Can planted tanks cycle this quickly?

[bluerose]

I have an 8gal tank I set up on Sunday with spring water and a few plants... added NovAqua+ and AmQuel.

just did the API tests... pH is a smidge over 7 (not quite 7.2), ammonia is less than .25ppm, nitrites are 0... the only thing 'wrong' is that the nitrates are between 0 and 5.

I'll test again tomorrow or Saturday- if results are the same, would it be safe to get fish this weekend?

 

[SpeedEuphoria]

No
You likely are just beginning the cycle. Do you have fish in the tank? What are you using for a source of ammonia to cycle the tank?

 

[bluerose]

There was some 'used' substrate that went in as well as anything that may have been from the mesh pot one plant is in.

I haven't been able to find the correct kind of ammonia... and have been too busy to really dig for it unfortunately.

Glad I resisted buying the slightly unhappy looking betta at the store today, he probably wouldn't have done very well (better than he's doing in the cup I'd bet though!!!)...

 

[rich311k]

Put some fish food in the tank to get things going. I do not think you are ready for fish yet.

 

[Purrbox]

As the others have alluded to, you can't cycle an aquarium without having an ammonia source. It is possible to do a silent cycle by using live plants, but it's necessary to plant heavily with fast growing stem plants and slowly stock the aquarium. With this method, if it's done right you'll never see an Ammonia or Nitrite spike.

 

[bluerose]

There are also snails and bits of dead plants- thought I should mention that if it makes a difference. It does smell faintly fish-tank-y...

Algae is also starting to grow.

On a slightly related subject I can't keep my water temp below 80- heater is set to 75 and the room is usually a/c'd to 77 or 78- is it the light? (two flourescents)

Here's the tank (I am planning on adding more plants pretty soon and have a piece of wood to go in):

And my MTS (because I think he's cute):

for some reason the pics are coming out rather small...

 

[SpeedEuphoria]

You may have gotten a bump start in the cycle from using "used" substrate as long as it was in a tank with fish right before you put it in this new tank. Otherwise the bacteria are likely long gone.

How long do you keep the lights on for? and how many watts total are you using?

 

[bluerose]

lights are on roughly 8, maybe 10 hours a day- I have an odd schedule so it varies a little. (no timer)

The bulbs (2) say '8W/T5'- the came with the tank; it's a Jebo if that makes a difference.

I think there were a couple of fish in the plant tank at the store (where the substrate was)...

Are there any fish/shrimp I could add to help speed up the process? I was considering a couple of red cherry shrimp as final inhabitants.

 

[harmy4993]

something i didnt see mentioned is you can buy a raw uncooked shrimp from the store and throw it in your tank. that will be your ammonia source. its advised to wrap in in nylon or something for easy removal when your cycle is done.

dont use the shrimp if you have living things besides plants in your tank. amd no there is no fish/shrimp/snails you can add to speed up the process. this is something you really are going to have to show some patiance with.

 

[bluerose]

The snails hitchhiked with the plants- as long as they stay small in numbers I'm fine having them around.

Would adding a shrimp (can you buy just one shrimp? I don't eat shrimp) have negative effects on the snails? or should I stick to adding fish food? (and how much?)

 

[harmy4993]

i dont eat any seafood shrimp included so i have no idea how they are packaged.

im not sure on the effect the dead shrimp will have on the snails. i can think of 2 things that might happen. the ammonia produced from the shrimp might harm the snails. or the snails will look at the shrimp as food and will quickly multiply.

excess food will cause the snail population to expand. that is a good way to tell if you are over feeding your tank.

 

[SpeedEuphoria]

im not sure on the effect the dead shrimp will have on the snails. i can think of 2 things that might happen. the ammonia produced from the shrimp might harm the snails. or the snails will look at the shrimp as food and will quickly multiply.

excess food will cause the snail population to expand. that is a good way to tell if you are over feeding your tank.

That's exactly what I was thinking, I actually wrote out a long response w/ that included and other things, then I figured I was rambling so did not post it.

So here it is, the main thoughts:

Snails will multiply with ample food. Yes they will likely eat the fish food or dead shrimp you throw in.

Next option is getting 1 small fish, like a danio to cycle, this in not great either since its a small tank.

Next is fishless, but since you have plants, the ammonia will likely cause algae to start.

Its up to you, personally I would remove/squish all the snails you can see, as soon as you see them and use the raw shrimp and flake food to cycle.

Or you could try this and leave the snails in there, if you see them on the shrimp, I would remove them as they will prob multiply over the cycle.

Or you can keep them as many have tons of snails in there tanks, and overall they say its driven by available food.

My ramble, Oh and by the way i tend to think of all the negatives before I think of the positives(so keep that in mind when reading my posts)

 

[Purrbox]

On a slightly related subject I can't keep my water temp below 80- heater is set to 75 and the room is usually a/c'd to 77 or 78- is it the light? (two flourescents)

It could be several things. The temp setting on heaters is not always accurate (really they're only meant to help estimate where they should be set). The filter and lights can add to the heat of the aquarium. The thermometer may be inaccurate.

If the aquarium temperature is constant day and night, you can rule out the light as the problem. Next I'd look at your thermometer, depending on the type you may want to replace it with something more reliable. After that I'd try turning down the heater even lower. After that, trying to run the aquarium open top and/or with a fan may help.

 

[bluerose]

Well, the tank has been staying at about 80.

It's an OK temp for bettas and those that get along with them (tetras/danios/oto cats/cherry shrimp), isn't it?

 

[harmy4993]

thats where i keep my tank and i have tetras and rcs