Cycling tank while away for 2 weeks

[deirdre]

Hi all, the guys at the pet store told me I could get my tank started while I'm away on vacation. I have a 10 gallon with a live plant and some of the water and gravel from its tank. It seems to have carried at least 1 live pond snail and countless eggs, some of which seem different from each other, but all look like snail eggs.

My questions are:
1. Will this be enough to get a cycle going? The gravel should have some bacteria on it.
2. Will I come back to a million snails, and will they destroy the plant? The one snail keeps suspiciously crawling on the plant's ravaged leaves, but I'm not sure if that's because he cant find food anywhere or what.

I'm planning on testing the water once I get back, but I don't really want to wait for too long after. I'll only have this tank for a few months before I have to move and I was just planning on a school of guppies, so I don't really care if they aren't the happiest If you have any other suggestions for cheap colorful fish I am all ears.

 

[flitabout]

Are you planning a fishless or a fish in cycle? If you are looking at a fish in I would say absolutely not! I am a bit confused by saying you will only have the tank a few months are you planning on getting rid of the tank or upgrading when you move? If you are just getting rid of the tank why bother going through cycling a tank and having fish when you just have to rehome them?

 

[deirdre]

No, it's just going to be fishless while I'm gone of course. I'm a college student so unless I find someone to take care of it over the summer I'll have to empty it and do it again next year. It seems worth it to me to only have this tank for a couple months if it means I can take care of something beautiful and calming.

 

[flitabout]

What size is the tank?

 

[deirdre]

It's a ten gallon.