Cycle-without ammonia.

[rlstoll]

Hey everyone. Need some advice. I currently have my 37 gal tank set up and need to cycle it. I was going to go for the fish less cycle with ammonia. But am having trouble locating ammonia. I have one last store to try but is about an hour away.

Can I use fish food to do this cycle? What type and how much? Is there a way to keep the tank clean to avoid to much cleaning and water changes?

Thanks for the help!!

 

[bud29]

That's a problem........the fish food method is really better for smaller tanks. It can also cause all this phosphate buildup and fungus. Have you checked Ace Hardware?

 

[rlstoll]

That's the store thats an hour away. I'm just going to have to drive up there. I hate doing a long trip for one thing.

 

[bud29]

It is. Is there anything else you could get there, or do there, to justify your trip? That's what I did when I took a 90 mile trip to get my fish. I ate breakfast there, stopped at some other stores, I took my time.

 

[shellieca]

Frozen shrimp has been used by some people. Put it in a mesh bag so it's easier to remove, you can then put it in a baggie & freeze it until you need an ammonia source again.

 

[rlstoll]

Luckily my brother is going to be in the area of the hardware store. I should have ammonia tonight. It's the ace brand. Just by adding ammonia it should turn to nitrites? I don't have any mature equipment to seed the tank. What will turn the ammonia to nitrites? And how can I speed it up??

 

[jetajockey]

Dollar store has blue ribbon brand ammonia which works as well. Most ammonia works just avoid any that has surfactants and other chemicals in it. The best test is to shake the bottle and look for bubbles.

I don't typically advocate fishless cycling over fish-in, but I do suggest that you look through our article section and have a look at the cycling guides, it will give you a better idea of the entire process.

 

[librarygirl]

Luckily my brother is going to be in the area of the hardware store. I should have ammonia tonight. It's the ace brand. Just by adding ammonia it should turn to nitrites? I don't have any mature equipment to seed the tank. What will turn the ammonia to nitrites? And how can I speed it up??

Hi, give this a read, it should answer your questions: https://www.aquariumadvice.com/guide-to-starting-a-freshwater-aquarium/