Starting a fishless cycle tomorrow!

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chinoanoah

Aquarium Advice Freak
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Feb 1, 2007
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Tomorrow I'm going to pick up some substrate, and start my fishless cycle.

Planning on a planted tank. Maybe with Cichlids, not sure though.

Eitherway, I'll need ammonia, a raw shrimp, and will I need plants right off the bat? So the shrimp decomposes and becomes bacteria, which eats the ammonia, then becomes nitrite -- so i'll need plants then right...to make the nitrates? I'm confused on how to start it.

Thanks, Noah.


[I'm running a 20 gallon btw]
Oh also I need a plastic cover for the tank, between my light, where should i get one?
 
Just to clarify:
The raw shrimp will decompose and become ammonia. Once you have a source of ammonia, this will cause bacteria to start growing to feed on the ammonia, turning it into nitrIte. Once you have a source of nitrIte, a 2d bacteria type will develop to convert the nitrIte into nitrAte. And that's the nitrogen cycle.

As far as plants go, no, you do not need them to conduct your cycle since you're going with a fishless cycle instead of a silent cycle. In fact, it is generally recommended that you not have plants when going this route. This is because plants need to light to grow; however, light plus high amounts of ammonia (that will build up from your rotting shrimp) is prime conditions for a serious algae outbreak.

Also, I saw your post in another thread. You do not need both ammonia and raw shrimp, only use one or the other.

With ammonia, you need to monitor the ammonia level in your tank and dose accordingly. With the raw shrimp, you just basically put it in and wait.

Either way, you will need a good chemical test kit that tests Ammonia, NitrIte, NitrAte, and pH. Recommended is the AP Master Test Kit.
 
I second that, it is an excellent article and helped my cycle finish in under 2 weeks. Don't forget to get some seed material! Try an lfs if you don't know anyone with a fish tank.
 
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