Best way to cycle a tank?

[tkticoloco]

Alright, so here's the situation:
I have a 29 gallon freshwater planted tank that previously contained a platy and a guppy, before those darn camalanus worms got them (I ordered some levamisole online once I finally figured out what was wrong with them, but it arrived too late). Now, almost 2 months later, I am looking to add fish again. My problem is cycling (meaning, i have no idea how best to go about it again). The tank was previously cycled using gravel from other freshwater tanks, which are now no longer set up. I would like to refrain from using fish to cycle it. I have looked for pure ammonia in stores, but was unable to find any (if anybody has any suggestions about where else to look for it, that would be great). I do have an old filter pad currently in a saltwater tank that I could use, but would it work to move it from saltwater to freshwater?
Also, on a different note, does anyone have any suggestions for stocking the tank? Types of fish I was considering are platies (platys?), guppies, neon tetras, shrimp, and a honey gourami. However, now I am hearing bad things about almost all of these fish? Apparently, most guppies nowadays are extremely fragile due to inbreeding, which seems strange to me because the guppy I had was extremely hardy. I got her from a friend, who told me that she was most likely a fancy guppy/wild guppy mix. Does anyone have any experience with guppies that they would be willing to share?
Also, I hear that neon tetras are also quite delicate and will often mysteriously disappear, one by one. Once again, anyone with any experience with these fish?
Alright, I think that's all I wanted to ask; it's all I can remember right now, anyways.

 

[Mebbid]

Dont be worried about how fragile the species are due to inbreeding. Most of that is just overstatement from people that lost fish and couldnt define a reason.

As for cycling, how about a silent start? Add some more stem plants to your tank and add a couple small fish. The plants should absorb the ammonia leaving a healthy tank. Imho, that's the best way to cycle any tank but most people don't have an established planted tank to use.

 

[cfosgate]

Where are you located. If in the US I know that ACE Hardware stores have janitorial ammonia that is pure. Most peope in the hobby use this for a fishless cycle.

 

[Fishperson]

If you are in the US food lion also has pure ammonia.

 

[SonicsDC25]

Where are you located. If in the US I know that ACE Hardware stores have janitorial ammonia that is pure. Most peope in the hobby use this for a fishless cycle.

Exactly what I used and where I got it to cycle my tank.

 

[xsryman]

One thing to check while buying ammonia is to shake the bottle real good and make sure it doesn't foam. Even though it is clear and says pure ammonia it may still contain other detergents that cause it to foam up. As far as your tank if it has been running this whole time then bacteria may still be there. After you get your ammonia dose it up to 1-2ppm and I'd be willing to bet it converts in a day or two.

Sent from my SCH-I535 using Aquarium Advice mobile app

 

[Rivercats]

Bacteria in a SW set up are different from FW so you can't use seeded media from your SW tank.

If you want to try a silent cycle using plants you need to have a minimum of 80% of the tank substrate planted with a lot of fast growing stem plants.