Fish-in or Fishless cycle?

[Aqua315]

Hi there! I just completed a long fish-in cycle on my 28 gal tank. (I already had the fish so I didn't have a choice of going fishless) Soon I'm going to be getting a 5 gal tank for my betta and will eventually add some shrimp. Right now my betta is stuck in a little 1/2 gal prison and I really want to move him asap. He's an incredibly tough little fish and has been through a lot so I was thinking of moving him to the 5 gal as soon as I get it and doing another fish-in cycle using tetra safe start like I did with my 28 gal since it seemed to work well.

So here's my question, in your opinion should I keep my betta in the 1/2 gal for possibly another month or more while I fishless cycle the 5 gal, or should I go with the plan I'm thinking of and move him into the 5 gal to do an fish-in cycle? I would put him in the 28 gal temporarily but the fish I have in there now are not betta compatible.

[HUKIT]

Just use some media from the 28g and use that in your filter in the 5g for a instantly cycled tank.

[Aqua315]

what kind of media? I have a HOB filter with only 1 cartridge. I know what kind of 5 gal tank and filter I'll be getting, should I try to get a cartridge from that filter and jam it into my 28 gal filter to try and seed it?

[HUKIT]

You could cut out the filter pad from the 28g, or use some substrate in a media bag to help it along.

[Aqua315]

cut out the filter pad? sorry I'm not familiar with how filter cartridges are constructed. It's a tetra whisper cartridge and it's got carbon in it. How am I supposed to cut it?

[HUKIT]

Cut out the foam with a razor blade...normally it's blue bonded padding.

[Aqua315]

Will I still be able to use it in my 28 gal after that? I don't want to get a new cartridge for it. If I just cut a piece off the bottom to fit in the new filter will that be okay? Will the carbon get out and into my water? I've never seeded a new tank before.

[HUKIT]

No once you cut a hole in the cartridge then it's worthless, or use the media bag option if you don't want to use the cartridge. That's one of perks of setting up a second tank since you don't have to go through the cycle process again.

[eco23]

Agreed with HUKIT, take a pair of scissors to it, cut a slit in the cartridge, shake the carbon out into the trash, and take a portion of that cartridge (again using scissors) to donate to the new tank. I don't think there's a need for a fishless cycle as long as you donate enough media and it is a single Betta. Just keep an eye on parameters for a while.

[Aqua315]

It'll probably be a couple weeks before I can get the new tank anyway. If I buy a cartridge to fit the filter for the 5 gal now and put it in the filter of my 28 gal with the larger cartridge to seed it that way, how long should it be left in?

[HUKIT]

Originally Posted by Aqua315

It'll probably be a couple weeks before I can get the new tank anyway. If I buy a cartridge to fit the filter for the 5 gal now and put it in the filter of my 28 gal with the larger cartridge to seed it that way, how long should it be left in?

10-14 days will do.

[eco23]

Originally Posted by Aqua315

It'll probably be a couple weeks before I can get the new tank anyway. If I buy a cartridge to fit the filter for the 5 gal now and put it in the filter of my 28 gal with the larger cartridge to seed it that way, how long should it be left in?

The longer the better, 2 weeks should be good. Stick the new filter in behind the old, so the old one is the first thing the water contacts with the new filter being the second pressed right up against it.

[Aqua315]

ok thanks for all your help! I'll pick up the cartridge asap and start seeding it. the cartridge fits in this plastic holder so if the new cartridge is a lot smaller, I'll squeeze it into the holder to make sure it gets enough contact.