Cycling an established tank

[joefiatoa]

Tank set up
- 40 g
- 50 lbs to 60 lbs of gravel
- around 10 lbs of miracle grow organic choice potting mix
- 2 aquaria filters
- 10-20 assorted freshwater plants
- 6 assorted plecos
- 2 c. Algae eaters
- black mollies

I have a 40 g est. tank that I have had running for about a year now. I wanted to add potting mix to my substrate so that my plants grow better and stop getting kicked up by my fish. Everything I am using for the new set up is coming from the already established tank. I had to drain about 75% of the water to make rescale. I have kept about 25% of the old water and also am using all original substrate of the old tank. I want to know how I should go about cycling my tank the quickest so I can reintroduce my fish again. How should I do my water changes and which fish should i put in first. Any other suggestions as well would be helpful.


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[PNWaquarist]

So let me get this straight: You've just re-scaped the bottom of your 40 gallon and currently have the fish housed somewhere else? What about the filters? Have they been running this whole time with your fish in another tank?

If so, I'd just move the filters back over to your 40 gallon and add the fish. A large percentage (usually most) of your beneficial bacteria are in the filters. And if you're keeping your original substrate (where another good chunk of your BB lives) and it's stayed wet the whole time, I imagine that you should have more than enough BB to protect your fish. Do use Prime liberally and keep a close eye on your parameters, though.

 

[joefiatoa]

Yes exactly what I did. I moved the fish to those big rubber made tubs a few so there not all in the same one. I left all the filters on the 40g so all the bb is the same. Do you think it would ok to add the fish right away. The tank is pretty cloudy right now due to the new potting mix substrate.


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[PNWaquarist]

How long were the filters without water?


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[joefiatoa]

Minutes at most


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[PNWaquarist]

You should be fine then


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[joefiatoa]

Even with it being cloudy?


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[PNWaquarist]

If the cloudiness is from your substrate, there should be no problem.

 

[joefiatoa]

Ok. Thanks a lot. I'm not entirely new to the hobby learned quite a bit but I'm still trying to learn as much as I can.


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[PNWaquarist]

No problem. Good luck with everything.

 

[jrc0528]

The BB are pretty hardy so long as you keep them wet and relatively comfortable (meaning not overly hot or cold). Keeping the filters and existing substrate at room temp for a day or so won't really bother them. Monitor your A, nI, & nA levels for a few days to be sure. As to the cloudy part that's normal for messing with the substrate. I usually drop in a powerhead with a fine sponge prefilter overnight to help clear things up.

 

[joefiatoa]

Tank cleared right up and fish seem to be doing just fine.


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[PNWaquarist]

Excellent!