Cycling a 20 gal tank

[screaminbuckeye]

Hello. I have had a 20 gallon tank up and running for 10 days. I don't have any live plants. I have a emperor bio wheel filter and fine black gravel. I was wondering how long I should be cycling the tank? I have test kits and my #s are as follows: ph: 7 , nitrates and nitrites at 0 and water slightly soft. I have the temp at a constant 77 degrees F. I'm not sure what else I should do before getting my peacock eel. Suggestions? I am really taking this one seriously because I have under cycled in the past and lost a fw puffer and a shark cat (didn't help that the lfs didn't mention my fw puffer was actually brackish).

I really appreciate the help. I am such an aquarium newbie that I'm sure I am forgetting something. All my previous tanks have been bettas or cichlids who survived all my mistakes but the eel is more sensitive.

 

[jsoong]

What are you cycling the tank with? fish or fishless?

If you are just running the tank without any source of ammonia, you are not starting the cycle - no matter how long you wait!

Also, during the beginning of a cycle, you need to watch ammonia levels. Once you have the ammonia peak then you watch for nitrite & nitrates.

You might want to read this:
http://fins.actwin.com/mirror/begin-cycling.html

This gives a good overview of cycling.

HTH

 

[screaminbuckeye]

I'm trying to do it fishless. I don't want to be cruel to some poor fish. I read about putting a raw shrimp from the grocery store in and that is what I did.

The problem is that I never really had much of an amnonia spike. I'm not sure if I did it wrong or that I used too small of a shrimp. I'm only adding a 3 inch peacock eel to the tank, I know this sounds bad but will it survive if I just put it in? I need to get the fish before I head back to college next Sunday (the 4th). With only one fish the bioload shouldn't be that bad and I can do partial water changes every day without a problem.

 

[An t-iasg]

Hi...I have bettas too!

I never heard of cycling a FW tank with a shrimp. I read about that in the saltwater forums. It may not work in a FW tank, or you may have used a shrimp that was too small. If the eel is only 3 inches, you may be ok. Just check your ammonia and then nitrites, daily or even twice a day. Be ready to do large (up to 50%) water changes to offset an ammonia spike.

Can you get any Bio-Spira at your lfs? It cycles a tank in 24 hours. One of the site sponsors will ship it if you can't find it. www.fishstoretn.com I've used it in my betta tanks. If you can't get some now, I think the one fish will be fine, though. A three-inch fish in a 20 gallon should not create a huge ammonia spike, but it depends on how much waste it produces. If you keep on top of your ammonia and nitrite levels, you should be fine.

 

[screaminbuckeye]

Bio spira cycles in 24 hours? Wow! Ok I'm off to my lfs and to Meijer. I have actually had great luck with the chemicals and fish at Meijer. I think I did read about the shrimp thing on the saltwater boards because I am setting up a tank for a snowflake eel as well.

 

[An t-iasg]

I have used Bio-Spira with great success! In my tank, after using it, I had an ammonia reading of about .10 for 2 days, then on the third day the ammonia was 0. The nitrite reading was the lowest on the color chart for just one day, then it dropped to 0 also. It may not have cycled my tank to 0 ammonia and 0 nitrites in 24 hours, but I didn't get a big ammonia or nitrite spike while using it, which is great for the fish! If you get it, you could add some now for your one fish, then when you get more fish you could add a little more Bio-Spira. It keeps in the frig for about 6 months. I keep it on hand in case I need to add a medicine that kills the good bacteria. When I'm done with the med, I add some Bio-Spira.

Bio-Spira for saltwater recently came out. I haven't seen anyone posting about it on the SW forums, though.

 

[screaminbuckeye]

Ok I'm getting the Bio spira tomorrow (lfs was out but I'm going out of town and there is a Pet Smart on the way). I will be able to cycle with the Bio Spira for two days before getting my eel. What fish meds kill bacteria? I use Kanacyn for my cichlids when they got injured and I use methylene blue for itch.

 

[An t-iasg]

Hi...I was just coming back in to edit my previous post! When I said "the nitrite reading was the lowest on the color chart", I actually meant the 2nd color -- the .25ppm reading, for one day. The lowest color, light blue, is 0.

You should add the Bio-Spira with the eel, not before. The bacteria in Bio-Spira is living, hungry bacteria, and they are ready to eat the ammonia in your tank! If you put it in without any fish, it will have no food (the ammonia and nitrites), and the Bio-Spira bacteria will die -- a waste of money, since it's a little expensive, about $10 for one ounce. So add your eel, then the Bio-Spira, then save some Bio-Spira for when you get more fish. For my tanks (5.5 gallons, each with one betta) I added 1/2 teaspoon of Bio-Spira. The one ounce packet of Bio-Spira treats 30 gallons. You wouldn't need all of that for 20 gallons and one fish, so use about 1 to maybe 1 1/2 teaspoon to begin with. You can always save the rest to add more later. Don't worry about adding too much. You can't overdose it. If you add too much for the bioload of your tank, the extra will die off and be consumed by the remaining bacteria. But again, don't add too too much or you'll just waste it!

Any antibiotic medicine, like Kanacyn, will kill off some good bacteria. I used Kanacyn before in the main tank, and my ammonia rose to .25ppm. I added some Bio-Spira and it was back to 0 ammonia the next day. Since my tank was cycled already, the Bio-Spira got the ammonia to 0 a little more quickly than the initial cycle. I never used methylene blue by itself. Does it color the water? That may make it hard to do an ammonia test, if the water is blue or green.
Hope this helps some!

 

[screaminbuckeye]

Thanks for the tip. I'm getting the eel Thursday. The eel is going to be the only one in the tank. I've been having trouble finding suitable tank mates. I have been warned about their temperament and the only thing that might work thus far are some cichlids but the tank is only a 20 gal so I don't want to overload it. The eel will eventually need at least a 30 if not a 40 by the time it is grown so I don't want to overload the tank. Maybe some tetras? I don't know anything about them though.

 

[An t-iasg]

Here is a site I found for peacock eels: http://www.centralpets.com/pages/critterpages/fish/freshwater_fish/FWF4542.shtml

They look like gorgeous fish! The site says that they are must be kept with fish that are the same size or larger, because they will eat smaller tankmates! It also says that the eel may choke and drown if it attemps to eat food that is longer than one inch in length! Maybe the best bet for a tankmate is another peacock eel, if your tank is big enough.

This looks like a very interesting fish to have! Good luck and post a picture when you can!