Author Topic: 1 week Fishless cycle with mature media then Fish-in recommendations (Read 31337 times) 119 replies

Bazza2000 · « **on:** August 29, 2018, 01:15:07 PM »

I've been looking around the forums to try and see if anyone is doing similar, but doesn't appear so. My plan (not the best I know so please give minimal critcism

) is to run my tank for a week with no fish and then get a few as its for the kids birthdays so can't really make them wait the 1-2 months for a full cycle.

I've been chatting with @Littlefish who has kindly agreed to donate some mature media when the time is right and I'm just setting up my plan of attack to start this weekend. I also have a bottle of "Fluval cycle biological enhancer" to put in over the 1st few days (I know these products don't get the best wrap but thought as I have it, it can't do any harm)

Current plan:

Saturday - Wash Substrate, tank decorations etc and setup tank with filter, heater, substrate, decorations, water (with tap safe) and let it run for 24 hours to get water to temp and make sure everything is running as expected.
I'll take water readings for everything immediately and then after 24 hours and then on a regular frequency as the cycle progresses.

Sunday/Monday - Visit LFS and pick some Elodea plants to help with the cycle and maybe some surface plants - duck weed seems to be recommended although there does appear to be some bad reports too, any advice? Whilst I'm there, going to have a look at the local stock and based on my community fish selections see whats available and compatible.

At this point I know I need to get some ammonia in the tank so advice on the best course of action here would be appreciated. I can't get seeded media ( thanks again @Littlefish) until Tuesday due to logistics of not being around to receive and install until then, so at this point I'm a little stuck as to the best way to move forward, do I need to get some ammonia to add during the initial week that I'll have no fish? or could I just drop in some fish food and let it rot and produce ammonia that way (not too sure how long it takes to rot?)

Tuesday - Friday - Mature media arrives and installed, then looking for advice really on the best course of action from here. Assuming more ammonia at some point + more readings.

2nd Saturday - up to 90% water change and get 3 or 4 of the hardy fish from my Community Selection and then introduce the fish gradually to the tank, allowing time for water temperature to equalise and introduce a bit of tank water to the bag over several minutes to give them time to acclimatise.

2nd Saturday onwards - regular measurements and water changes as required to keep the levels down.

Please feel free to tear my plan apart, that's my reason for putting it up here in the 1st place TBH. The only part that can't change is adding the fish on the 2nd Saturday, earlier is fine, but can't be any later. ( I know, hit me with the beating stick

for being cruel to fish, but I'll be on the ball with water monitoring and as soon as levels rise I'll be doing immediate water changes to help them along the way.

)

Thanks again for all the advice so far.

Matt · « **Reply #60 on:** September 09, 2018, 04:22:29 PM »

You need to imagine the flakes scrunched up into a 3D ball in a 3D eye sized space. I would suggest 2 or 3 flakes per fish per day. The other way I have heard to do it is to time a minute worth of eating and have enough flake so there is none left at the end of the minute.

Smaller fish like more regular smaller feeding so if you can do two feeding a day they would probably appreciate it, especially at this young age. Bare in mind though that the more you feed the fish the more waste they will produce, so if you have any water quality issues, reduce feeding.

Does that sound right to more experienced members?

fcmf · « **Reply #61 on:** September 09, 2018, 04:24:54 PM »

Quote from: Matt on September 09, 2018, 04:22:29 PM

Does that sound right to more experienced members?

Yes - spot on.

Bazza2000 · « **Reply #62 on:** September 09, 2018, 04:42:33 PM »

Appreciated @Matt, nice and easy way to understand, many thanks for the confirmation @fcmf

Sue · « **Reply #63 on:** September 09, 2018, 04:46:37 PM »

Yes from me too

I try to feed at the same time every day so the fish become 'programmed' to expect food.

On a similar theme, fish have a circadian rhythm and they 'expect' the light to be on at the same time every day for the same length every day. The easiest way for that is a timer, if you don't already have one. The actual time of day doesn't matter, whatever suits you and the children best. But the tank lights should not be turned on or off in a totally dark room.The curtains should be drawn back so there is daylight, or the room lights should be turned on at least half an hour before the lights come on; and similarly at the other end of the tank light time, the room lights should be left on, or the curtains open in daylight for at least half an hour after the tank lights go off.

Bazza2000 · « **Reply #64 on:** September 09, 2018, 04:59:33 PM »

Ok, makes sense, thanks, I have a raspberry pi which runs domoticz to switch electrical sockets, so at the moment I have the lights hooked in to that so they come on 30 mins after sun rise and go off about 30 mins after sunset.
On another note, I've also just hooked up a camera and temperature monitor to store water temp every minute in a database (also displays on the camera stream) and I have a flow meter which I'm looking to put inline with the pump so I then have all of the information I need in case any components fail, which will alert straight to my smartphone. Don't want to digress too much in this post, but if anyone is interested, I could put a post together detailing my setup, just not too sure which forum section.

Matt · « **Reply #65 on:** September 09, 2018, 06:34:30 PM »

@Bazza2000 how many hours are your tank lights on for at the moment then?

Interested to hear about your setup though I'm already wondering if it is beyond my comprehension lol! I would suggest putting it in the "Fish Tanks and Equipment" section.

I can't get my sunrise and sunset thing working properly on my lights so I'm planning on adding a spare led to my tank which will switch on before the main ones and off after them. I barely grew plants in a 60 litre this light so i wont be making any massive adjustments to my main lights, just the smallest adjustment I can manage on the system. I'm hoping I might also be able to use a spare moon light to add some background lighting to the tank so it looks like a sky... seen some great photos of scapes with this type of thing online so thought it worth a go too see if it looks daft or not on my tank! Look up the ADA light screen if you don't know what I mean. I won't be spending that kind of money of course. Lighting the wall behind the aquarium is the cheapo version!!

Sue · « **Reply #66 on:** September 09, 2018, 06:55:02 PM »

I have all slow growing plants so I don't need the lights on very long. I have 2 LED tubes and a tiny blue LED tube. And 3 timers.

11:30 - first big LED turns on
12:00 - second big LED turns on
18:30 - first big LED turns off
18:55 - blue LED turns on
19:00 - second big LED turns off
19:30 - blue LED turns off

The main tank is in the dining room so the lights are on when we have lunch and dinner.
Both big LEDs are on for 7 hours each, and there is half an hour at each end with just one on. The blue light is on for half an hour on its own at the end.
At 11:30 the room has been in daylight for a few hours. In the summer, the room is in daylight for a few hours after the tank lights go out but in winter I make sure the room light is on till at least 20:00.

Littlefish · « **Reply #67 on:** September 09, 2018, 07:04:36 PM »

Great to hear that your cherry barbs are settling into your tank and exploring the decor.

I hope that we are going to see lots of pics of your barbs over the next few days.

Bazza2000 · « **Reply #68 on:** September 09, 2018, 08:46:33 PM »

Quote from: Matt on September 09, 2018, 06:34:30 PM

@Bazza2000 how many hours are your tank lights on for at the moment then?

They came on at 07:05am this morning (sunrise + 30m) and they will will go off at about 10pm tonight (15hrs) . They actual where off for most of the day as I introduced the Barbs so turned them off for a few hours whilst they settled in.

Quote

Interested to hear about your setup though I'm already wondering if it is beyond my comprehension lol! I would suggest putting it in the "Fish Tanks and Equipment" section.

Difficulty levels are as follows:

1) Camera - Beginner
2) Temperature - Medium
3) RF Control of sockets - Medium - High

I'll start pulling together a post/blog entry with what I've done when I get a few minutes, if there is an audience, I'll spend more time and get a few youtube video explaining the setup steps. The main thing about all my diy/hobby stuff is that its cheap, the setup I have with the camera, temperature sensor and flow meter cost me less than £70.

Quote

I can't get my sunrise and sunset thing working properly on my lights so I'm planning on adding a spare led to my tank which will switch on before the main ones and off after them. I barely grew plants in a 60 litre this light so i wont be making any massive adjustments to my main lights, just the smallest adjustment I can manage on the system. I'm hoping I might also be able to use a spare moon light to add some background lighting to the tank so it looks like a sky... seen some great photos of scapes with this type of thing online so thought it worth a go too see if it looks daft or not on my tank! Look up the ADA light screen if you don't know what I mean. I won't be spending that kind of money of course. Lighting the wall behind the aquarium is the cheapo version!!

Like the looks of that ADA light screen, you'll have to share some photos when you have your equivalent setup running.

Matt · « **Reply #69 on:** September 09, 2018, 08:52:31 PM »

You need to reduce the total daily duration of your lighting... a lot. No more than 10 hours. 8 is normally recommended and less for a newly set up tank! You can see Sues approach below. Mine is unusual on that I have a siesta period on the middle of the day (helps build co2 level back up for better plant growth) but the total duration is 8 hours, split into two 4 hour windows.

Bazza2000 · « **Reply #70 on:** September 09, 2018, 08:53:40 PM »

Quote from: Sue on September 09, 2018, 06:55:02 PM

I have all slow growing plants so I don't need the lights on very long. I have 2 LED tubes and a tiny blue LED tube. And 3 timers.

11:30 - first big LED turns on
12:00 - second big LED turns on
18:30 - first big LED turns off
18:55 - blue LED turns on
19:00 - second big LED turns off
19:30 - blue LED turns off

The main tank is in the dining room so the lights are on when we have lunch and dinner.
Both big LEDs are on for 7 hours each, and there is half an hour at each end with just one on. The blue light is on for half an hour on its own at the end.
At 11:30 the room has been in daylight for a few hours. In the summer, the room is in daylight for a few hours after the tank lights go out but in winter I make sure the room light is on till at least 20:00.

I like the sound of this, so you basically adjust the light intensity by adding additional LED lights on different timers

I'm assuming that any waterproof led lights will be okay? Even better if I can use the relatively cheap multicolour dimmable options that are available.

I appear to have a buildup of algae on the front glass and also building on the gravel, I take it this might be due to my 15hrs of light that I'm currently giving the tank? Would your 7hrs be a good recommendation for my tank too?

Bazza2000 · « **Reply #71 on:** September 09, 2018, 08:55:53 PM »

Quote from: Matt on September 09, 2018, 08:52:31 PM

You need to reduce the total daily duration of your lighting... a lot. No more than 10 hours. 8 is normally recommended and less for a newly set up tank! You can see Sues approach below. Mine is unusual on that I have a siesta period on the middle of the day (helps build co2 level back up for better plant growth) but the total duration is 8 hours, split into two 4 hour windows.

Cheers @Matt just modifying my setup now to come on at 4pm and then off at 10pm (6hrs) so we get the best views in the evning out of the tank. I'll extend after my tank is more mature.

Sue · « **Reply #72 on:** September 09, 2018, 09:09:37 PM »

I have two LED tubes that are shaped like and replace T8 fluorescents. They fit into the old T8 clips in the lid. I should explain that this tank was custom built and the builder used a dual external ballast for the fluorescent tubes. They were held in place by a pair of clips fixed to the underside of the fixed part of the lid. All I had to do was remove the tubes and controller, and place the LEDs in the same clips. Each LED tube came with its own transformer.
The small blue LED is different. That claimed to be submersible but the white version I got for my quarantine tank leaked. So the blue one rests on top of the cover glass.

I have seen the flexible LED strips they sell on Ebay and Amazon, but I have never used this type.

I have low light plants attached to wood, and I have hornwort and water sprite floating on the surface. The floating pants cut down the amount of light that the lower plants get but as they are slow growing they seem to do well like this. I also have Espe's rasboras, a close relative of harlequins, and they did not like it before I had the floating plants - they spent all the lights on time huddled in the back corner, only coming out when the tank lights turned off. The floating plants not only make the fish happier they also cut down on the amount of algae growing in the tank.

Bazza2000 · « **Reply #73 on:** September 09, 2018, 09:31:07 PM »

Yeah, algae is starting to be a problem even at this early stage, so need to reduce my light hours. Sounds like a nice setup you have. Any chance I could see some photos of your tank with the blue light? I assume this doesn't cause algae growth but looks nice during the evenings?

Sue · « **Reply #74 on:** September 09, 2018, 09:45:02 PM »

I'll try and take some tomorrow but since the light is so small there's just a glimmer of blue

Blue light does cause algae but it's only on for 35 minutes a day.

This is the little blue LED https://forums.thinkfish.co.uk/tank-equipment-reviews/arcadia-classica-aqua-brite-led-light/

Littlefish · « **Reply #75 on:** September 09, 2018, 09:59:12 PM »

Great to see fish in your tank. I hope the kids are happy with their new fishy friends.

fcmf · « **Reply #76 on:** September 09, 2018, 10:47:09 PM »

Lovely to see your fish.

Bazza2000 · « **Reply #77 on:** September 09, 2018, 11:08:23 PM »

Thanks, they seem to be doing really well, exploring the place. Kids very happy, although the arguments have already started about names for each of them. Not the kids names that is

Littlefish · « **Reply #78 on:** September 10, 2018, 08:07:59 AM »

I would have thought you'd have already named the kids by now.

The arguments will get even more complicated the more fish you get.....though it's lovely to hear that the kids are so excited about the fish that they want to name them.

Bazza2000 · « **Reply #79 on:** September 11, 2018, 09:13:35 PM »

Birthday today and a couple of happy children watching the Barbs which appears to have come out of their shells and are happy swimming round in the top and bottom halves of the tank equally. They've even come to learn when the top opens its food time

Couple of days with the Barbs in and water readings are little puzzling. The PH appears to have stabilised, but I'm getting zero's on all other readings, is this normal?

Subject - Started by	Replies	Last post
Sue's fishless cycle Started by Sue « 1 2 ... 8 9 » Fishtank Filtration and Cycling	172 Replies 65765 Views	April 29, 2013, 08:20:45 PM by Sue
Chris's Fishless Cycle Started by chrisp « 1 2 3 » Fishtank Filtration and Cycling	49 Replies 28144 Views	April 15, 2013, 09:23:25 PM by jesnon
Andy M fishless cycle Started by Andy M « 1 2 ... 12 13 » Fishtank Filtration and Cycling	241 Replies 63898 Views	June 20, 2013, 12:15:33 PM by jesnon
Filter Media to Cycle New Tank Started by Kirstos Fishtank Filtration and Cycling	1 Replies 5338 Views	January 23, 2014, 05:01:48 PM by Sue
List of Members Willing to Donate Mature Media for Cycling Started by Sue Fishtank Filtration and Cycling	0 Replies 10445 Views	October 11, 2016, 07:47:10 PM by Sue
Fishless Cycle Started by sjames « 1 2 3 4 » Fishtank Filtration and Cycling	63 Replies 20669 Views	March 22, 2017, 12:04:28 PM by sjames
New filter / running 2 filters - new .v. mature media placement, etc. Started by fcmf Fishtank Filtration and Cycling	4 Replies 6268 Views	February 22, 2018, 10:26:29 PM by fcmf

1 Week Fishless Cycle With Mature Media Then Fish-in Recommendations

1 Week Fishless Cycle With Mature Media Then Fish-in Recommendations

Author Topic: 1 week Fishless cycle with mature media then Fish-in recommendations (Read 31337 times) 119 replies

Assess Tankmates In The Tropical Fish Community Creator

Topics that relate to "1 week Fishless cycle with mature media then Fish-in recommendations"

Tropical Fish Keeping Help and Advice

Tropical Fish Keeping Help and Advice

Tropical Fish Keeping Product Reviews

Tropical Fish Market Place

Tropical Fish Keeping Community