4 Day Vacation while cycling!

[Stneinst]

I just started a new 20 gallon tank. It currently has 4 small Zebra Danios in it to help the cycle along (aware there is a lot of debate over fish/fishless cycling). They have only been in the tank 3 days!

To get to the point I will be away this weekend from Friday until Monday afternoon. I have read quite a bit and I'm not nervous about the food situation, but more concerned that the ammonia levels will get too high. I will obviously test the water before I leave. I know it will slow the cycle process, but should I do a 25-50% water change before I go, just to be sure? I really don't want to come back to poisoned fish! I have never cycled a tank before, so I am not sure how quickly levels will rise. I currently only have the test strips which aren't the greatest. I will be picking up the API master test kit tomorrow to get more accurate readings.

I don't have any local friends that would really know what they were doing if I asked them to stop by!

Thanks for your help!

 

[Mebbid]

Do multiple 50% water changes to get the ammonia reading as low as possible before you leave making sure to very thoroughly clean the substrate. If you do this then everything will be just fine.

 

[BBradbury]

Hello St...

Zebra Danios are hardy and one of the best choices for a "Fish-In" cycle. You want to keep feeding to an absolute minimum during the process. Feeding a little, a couple of times a week is enough to sustain the fish.

You want to have a lot of floating plants in the tank like Anacharis and Pennywort to help use the wastes produced by the fish.

Small water changes of 25 to 30 percent are typically done to keep the water relatively safe for the fish and still leave food for the beneficial bacteria to reproduce.

You could remove and replace half the tank water just before you leave, but don't feed. If the fish aren't fed much, they won't produce much waste. Aquarium fish can easily go a couple of weeks without food. Get some of the floating plants into the tank and the fish will have a bit to eat while you're gone.

I think your fish will be fine for a few days.

B