How long does cycling a fish tank take

Aqueon Water Clarifier will help speed up the process. Resist the desire to do a water change! Water changes, especially large ones will only prolong the bloom and may stress your fish. They are likely stressed from being moved from the store and placed in a new environment. Make sure you have plenty of cover and hiding places to make them feel safe and secure.

For especially shy fish, leave the aquarium light off for a few days if you do not have live plants until they start to come out and enjoy their new home.

Feed sparingly! A good rule of thumb is to feed only what the fish can consume in 2 minutes or less. Feed once daily for now, until your tank goes through its first cycle.

Indications of overfeeding include food lying on the bottom after 5 minutes, cloudy water, foaming at the surface or an odor when you open the aquarium lid.

Test your aquarium water for ammonia and nitrite. Even if you do everything right, these levels may begin to rise until the nitrifying bacteria in your filter catch up. Use Aqueon Ammonia Neutralizer, water changes or chemical filtration media to prevent them from reaching dangerous levels. If in doubt, consult your local aquatic expert for assistance. Once ammonia and nitrite levels return to zero your aquarium has completed its first cycle.

You may now introduce additional fish. Your Aquarium: 15 — 30 Days After Setup: As ammonia is converted to nitrite and then nitrate, algae may begin to grow on the glass and other objects in the aquarium. This is normal and is an indication that the Nitrogen Cycle is established. Remove algae from the glass using a scrub pad or algae scraper. Never use a scrubber that has been used with soap or chemicals!

As long as ammonia and nitrite levels are at zero, you can continue adding fish to the aquarium during this period. But since it was 4 today I told him not to put any in.

My son is graduating from college in the spring with a degree in Business Analytics and a minor in Computer Science. One thing I thought about the 10 gallon tank.

So the empty tank was without a heater all night. The water cooled to about 72 overnight. Would that hurt the bacteria and cause the ammonia to go up overnight from 2 to 4?

Izzy the mother in her private 5 gallon tank and her babies in the 3 gallon tank are all still kicking and seem to be doing well! They are a week old today. Their ammonia is 1 every day, and I put 1 dose of Prime in daily. I guess I should do another one. The temp is There was actually 1 nitrite yesterday, so hopefully the end is near! Do you think I need to do anything different?

For the 10 gallon, Are the nitrates increasing? The nitrates have been 5 for the last 4 days, and 1 for the 3 days before that. So they have gone up but not in the last few days. Is it the water from your water change that raised the Nitrates to 5? Just something to be mindful of. I was just reading online. Is that a good thing to do? Baking soda raises both pH and KH.

If you are adding it to tanks with fish, go slooooooow. Add a bit, wait, test and repeat. I looked at the spreadsheet and the nitrates actually went up from 1 to 5 the day before my water change. I was thinking of putting baking soda in the empty 10 gallon tank to try to raise the PH in hopes of moving the cycling along faster. Increasing the pH to an appropriate level should noticeably improve the speed that the tank cycles.

Please let me know how it goes. I read over your article again. Is that correct? What you read is correct. Nitrites are supposed to spike before the second bacteria grows in number to accommodate the nitrites being produced by the first bacteria. As long as you are providing a consistent source of ammonia, they will balance themselves relative to this input.

You just have to wait. Make sure you keep an eye on the pH, as it will decrease over time. Nitrites and nitrates are acidic. Water change or add more baking soda as needed. Over the next few days pay attention to what is happening with the nitrites and nitrates, one of the two or both will go up. This is a good thing, and means you are back on track. To help with testing, view the tests outside in daylight, in the middle of the day.

It will allow you to better observe the actual color against the chart. Thanks Ian, I needed that pep talk! I really want to have Izzy and eventually her babies in the big tank so I can start enjoying them. I will keep testing and watching and let you know how it goes. I sincerely appreciate the information and advice you provide here. My 10 gallon tank is finally cycled! Now all I have to do is a water change for the nitrates I did want to ask about transferring my fish from the 5 gallon tank to the 10 gallon one.

I think you said one fish would be ok to keep the bacteria going, correct? Even though her readings are zero ammonia and zero nitrites every day in her 5 gallon tank?

Just want to make sure. And as I understand it, the amount of bacteria will adjust as I gradually add more fish, correct? Also, the 3 gallon that the babies are in. And it has never shown any nitrites or nitrates. The PH is very bad.

It worked very well to raise the PH in the empty 10 gallon tank. The 3 gallon tank has a small heater, but with no settings. It keeps it at about degrees. I would like to keep trying to cycle this tank to use to put new fish in for a week or two before putting in the big tank. A single fish, such as a betta, will easily keep the beneficial bacteria going.

In which case you can acclimatize your fish the same way you would when you buy them from the store. Based on what you have told me, I would say the pH is more of an issue, going off how the cycle completed once you rectified the pH in your 10 gallon.

It seems plausible this tank is having the same issues with the pH of 6 and it will need to be raised in order to cycle.

I read over your KH guide. I guess I should go ahead and order the test kit. Aquarium water generally becomes more acidic over time — even if you have not made any changes.

Part of this is because nitrites and nitrates are acidic. Most people can stay on top of this with regular water changes, which are enough to balance the KH and pH. I think I must have been unclear about a couple of things because of so many tanks and fish, sorry. She has been in a new 5 gallon tank since the babies were born 2 weeks ago. She has 0 ammonia and nitrites so far. So I wanted to make sure she would produce enough ammonia to keep the bacteria going. Could it be, cycled even though nitrates have never shown up?

I guess I could skip putting Prime in for one day and see if the bacteria is still gone the next day. So you said before to go slow with baking soda when fish are in the tank. Do you think it would be better to test the kh and use the thing you mentioned in that article if necessary? Absolutely, ignoring that platies are considered to be best kept in groups, a single platy will produce ammonia and the beneficial bacteria will balance out accordingly. If the tank is cycled, they will be fine in a tank that size.

After all, in the wild, their home is much bigger than 10 gallons. As for when to add the mother, it all depends on the growth rate of the babies. Depending on conditions food etc, they can grow at different rates. In an empty tank, baking soda is fine. Beginners can easily calculate how much they need, so as to not cause rapid raises that will shock their fish.

Baking soda is a more trial and error as to how much you should add. But it still works! The ammonia always stayed at 1 or 2 when the mother was in it. I think the low pH has something to do with it. Your larger tank was experiencing similar, when we first started troubleshooting, right?

Even so, I am puzzled as to why you are not noticing a spike in ammonia. Unless you use a filter media that removes it, it should begin to increase. I think the first step is to increase the pH and then begin trouble shooting from there, adding ammonia manually like you did on your 10 gallon.

Ha, yeah you lucked right into that group of platies! Just be mindful that 6 platies is a high bioload for a 10 gallon. The filter is actually very small with carbon inside some mesh. You should be able to catch your fry with your fish net. Oh, one more thing, sorry. Oh absolutely. And I probably will still be asking you questions when I do the 20 gallon one later on. One thing I totally forgot to ask you, and probably important, is that a white cotton-like substance has appeared on the ornaments in the 10 gallon tank.

Do you know what it is and if it will hurt my fish? This can result in all sort of oddities such as white cloudy water, gooey brown sludges and white slimes. Unfortunately, without paying attention to what triggered, these can be quite hard to identify the cause in hindsight. Can you confirm it has appeared during cycling?

Thank you. I had some new aquarium ornaments, so I rinsed those really well and put them in the 10 gallon instead of waiting for the filter to work on the ones I had bleached.

I wanted to get the babies moved today. I did the test twice to be sure. So I really want to get them out and try to raise it. How long after putting baking soda in a tank would you have to wait to put a fish in it?

A pH of zero is pretty much hydrochloric acid. You can test this hourly, after two hours or just wait until the morning. So the 5 babies have been in the 10 gallon cycled tank since yesterday, and so far they seem happy. I did water changes till the nitrates went way down. Others say monthly or at other intervals. Speaking of filters, the one in my 10 gallon has been there for over 2 months while cycling.

I rinsed it in the aquarium water when I was changing it and as soon as I touched it, the white part just kind of stretched out in a long piece, kind of like cotton does when you pull it apart only wet and very easily stretched. I actually had to push it back in to keep it in the filter. Is that normal? You will absolutely lose the beneficial bacteria when you swap out the filter. Especially if your tank relies on the foam in this filter for a biofilter.

You can expect your tank to crash if not done correctly. The razor blade business model should not apply to aquariums. Locking yourself into buying disposable filters for a quick buck, at the cost of fish health and lives is disgusting. My recommendation is a biomedia say ceramic rings and mechanical filtration combo sponge and if required, filter floss for clarity.

So if yours did, most of your beneficial bacteria will be hanging there instead of the wool stuff. In your filter, if you have no ceramic rings, then that cotton wool like stuff will hold a good amount of your bacteria.

As for how long these last. Ceramic rings and good quality sponge can last years before needing to be replace. A good sponge should be able to be cleaned with three squeezes in siphoned tank water.

Purigen is chemical filtration, which is a which is separate from biological beneficial bacteria and mechanical sponge filtration. It also can absorb tannins. I have a personal dislike for the stuff. There is a tendency to rely on purigen instead of good tank practices, which generally eliminates the need for it altogether. I see purigen as an emergency solution rather than an ongoing tank addition. Let me know if anything I have said needs clarification.

Of course, as usual I forgot to ask you something. What do you think of Purigen. Is that good to use in my filter instead of the spongy thing I mentioned? I just looked at both of these. Which would I use? My filter is your average hang-on-the back filter. The package said it helps capture ammonia. So I should leave the old cottony filter there for about a month to spread the bacteria and add the rings and sponge, right?

Then take the old one out after a month. Do you think I should look at buying a better filter that will house everything I need? If so, what kind of filter would be best for my 10 gallon tank? It probably contains something like zeolite. I would only recommend the pre-filter sponge if there is no room inside the filter for mechanical filtration. Loose is generally cheaper buy a drawstring filter media bag to house them but the end result is the same.

The only difference is that with the loose, you can swap them out, half at a time say in two years, when they eventually deteriorate this way the bacteria in the old ceramic rings will colonize the new rings, without causing a causing a complete crash. After two weeks, swap out the other half. For a HOB, aqua clear filters hit the sweet spot in price and ability to hold everything you need. If memory serves correctly, it comes with ceramic rings too.

The easiest way in this case to colonize the new filter is to run both HOB at the same time for weeks, before removing the old one. I looked online and it looks like the aqua clear filter you mentioned does have ceramic rings, as well as carbon filter insert and foam insert.

You are saying to run the new filter and the old one at the same time for a few weeks, correct? Do you know how I can do that?

Am I essentially cycling the tank again with the new filter? If you only have a single cutout, open the filter up and remove any places where beneficial bacteria could be such as the cotton filter and place it in the new filter on top of the ceramic rings. Running the new filter now will have the same effect. Keep testing and keep prime on hand, just in case, you may experience an ammonia spike. As for how it works. In a new tank there is no bacteria. When you cycle, you are not just waiting for two different types to appear, you are waiting for them to multiply.

So to put it really simply, first there is 1 of the first bacteria. Then there is 2. Then there is 4. And so on. Repeat for second type of bacteria. You already have an entire colony of both in your tank right now. It takes a fraction of the time to cycle with a tank with a pre-cycled filter. If you have a good local fish store, they may even sell pre-cycled sponge filters for this very reason.

Is there a way to take it apart and submerge it? But I know you mentioned the ceramic rings can last 2 years. Sorry, I could have been more clear here. Simply leave the whole filter, minus the bits mentioned, submerged in your tank.

If and when it happens, you simply replace them with a better quality biomedia, one that will last much longer. Squeezing it out in tank water until the water runs clearish will unclog it. It should last more than 2 months.

Again, if it does wear down, simply replace it with better quality stuff. Carbon is the only part they have right. Carbon is a chemical media, it absorbs tannins and bad smells among other things. Or just some part of it? All good, I could have been clearer here. You want to submerge as much of the section that water flows through as possible.

Depending on the design, this will vary as to how simple it is to do this. The ideal however, is to run both at once. Just had a thought, when you say cutout, is the lid removable? If so, just remove the lid for the duration and add the second HOB. It was 6. We were messing with the tanks, water changes, ornament changes, testing, etc, all afternoon and I was stressed, frustrated, and tired. Apparently I read 0 instead of 6. And if so, how much? Once your tank is cycled, I recommend that prime only really be used in an emergency, such as an ammonia spike, outside of dechlorinating water.

Prime hides the problem rather than solve it. Yes, the lid is removable. So having the entire top open is ok, right? I guess I could always put some kind of net or screen over it. And you said to leave the old filter running for about 3 or 4 weeks, correct? For the short term, say cycling your second filter, removing your lid is the easiest way to go about it. If you really are concerned, or notice behavior that suggests jumping, cheese cloth or something similar is cheap and can act as a barrier.

Leave the old filter cycling for 3 or 4 weeks alongside your new one to be safe. Afterwards, remove the filter cartridge and sit it on top of your ceramic rings in the new filter.

Safe sounds good to me. So I will do exactly as you suggest and run both filters for a few weeks. How often would you test the water in a cycled tank with babies? How often to test your water? Once your tank has cycled, and you have your fish in. I suggest testing every day, so you can see how chemicals such as nitrate and pH change across a week in your tank yours will be different to mine or anyone elses Once you have a good understanding of this, you can swap over to testing with your weekly water change.

And of course, if you think something is amiss outside of your testing routine then by all means, test! Oh, one more thing on the filters, monitor the flow. Two filters can produce much more current than one. When the babies were still in the 3 gallon, I was testing both tanks every day because I was worried about ammonia and niitrites harming them, and wanting to see if the 10 gallon was cycled.

I did read something about how the filter current can sometimes be too strong. I wanted to ask if I should cover the aquariums if they are exposed to bright sunlight. I read that sun can cause algae to grow, but my question is really about the fish. The babies are still doing well in the 10 gallon tank, as is the mother in her 3 gallon tank. I bought the AquaClear filter you suggested and will probably install it tomorrow along side the old one.

Your primary concern here is algae. An aquarium is an enclosed setting, and we want to control each variable. Direct sunlight adds an unknown to the equation. I installed the second filter today at the lower flow speed. I thought if both filters were at one end, the other end of the tank would be calmer for the babies. Also, since we have the 10 gallon cycled and things are going well, I wanted to ask about the 3 gallon again. I threw my calendar away but I know it was late October when I started that tank.

The readings every day are still 0 nitrites and 0 nitrates, ammonia around. How can that be? The ammonia has at times been 2. Do you think I should put some quick start in it? I sure would like to get it cycled and stop having to dose it with Prime every day. This impacts how much oxygen will be in the tank, and since your tank is a little overstocked, this is important. You are going to have to remind me of the 3 gallon, does it have a filter? Is the pH at 7? What is the temp like? Yes, it has a very small filter, and the temperature is about 77 or 78, it has a small heater too but not adjustable.

The PH was 7. It has sometimes been lower, but for the most part it has been good. Can you you do a water change and confirm your nitrates again? As I understand, your tapwater is 5 PPM, so some level of nitrates should be showing up. I was sick for a few days. Nitrites at. Just wanted to let you know. I have my fingers crossed that this is the home stretch! One quick question.

Do you dose with Prime the same way which would be 2 doses if there are only nitrites and no ammonia? Thank you Ian!!!! Yes we did a fishless cycle for the initial set up. It took about 4 weeks. I guess this is a process with a huge learning curve but I have got to get rid of that mildew smell! Did you test your water parameters ammonia, nitrites, nitrates, pH with an aquarium test kit?

This can often help narrow down the cause of problems, in this case the smell. My nitrites are at 2. Does that mean I have to start from step 1 again? Or do I keep dosing the half doses until the ammonia starts to rise again?

Thank you so much! You want above 1 ppm in your tank so that the first beneficial bacteria that converts ammonia to nitrites doesnt starve. Just keep dosing with ammonia so that it reaches readable levels. Every time it dips below 1 ppm add more. High, thanks for taking time to help I have been cycling my 40 G saltwater tank for over 3 weeks now with no luck.

Are you sure you are doing the tests right? I only ask because I have had seen three people now incorrectly administer their nitrite and nitrate tests. This was the reason their ammonia was dropping but they were not detecting nitrite or nitrate. Good work! It sounds like you are all over the testing, so we can narrow that down. Are your salinity levels in order? Hi, thanks for helping Salinity is , pH 8.

Pink algae? The rate at which ammonia decreases is rarely linear. I added about 8ppm of ammonia on day 1. On day 2 the ammonia was 4 ppm, and it remained 4 ppm on days 3 and 4 also. Its not going up or going down, its just stuck at 4ppm. I tested for ph, and it read 7. I tested for nitrites, which read about between 0 and.

Also, for reference, I have a hang on back filter with a sponge and 1 bag of ceramic filter media. I have an air stone and air pump and a fine layer of bigger grained sand. It does get pretty cold, which might be the problem, but any suggestions? Ideal temperature range is between degrees Fahrenheit outside of this, growth can slow or stop completely. The labels said to dispose of the chemicals in a chemical facility, but on online forums, people said they are just pouring it down their sinks and diluting it.

Is this safe? Do you have any ideas? These chemicals are commonly found in toothpaste, drain cleaner and even urine. If you were disposing of whole bottles of the stuff, yeah better to do it at a chemical facility. But if you are talking about the test tubes after testing, everyone I know washes it down the sink. Okay thank you so much!

My older sister has had a fish tank for 3 years now, and her tiger barbs changed colors: some of them have more prominent red fins and black stripes.

Is this okay? This is either normal or a concern. Tiger barbs will often change color when they are ready to spawn breed. This is normal and colors will likely change back once they are over this phase. Otherwise, color change is usually attributed to poor water quality and stress. They normally change at night, and then go back to normal during the day. When you say normally change at night, are you saying they fade?

Or do they get brighter at night? Does this happen when you switch on the light? Also, as an aside, Id recommend a test kit over strips. Also, based on my testing and observations, they are far less accurate.

Given you should be continuing to test your aquarium with your regular water change and maintenance, a test kit is an essential tool for every fish keeper. Each to their own, these are arguably not harsh chemicals, they are everyday chemicals found in products like toothpaste, which we also put down our drains. While I commend you on not wanting to dump chemicals down the drain, these test strips also contain chemicals, but are inherently more wasteful, and they will end up in a landfill instead, where they will break down and enter the environment anyway.

Okay thank you. Could it maybe be hunger? She only feeds her 5 tiger barbs 2 tiny pinches in the morning, and an even smaller amount at night. As for foods, try mixing up the diet. A combination of flakes and bloodworms frozen or live can sometimes improve coloration in certain fish.

As for the amount of food, it sounds like thats enough food — it always surprises people just how little fish actually eat. Overfeeding is very common. Hands down the best way to cycle a tank quickly is with a filter from another aquarium. Failing that, a generous helping of gravel from another tank can help speed things up too.

I know some people swear by them, but I have seen tanks cycle just as quick or quicker without the same bacteria added. As for the steps and products, I have outlined everything you need to do to cycle your tank clearly in this guide. Unfortunately, cycling is just a process where you have to be patient. Hi, thanks for this article. I am currently cycling my tank but I am confused about the test readings. For ammonia, I got 0 ppm.

For nitrite, I got 80 ppm. For nitrate, I got ppm. The test readings stayed the exact same for pretty much a week.

I drained about half the tank, and filled it back up and added a dose of ammonia just to be sure there was beneficial bacteria and to try to clear this problem. Sure enough, a couple days later I tested and the readings were exactly the same as the ones above. Do you have any suggestions for this? Can you clarify that the max reading on the color cards are 80 and ?

For example, they could be or and your test kit can only show the lower numbers. Hello mr. Sterling, I have a couple questions about my tank cycle. My first question is how do I permanently raise my ph? I have added 1 teaspoon of baking soda which rocketed my ph to 8. I have a 5. My ph has dropped again to 6 and I am planning on adding more baking soda.

Is baking soda safe for aquariums? Lastly, my tank is almost cycled and I am planning on getting a betta fish. What is the best way of acclimating the betta? I have heard that you should transfer it into a plastic bag and float it adding water every ten minutes from your tank. I have also heard that you can just float it then dump it without adding any water from the tank. Should I keep the tank lights on or off during the process and if off then when should I turn them on?

Here are some common problems you may experience and how you can combat them. The symptoms to look out for are:. To lower the ammonia levels, perform water changes more frequently — changing a greater portion of the water each time. Ammonia tends to start rising around day 3. Your tank may not be cycling. Try adding some more ammonia. Use a pH kit to increase the level. Using chlorinated water will disinfect your tank — killing all the beneficial bacteria.

The bacteria you need lives in the gravel, filters, and decorations in your tank. The reasons for this are similar to ammonia levels not dropping.

Unfortunately, cycling your new aquarium can be an ideal environment for algae to grow. If you suffer from an algae bloom, try turning off your aquarium lights. The Nitrogen Cycle is unavoidable, you have to do it if you want to keep healthy and happy fish.

Try to remain patient, and keep and eye on the water chemistry. The Nitrogen Cycle never ends. The process establishes your tank, creating a balanced ecosystem. It repeats itself endlessly in your tank, so you should still regularly test the water and check for ammonia spikes.

Omg i love you! A frigin sigh of relief for finding you!!! Thank you! As a creature liver myself of land ,air and water I am blessed to have the curiosity of knowing…researching and finding the people who.. I am NOT a scientist or chemist in the least. Im more operatiinal from the right brain of artistic thoughts. So ive been doi g my best at understanding the Nitrogen Cycle and well…Repetition is the mother of skill!

That combined wth so many other contributi g factors im starting to get the hang of this! Now time will tell if im able to reflect and example what ive learned here!?.

I just bought a 65 gal for my buddies that were growing too big for the 16 gallon. And i successfully transferred them tonight via the weeks help with cycling tank from the established 16 gal via filter media in external pump AND tank media …water.. Now ive got to watch my numbers and do water changes until new tank is fully cycled! Dianna, I love your attitude! I wish you all the best, and please feel free to share your experiences with us. Happy fishkeeping.

Please stay us informed like this. Thanks for sharing. Based on what you told me last time, I do plan on doing the fishless cycle! When the level of nitrite starts to drop do you keep adding ammonia to the tank???

Also what type of water would I need to do this fishless cycle? Please can you tell me when is best to add live plants, before or after the tank is cycled? Thank you for your comment, Emma. Live plants can actually help the Nitrogen cycle so you have the freedom to add them before or after. By the way, can i say a big thank you for your really well constructed information. I have read so much all over the web, but yours is the most easily digested. I am really excited to get my tank cycled and then populated, nothing fancy, just beautiful fish.

I am keeping your page in favourites for quick reference! Thank you so much for your comment, Emma! Really happy you enjoyed the guide and I wish you all the best. Happy fish keeping! Great article! Or should I just wait a few weeks and hope the plants help reduce the nitrate?

Hello Daymon, thank you for your comment :. Yes, plants will naturally reduce the nitrates, but you could also try a nitrate remover as well. You are a rare writing talent. A complicated topic for non-insiders explained in a very magnetic article! Thank you veeeeery much. Your blog is the most easily understood one I have read.

Now after reading your blog I understand. In my last set up I added guppies and after one week then lost one to dropsy then I added two more. Two weeks later, I lost the lot — all to dropsy. I do believe that one of the first fish was ill because the other fish was stalking him on day one but I also understand now that some if it was my impatience. I have just drained the tank to start again.

I have a 38 litre 10 gallon tropical tank. Decided to get driftwood and an Anubias Nana for it to hopefully reduce maintenance. It annoys me that pet shops have told me not to worry about testing for nitrates too. Going to keep and print this blog for maintenance. Thank you so much for your support, Debbie. I wish you all the best and happy fish keeping! Going to keep and print this blog for future reference. Thank you. I had planned to set up an South American themed tank and did my best to add driftwood etc.

I have just started the cycling process and now I read the ammonia devouring bacteria are non functional at a PH. This begs one big question: How does anyone have a true South American Amazonian environment when it is not possible to cycle the tank? Please explain! Thank you for your comment, Olaf. Most South American tanks will do fine with a stable pH range of 6. Now, when I say stable, I mean you keep it from changing too much.