Help with cycling tank.

[Orphan15cs]

I need to know if plants and woody objects are put in the tank before the cycling begins. Next, I will have a 23 gal. Tank, due to dimension issues, and need to know how much ammonia to use. Please use a measurement like - a teaspoon. No ppm. Thank you. Third, if I decide to use bought water, what kind? I'll appreciate everyone's help.

 

[SaraB]

Yes plants and wood are put in before cycling. That is where your beneficial bacteria will grow as well as your substrate and filter.
I've never dosed a cycling tank with ammonia but there is a liquid you can use that is just bb. The instructions on the bottle will tell you in tsp.

 

[King Fisher]

The plants won't be affected from an uncycled tank. BB in a bottle is pretty unreliable. I've never dosed by teaspoon or tablespoon for accuracy so I don't have an answer for that. Usually you dose a little then test the water after a couple hours then dose again if need be until you hit between 2-4 ppm.

 

[Orphan15cs]

Dosing ammonia

Hi Kingfisher. Thanks for your help. I can now feel encouraged to cycle once I set a tank up. I've cycled before, my last was a 55 gal. Saltwater but quite a few years ago. I never had a problem. Thanks again.

 

[King Fisher]

No problem. Let us know how it goes

 

[Leopardshark20]

Unless you have an urgency to set up your tank, I recommend doing a fish-in cycle to make it more natural. You can avoid the chemical downsides of a fish less cycle, and have a more stable tank afterwards. I would add plants and wood during or after the fish-in cycle

 

[m.j.gomez]

I need to know if plants and woody objects are put in the tank before the cycling begins. Next, I will have a 23 gal. Tank, due to dimension issues, and need to know how much ammonia to use. Please use a measurement like - a teaspoon. No ppm. Thank you. Third, if I decide to use bought water, what kind? I'll appreciate everyone's help.

Hello, this is my guess from what I've researched. A solution of 5%ammonia & 95%water. 1ml for 10gal gives you 1ppm(20 drops=1ml). So you have 25gal & you want 4ppm ammonia. 200 drops should bring ammonia in 25gal to 4ppm. These calculations from site diy fishkeepers(cycling w/ammonia)Hope this helps!