Cycling

[Perryuk]

Ok I've been researching cycling my new 55 g an it seems split some say cycle with a few fish some say do a fishless cycle. Obviously I'm keen to get some fish in there want to add some yellow labs do you think these would be ok was thinking of putting 3 in, they are about 4 cm thanks

 

[shellieca]

Ok I've been researching cycling my new 55 g an it seems split some say cycle with a few fish some say do a fishless cycle. Obviously I'm keen to get some fish in there want to add some yellow labs do you think these would be ok was thinking of putting 3 in, they are about 4 cm thanks

Fish IN cycling is much more demanding because you want to keep the fish alive & healthy. I did not use Cichlids but when I did my fish IN cycling tanks, a 10g & a 46g, I test my water daily & did 50%+ water changes on each tank about every 3 days. If you go fish LESS the demand is much less & there's no worry about losing fish if something doesn't go right. Should you choose to go fish IN I wouldn't use Cichlids but someone more experienced with them will hopefully offer advice on that.

 

[Perryuk]

I see so really the long

 

[Perryuk]

Oops sorry prob the longer fishless the easier an better it would be then thanks shelly

 

[bcurlacher54]

Go with fish less. It's quite easy and takes very little effort:

 

[jetajockey]

You can do a fish-in cycle easily if you study up on it a bit and get familiar with the process. I don't fishless cycle new tank setups because it's perfectly safe and simple if done properly, so going fishless actually requires more effort on my part.

Fish-in Cycling: Step over into the dark side - Aquarium Advice

 

[Jess1ca]

Fish IN cycling is much more demanding because you want to keep the fish alive & healthy. I did not use Cichlids but when I did my fish IN cycling tanks, a 10g & a 46g, I test my water daily & did 50%+ water changes on each tank about every 3 days. If you go fish LESS the demand is much less & there's no worry about losing fish if something doesn't go right. Should you choose to go fish IN I wouldn't use Cichlids but someone more experienced with them will hopefully offer advice on that.

I fish in cycled with Afticans, they will be fine as long as you keep Params in check.

 

[christine2012]

I've done it with Africans, it was definitely a pain in my butt doing huge water changes every day but in hindsight I would still have done it fish-in. I'm not a huge fan of an empty tank. With a dependable test kit and dedication all will be well. Good luck!