cycle bacteria question

[BlackMagic]

Hi all

Will say I have a tank that have been cycle but did a 90% water change and my nitrate down to 0 will that still be cycle tank or do I have to start over?

I squeeze some of my sponge filter out and kept some of the water I squeez out in a bottle, will the bacteria die off n how long will the bacteria live for?

 

[i3k]

Larger percentage of your beneficial bacteria live on surface areas like the tank walls, filter, filter media, substrate, plants...you might have a mini cycle since you did a 90% water change...it just depends on a few things...how big the tank is, how long it has been running, how many and what kind of fish are in the tank...you should test your water frequently to make sure you don't experience an ammonia spike.

 

[BlackMagic]

The tank is a 10 gallon only, been setup for pretty long now almost a yr.
the tank for home to shrimp and some neon/snails.

The tank has flatworm and was treat with safe guard de-wormer.
I remove all living things in there n did a huge water change.

 

[Fishguy2727]

Effectively all of your nitrifying bacteria are in the filter, not the water. This is how some people can do massive water changes on a weekly basis (I do 80%, I have heard of some people doing more, even a discus breeder who does 100% with the discus laying on their sides, but that is too extreme for me).

 

[mandy2936]

Hello
The majority of the beneficial Ammonia-eating bacteria is found in your filter media. Then the second largest amount of bacteria is in the gravel and on the decor.
Changing 90% of the water shouldn't have too much of an effect. I doubt anything will happen, but to be safe it's a good idea to check your water parameters to check for Ammonia Spikes or Mini Cycles.

Good Luck!
Hope this helps

 

[i3k]

Are you sure you used safe guard de-wormer? When I google that, only results I see is safe guard dewormer for dogs, horses and swine.

 

[Fishguy2727]

Those dewormers are used in the hobby for flatworms.

 

[BlackMagic]

The dewormer doesn't seem to be working. Can Anyone who have use it tell me how long it take? Should.I still keep my filters running?