10g tank taking ages to fishless cycle

[librarygirl]

So I cut some of the filter up and put it in with my main filter here and there. I still have quite a bit of the active filter left (I bought the 4" one, and my main filter is only for a 20g tank anyway). Any advice on what I should do with the rest of it? I was thinking of just using the magnets to set it in the corner of the tank somewhere, or maybe putting the filter intake through the center of it or something.

Any suggestions?

You could do either of those. Or drop it in the tank.

 

[hb1547]

That active filter seems to have helped a ton! It drops ~3ppm of ammonia per day now, which is about 8 or 9 times faster than before. I'm already seeing nitrates appear too!

My new challenge that I'm going to face is that I'm going to be gone for about 4 weeks (college student, going home for xmas) in a week or two, and I don't want to waste all the effort I've put in. Is there any easy way to set up some system that can drip ammonia in each day? Is that even a good idea for that long? Or should I just soak my filters & gravel in water, take them home with me, set up a tank there and keep it cycled, then transport it back to my apartment here?

 

[librarygirl]

That active filter seems to have helped a ton! It drops ~3ppm of ammonia per day now, which is about 8 or 9 times faster than before. I'm already seeing nitrates appear too!

My new challenge that I'm going to face is that I'm going to be gone for about 4 weeks (college student, going home for xmas) in a week or two, and I don't want to waste all the effort I've put in. Is there any easy way to set up some system that can drip ammonia in each day? Is that even a good idea for that long? Or should I just soak my filters & gravel in water, take them home with me, set up a tank there and keep it cycled, then transport it back to my apartment here?

Four weeks would be too long to go without dosing ammonia, the bacteria would starve. Setting up a drip system would likely overdose ammonia and may kill the bacteria too. If you can bring everything with you and set up a small tank or bucket and let the filters run with an air stone and heater and dose ammonia that would be best.

 

[jlk]

Librarygirl is correct-taking it home & setting everything up would be your best option. Just think of it as practice for when you have to go home for a few mths over summer break!!

 

[hb1547]

How much stuff should I take back when it does come time to do that? Is taking my main filter and the active one that I bought going to be enough, or should I also transport my gravel/decorations? I know bacteria live in the gravel, but relative to the two filters, is it significant enough to bring it too?

I'm trying to work this all out now while I have the chance. Thanks for the help, you guys have been absolutely awesome

 

[librarygirl]

How much stuff should I take back when it does come time to do that? Is taking my main filter and the active one that I bought going to be enough, or should I also transport my gravel/decorations? I know bacteria live in the gravel, but relative to the two filters, is it significant enough to bring it too?

I'm trying to work this all out now while I have the chance. Thanks for the help, you guys have been absolutely awesome

I woud say a tank or large barrel, both filters, a heater (and an air stone if you have it but not necessary if the filters can generate enough agitation) should be sufficient (don't forget your ammonia lol). The decor and substrate isn't necessary.

 

[jlk]

Just my opinion, but i dont think the heater is an absolute must have (my tanks cycled without ever using one). If you want practice bringing everything home, go ahead & bring it. Just make sure you get some large ziploc-type bags to bag everything in tank water. They do make some giant ones because i use them to bag my daughters toys. And big bucket will help to put everything in & carry esp in event of a leak! Good luck!

 

[hb1547]

The heater shouldn't be too much of a hassle to bring, the main thing will probably be just making sure my filters are packed and won't leak.

I think the tank is very nearly cycled (and may be fully cycled). I'm testing today to see if it could turn 4ppm of ammonia into nitrates. I just have a quick question: I know I should expect nitrites to be zero too if the tank is fully cycled. Does 4 ppm of ammonia correspond to a high enough concentration of nitrites that it would be noticeable on a nitrite test if some is not converted to nitrate?

I guess what I mean is, how much does 4ppm worth of ammonia convert to in nitrites if none of that nitrite is turned to nitrate?

 

[jlk]

Thats a really good question-i asked the same thing when i did a fishless cycle on my 50gal. I never got an exact answer in respect to what the exact conversion numbers would be (ie- 4ppm amm converts to xppm nitrite which converts to xppm nitrate) so i still dont have an answer! I know theres some sort of mathmatical equation based in organic chemistry to explain it but im am afraid i have not taken an organic chem class in years....

 

[hb1547]

This link...
Nitrification is a biological process during which nitrifying bacteria convert toxic ammonia to less harmful nitrate.
...suggests that it's approximately 1-to-1, but I'm not sure if I'm interpreting that correctly and/or if there're other factors that it's neglecting.

Yesterday I dosed up to ~4ppm of ammonia. Today I check and my ammonia is down to ~1-1.5ppm, and I have no nitrites. Nitrates are visibly higher.

Is it reasonable to conclude that my nitrite->nitrate bacteria are all set and good to go, and I just need to wait for my ammonia->nitrite bacteria to get a little more established?

And once the tank is fully cycled, I only need to dose up to 1ppm of ammonia daily, correct?

Thanks again guys, you've helped a ton

 

[jlk]

This link...
Nitrification is a biological process during which nitrifying bacteria convert toxic ammonia to less harmful nitrate.
...suggests that it's approximately 1-to-1, but I'm not sure if I'm interpreting that correctly and/or if there're other factors that it's neglecting.

Yesterday I dosed up to ~4ppm of ammonia. Today I check and my ammonia is down to ~1-1.5ppm, and I have no nitrites. Nitrates are visibly higher.

Is it reasonable to conclude that my nitrite->nitrate bacteria are all set and good to go, and I just need to wait for my ammonia->nitrite bacteria to get a little more established?

And once the tank is fully cycled, I only need to dose up to 1ppm of ammonia daily, correct?

Thanks again guys, you've helped a ton

Thanks for the link! You have nitrite>nitrate bacteria if your seeing nitrates but that doesnt necessarily mean they are fully established. Right now, they are only processing the amount of nitrite thats being converted which is in the 2.5-3ppm range rather than the full 4ppm. And, yes, you need to wait until all of your bb are fully established & processing both amm & nitrites to zero for your tank to be fully established. Dont be surprised if things revert to some degree after making the trip back home (ie-amm is no longer dropping or nitrites spike)-its a delicate ecological balancing act & disruptions may cause the bb to take a hit. Hopefully, this wont happen!
Once your tank is fully cycled, keep dosing the amm to 4ppm daily to keep it cycled & your bb happy & well fed! Remember, this is the amount the are accustomed to & it will allow you to fully stock your tank when your ready for fish. If you drop it back to 1ppm, your bb will drop back to that level as well & it kind of defeats the whole purpose of setting up your bb's bioload to 4ppm. Good luck & keep us posted!

 

[hb1547]

So I got my filters set up in a small bucket at home, and it's still chugging away converting ammonia->nitrite->nitrate. I just need to wait about 3 more weeks before I can move it back. Before leaving, it seemed to be done, which I'm excited about, so it's just a waiting game.

I do have two more questions, though:
- The bucket it's in now is about 3 gallons, as opposed to the 10 gallon tank. Should I dose the bucket up to 4 ppm (10 drops or so), or should I put in the same amount of ammonia as I was in the 10 gallon tank (~27 drops)? I was thinking 27 drops, since the bacteria in the filters are used to converting that much in a day. Any thoughts?
- I did an experiment and found that the bacteria in the actual water pumping filter do little conversion on their own -- it's been the bacteria in the active filter I bought that's hanging in the tank that's done most of it. I cut up pieces of the active filter and put it in with the other, but that doesn't seem to have helped as much. What do I do when the active filter starts to fall apart?

 

[jlk]

Only dose it to 4ppm-remember, theres a difference in dilution due to the larger amount of water in your tank vs the bucket. It will take way less amm to reach 4 in the bucket. Around 10drops sounds about right! In respect to your active filter, leave it until it falls apart/disintegrates. Hopefully, by the time this happens, your other filter media will be well established! Im glad to here your bacteria is doing what its supposed to do!! Look forward to your pics when you return & are able to get this tank stocked!