Tank Cycling Experiment....

[Lonewolfblue]

Well, I finally had time today to set up my 2 breeder tanks, and am going to fishless cycle them. Here's what I did today:

Tank #1: I soaked the sponges in a concentrated Stress Zyme solution, 30ml in 1G water. I also added 4 drops of ammonia. They soaked for over an hour. Sponges for tank #1 were installed in the tank, and a touch of ammonia was added. Also, 1/3 of the solution was poured into the tank as well. Will test the water shortly to see what my ammonia level is. Shooting for 2ppm. Temp in the tank is 82 degrees.

Tank #2: Currently, sponges for are soaking, still have 45 minutes to go, or longer if I decide. Same setup, Stress Zyme with a touch of ammonia.

Will come back to edit when tank #2 is done, and will supply the temp at that time.

Let's see how long these tanks will take to cycle.

Edit:

Since no-one's posted yet, had to edit, lol.

Adding another few drops ammonia, test only showed 1ppm about 30 minutes after adding ammonia.

Also, to compare, my tap tests 0ppm ammonia, 0ppm nitrite, 0ppm nitrate.

Here's a couple pics. Sorry about the bubbles, will get better pics when they clear up....

Tank #1 Complete:

Tank #2 Without sponges, sponges are still soaking. Will get better pics once the air bubbles disappear...

Further info:
Tank #1 has 2 screw-in incandescents and a Hydor 50W heater.
Tank #2 has a full-length florescent in the hood and a Ebo Jager 50W heater.

Edit:
Tank #1: Successfully reached 2ppm ammonia. Time here is 5:45pm Monday.

Tank #2: Just installed sponges after soaking an hour and a half, and added first dose of ammonia. Will test, if below 2ppm, will add a few drops more.

Edit:
Tank #2: Complete, and at 2ppm ammonia.

 

[joannde]

So you're cycling both strictly with StressZyme, both without any seeded filter material (just a good long soak in the StressZyme) - is that correct ? Would love to see if this works

 

[JRagg]

If you're using the ACE brand ammonia, 4-5 drops is generally 1ppm in a 10g tank (tested by both math and practical experience). I just use that rule of thumb when adding.

I'm really interested in seeing how this turns out.

 

[7Enigma]

I would have liked to see a negative control in this situation to see if there is in fact a difference between using Stress-zyme and nothing at all.

So what your testing in both tanks is a prolonged soak prior to addition to a tank that is not seeded?

I would recommend limiting the variables, so would probably keep the lights off and the tanks covered during this time. Also try to make sure the temps are the same between the two tanks. Use a 3rd thermometer and make sure both tanks are measuring the same level.

I will be interested to see the results, but am concerned that we might not be able to draw many conclusions without controls in place....

 

[Lonewolfblue]

Yes, tanks are not seeded with anything but the sponges soaked in Stress Zyme, then 1/3 of the solution added to the tank after sponge installation, then added ammonia. I'm using just Clear Ammonia, I still have the bottle from when I cycled 2 other tanks a while back ago.

As for a negative control, not necessary. I've cycled 2 tanks already with no seeding at all, and took roughly 7 weeks. Then I cycled my 29G with just adding Stress Zyme per instructions and cycled it in 2 week approx. Now testing the spong-soaking theory someone mentioned.

 

[Lonewolfblue]

Day 2:

Tank #1:
Ammonia dropped to 1ppm.
Nitrite still 0ppm.
Have not tested Nitrate yet.

Tank #2:
Ammonia still closer to 2ppm, but definitely lighter than 2ppm.
Nitrite still 0ppm.
Have not tested Nitrate yet.

 

[7Enigma]

Day 2:

Tank #1:
Ammonia dropped to 1ppm.
Nitrite still 0ppm.
Have not tested Nitrate yet.

This is not possible unless your bacteria converted directly to nitrAte which is unlikely since there was no seeding done in the tank (or something else in the tank is using the ammonia).

These are those types of data that make controls so important.

 

[rkilling1]

Day 2:

Tank #1:
Ammonia dropped to 1ppm.
Nitrite still 0ppm.
Have not tested Nitrate yet.

This is not possible unless your bacteria converted directly to nitrAte which is unlikely since there was no seeding done in the tank (or something else in the tank is using the ammonia).

These are those types of data that make controls so important.

Not seeded. Stress Zyme is suppost to "Seed" the tank while it is cycling. i thought that was the purpose of this test.

stress zyme:

"A biological filter additive containing live bacteria that improves the development of the biological filter and helps clean a dirty aquarium. The build-up of organic pollution in the aquarium inhibits the growth of nitrifying bacteria. The bacteria keep conditions in the aquarium right for the development of the biological filter by consuming harmful organic pollutants. This speeds the development of the biological filter in newly set up aquariums."

 

[Lonewolfblue]

That is correct. The tank is seeded via Stress Zyme. Others think seeding can only be done via other cycled media, but that is not the case here. It is seeded with Stress Zyme. And the whole purpose of the experiment is to compare how long it takes these tanks to cycle compared to 6-7 weeks for my 26G and 55G, and 2 weeks for my 29G which was seeded via Stress Zyme per instructions on the bottle. So no controls are necessary.

 

[SCFatz]

Wolf,I'd like to know the nitrate result on the one that tests at 1ppm ammonia and 0 nitrite.

Just a thought here but if its zero or its very close,run a sample of your tap too as a known zero or original source water and compare the two vials.I have found that can very useful in determining low level nitrates with liquid test kits.

 

[Lonewolfblue]

Day 3:

Hagen Kit.
Tank 1: No change. 0ppm Nitrate.
Tank 2: No change. 0ppm Nitrate.

Tested Distilled water before I ran the tank tests, and of course, 0ppm.

Edit:

Tests with AP kit:
Tank 1: Almost 5ppm, but not close to 0ppm.
Tank 2: 5ppm
Distilled Water: 0ppm.

LaMottes Kit:
Tank 1: 0ppm Nitrate
Tank 2: .25ppm Nitrate-Nitrogen or 1.1ppm Nitrate.
Distilled: 0ppm

Looks like the AP kit is off compared to the other kits. The AP kit is almost 2 yrs old as well, and the LaMotts is maybe 2 months old. The Hagen kit is getting close to a year old.

 

[Lonewolfblue]

Day 4:

I'm getting very disappointed, lol.
No Change.

I'm wondering if the fake rock I added has anything to do with it. I got it from Drs. F&S and when I got it, the package was warm from sitting in the sun. And when I opened it up, it was strong smelling, and a little sticky. I washed it down well with hot water, then cold, then added to the tanks. It still smelled very strong. Is that normal for that particular material used to create fake rocks? Or did I add something bad to the tank?

 

[Lonewolfblue]

Well, a few days later, still no change at all. I'm still wondering if the fake rock put something into the water that's not good. I added another 10ml Stress Zyme yesterday as well. Still no changes.

 

[joannde]

is the fake rock in both tanks ?

How much ammonia is each tank able to process w/in 24 hrs ? (and what day is it LOL)

 

[Guest]

i think that adding the fake rocks comprimised this experiment. you might have been better off keeping the tanks exactly as they were when the experiment started without adding other factors. also, since you are experimenting with two tanks at the same time, the idea of a negative control(as mentioned above) might not have been a bad idea, even tho you have previously cycled tanks before and may know the results.

 

[Lonewolfblue]

Actually, the fake rocks were part of the experiment. They were in there right from the beginning. As for the ammonia, I put in 2ppm. And both tanks are around that level still, and 0 trace of nitrite. All levels still the same.

 

[Guest]

sorry, i mis-understood, i thought you added the rocks on day 4.

 

[Lonewolfblue]

I think I'm going to scrub the experiment. All parameters are still the same. Nothing has changed. When I got my sponge filters, I purchased spare sponges as well. I placed the spares in my Emperor 400's and will leave them in there for a week. Then I'll flush the 2 tanks, place new water in them, and add the sponges from the Emperor. I need to get these going, as I would like to get my GBR's into them. I have a pair formed in my 75G, and would like to place 2 of my baby females and one of my older males into the other tank. And I might place a 3rd pair in one of my planted tanks as well.

 

[Jchillin]

Don't be discouraged with the results. Any number of factors may have contributed to the cycle stalling. You omitted the temps from the first installment. What were they?

 

[Lonewolfblue]

Temps on both tanks were 80-81 degrees.