Question on cycling new planted tank

[wazgud]

Hi guys, I am new to this hobby. So far I've purchased a 37g tank a 40g filter and a 200w heater. I've read online that it is necessary to cycle the tank to ensure a stable water chemistry. I've read that it can take weeks to cycle an aquarium, I don't want to wait that long.

I found that you can use Tetra's Safestart to speed up the process and it will take less than a week to cycle the tank.

Has anyone ever used Safestart, if so is it any good and how long did it take for your tank to cycle?

Also if I added this(safestart) to my tank, can I add it with the plants that I purchased or must I add the plants after the water is stable?

Can I put gravel in along to cycle?

I am using a mix of Eco Complete and regular National Geographic gravel, how will the bacteria in Eco Complete compete with the one in safestart?

Can I add some fish when I use safe start? How about shrimp?

If I change my filter(just the cartridge) will I need to add more safestart?

WILL I EVEN NEED SAFESTART? Since I am going for a planted tank will this even be necessary? Plants use the nitrogen too!

It's a long list a question, I know, but if anyone could answer these questions for me it would be greatly appreciated! Thanks!

 

[Istrom]

Gravel is fine, putting fish in should be fine (if they aren't very sensitive fish), but don't do any shrimp yet. Do use Safestart, but I'd recommend a different stabilizer called Stability, it's manufactured by Seachem, and says that any time during the cycle, it's fine to add fish as long as you're using Stability.

 

[wazgud]

Ohhh thanks, but is it safe to plant some plants along with this?

 

[landon_garcia]

Homestly i feel you should wait the two weeks. Thats what I have done for years with all of my tanks and everyone of them has been successful. The 2 weeks is so your water builds up healthy bacteria which your fish need to survive. You can add 1-3 small fish like platys or guppies after 3-4 days as long as the water chemistry is ok. These fish will bring bacteria with them which will multiply every 20 minutes. After 2 weeks is when you can start adding more fish like 1-2 every week. Good luck with your tanks!


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[Istrom]

Yeah, plants are fine too. They suck up fish waste and those types of chemicals/materials as food.

 

[BBradbury]

Cycling a New Tank

Hello waz...

I hear you. I didn't want to wait either. You can instantly cycle your new tank. You just need to locate a tank the same size as yours or larger, that's been running for some time (cycled) and remove half the filter media. The local pet store may help you. Just take that media and put it into the filter in your tank. Presto, instant cycling.

Or, you can add 3 to 4 hardy, small fish for every 10 gallons of water and use them to cycle the tank. It takes roughly a month, but you have the benefit of having fish in the tank right away. If you need the particulars on cycling with fish, just research online or ask anyone here.

B

 

[philipraposo198]

I used ATM colony which is a product like tetra safe start. My cycle was in 10days.

The.more plants the better! They remove.toxins from the water that the fish produce. With enough plants you don't even need a filter but having one is recommended. Substrate is require. And decent lighting to grow the plants.

Adding fish at the same time is required when using TSS or colony. Light feeding on the first day and feed sparsely throughout the cycle is important too. Don't add too.many fish at the beginning and avoid water changes unless the levels of ammonia nitrites or nitrates go too high.

Run your light around d 6-8 hours a day to avoid algae blooms. Don't overfeed!! This is the worse thing you can do.

If you can get the tank setup and the plants going a bit before the fish that would be ideal.

Any questions message me.

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[wazgud]

So while I wait for more supplies to set up my 37g tank, I had a 4G around. So I decided to set it up. I went to petsmart and bought a pack of Marineland Bacteria, apparently it's instant cycling? Anyways, today my API freshwater master kit arrived and I decided to check the status of the water.

PH ~6.4
NO2 0ppm
NO3 10-20ppm
GH 1(probably more like zero though... I have water softener at home)
KH 1(probably more like zero too...)
NH3/4 0ppm

I know the ph is a bit low, I have this tank cycling with a couple of moss balls dwarf hairgrass and 2 guppies. Having a KH & GH so low... will I be able to have red cherry shrimp? Also, how will I raise the pH level? To add, the tests were done probably about 30mins after I added the bacteria and API stress coat, if that makes a difference.

 

[wazgud]

Actually right now, i've added some baking soda, the pH is about 7.4 right now, the KH only went up 1 to a KH of 2.