Is this enough fish to start cylcing 40 gal

[krazeeboy]

Hi. i recently started to understand the process of cycling. Before this i had 2 spotted puffers which i put in right away. I also bought an aquaclear 70 filter.

After about a month 1 puffer died. well i took the filter and cleaned out the white filter sponge and also replaced 2nd stage carbon media which i know was stupid because i killed off all the bacteria.

Right after this (which i also know is stupid) i went to the fish store to buy 2 cleaning catfishes, those tiny ones that grow about an 2 inches and about 20 ghost shrimp, and some anubis live plants. so right now i have 1 spotted puffer, 2 cleaning catfishes, and 20 ghost shrimp and live plants in my 40 gallon tank.

I also poured a whole bottle of Cycle into the tank as i read on the forum it would help the cycle process.

My question is would this be enough fish to start the cycle in my tank? I ask because i do not want to test the water for a month to find out the cycle still hasnt started. thanks!

 

[MichaelsLilGray]

The question isnt going to be is it enough fish to cycle the tank.. the question is going to be can you keep them alive WHILE it cycles..

First and formost.. if you dont have a API.. or any kind of testing media.. get it. it will be your friend threw this.. If you can get your water parameters for us that would help out Tremendously! The stuff we need to know to help you threw this is the readings for..
Ammonia
NitrITES
NitrATES

 

[MichaelsLilGray]

And please tell me you didnt litterally pour a WHOLE BOTTLE of cycle in your tank xD

 

[mom2reds]

this is a common newbie mistake read the post at the top of this forum about cycling and that will help you to understand, and of course ask as many questions as you need. If you decide to continue to cycle with fish you will be in for a lot of work!!!

GOOD LUCK

 

[mgamer20o0]

yes it will start the cycle. no it wont fully cycle the tank so you can put fish in there. it would jump start a cycle. like michaleslilgray said get a test kit so you know whats going on in your tank. i would read up on fishless cycling than use the filter to jump start it. should only take a couple weeks to finish.

 

[krazeeboy]

thanks for the information guys. the problem is that i already have these fish. That being said i cannot perform a fishless cycle. so i will need to buy some more fish to get my tank to fully cycle is this correct? or do i have enough fish fully cycle the tank is the question im looking to get answered. i understand i will need an ammonia/nitrite/nitrate test kit to test the water as the tank is cycling. if i am going about this all wrong please suggest what i can do that would fit with my situation. thanks

 

[HN1]

DO NOT BUY MORE FISH. Buy a test kit and do daily water changes if you want your current fish to have any chance of survival. You are in a fishy cycle and the only thing you can do now is to be vigilant. It's a tougher road than fishless cycling, but can be (painfully) done.

 

[severum mama]

Your best bet IMO is to return the fish you have and start over with a fishless cycle. You are not keeping species that are compatible with one another. You have your catfish (presumably otocinculus, as per description), which are freshwater fish, mixed with your puffer (presumably green spotted puffer, as per description), which is a low end brackish water fish at its juvenile stage and should be converted to high end brackish/full marine conditions gradually up to adulthood. You will need to use marine salt to achieve brackish and/or marine conditions, and will need to monitor specific gravity and top off with freshwater to maintain SG, to compensate for evaporation. Puffers (any) are generally not regarded as good community tank inhabitants anyway.

Here's a link to a species profile.
The Puffer Forum • The Puffer Library » An Introduction to Green Spotted Puffers

JMHO

 

[krazeeboy]

wow i didnt know puffers were that aggressive. maybe thats why i had 2 of my original 4 catfishes dead. thanks for the information. i might give the puffer away now. ok so i can do a fishless cycle and will get the tests. my aunt has an establihed aquarium with an arowana in it and she said her filter is just full of pebbles. can i take some of those pebbles and put them in my tank to speed up the cycle?

 

[krazeeboy]

Tank almost done cycling?

So i took a handful of rocks from my aunts established fish tank and put them in my tank few days ago and it seems to be working. would it be more effective if i put in in the bio bag of rocks in my filter?

also i bought tests with the dropper mothod not strips and here are my readings:
ammonia: .25 ppm
nitrite: 1 ppm
nitrate: 50 ppm

what should i do now?

 

[severum mama]

You need to do a series of large water changes to keep your remaining fish healthy. Size and frequency of water changes are dependent on your test results, and you will need to test daily at a minimum IMO. Ammonia and nitrite are quite toxic to fish and can do long-term damage to them. My husband just started a thread that should be helpful to you.

http://www.aquariumadvice.com/forum...-but-i-already-have-fish-what-now-116287.html

Take a look at that post and let us know if you have any more questions. Good luck!

 

[krazeeboy]

will do severum. thanks for the information your husbands thread was quite informative. so i will change the water more often and keep testing the levels. thanks i just wish i found this website earlier lol

 

[severum mama]

Well krazee it happens to the best of us, LOL. Both my husband and myself started off with the most EPIC FAIL of advice. Our tanks were terrible but unfortunately we didn't know to join a forum at that time. It makes a huge difference when you have advice to go on and I'm sure your tank will be a success once you get it cycled and stable.

Keep up the good work!