water change and it should be cycled?

 

D1: Do a large water change on D1 with good gravel vac. fill your tank with conditioned water.
D2: Do nothing... chill...
D3: Wait at least 36 hours after you dose your conditioner, then dose the WHOLE bottle of TSS in your tank, wherever you want, some in the filter, some in the water and etc... Turn off anything that will kill the bacteria, eg: carbon filter, UV light...
D4-D11: give them a week to develop. no water change, no anything. regular feeding.
D12: test your water, should be good to go.

 

Pardon my rookie-ness, but a carbon filter is something different than the stock filter cartridge that comes with most starter kits?

 

Pardon my rookie-ness, but a carbon filter is something different than the stock filter cartridge that comes with most starter kits?

Yea, they usually have carbon in it.

 

So I should remove the stock filter from the 30 gallon starter kit? Isn't that where a lot of good BB propogate and remain? Should I just get a non-carbon filter cartridge?

 

So I should remove the stock filter from the 30 gallon starter kit? Isn't that where a lot of good BB propogate and remain? Should I just get a non-carbon filter cartridge?

I didn’t remove my stock filter.