if you borrow 'filter media' from a tank for cycling........

[Bubble_Boy]

i was wondering.

if you take filter media (filter floss, gravel, sponge etc..) from a healthy established tank for CYCLING purposes....

does the WATER PARAMETERS need to be the same between 'MY tank' and the tank the filter media ORIGINALLY came from???

e.g.
lets say my tank has
pH 7.6
temp 20 degrees celcius


the LFS/LPS has
pH 7.0
temp 23 degrees celcius

if i take filter media from my LFS. will the good bacteria be affected or die?? because my water is different to the store???

does the water parameters have to be the same between the tank you got the media from and MY tank??

also.
can i take filter media from a marine/saltwater tank and put it in a freshwater tank??
are all 'good bacteria' the same??? does it matter where they originate ??

 

[Menagerie]

if i take filter media from my LFS. will the good bacteria be affected or die?? because my water is different to the store???

That should be fine.

can i take filter media from a marine/saltwater tank and put it in a freshwater tank??

No, the bacteria is different in FW vs SW.

 

[Bubble_Boy]

1) do u only take filter media from a FULLY CYCLED tank????

because i just took some media from my LFS/LPS...and i tested the water for ammonia...and it had ammonia.


also.
2) if you take DIRTY filter media (sponge, filter floss)...
won't u be ADDING ammonia to your tank...cuz there is fish poo and waste in the media??

 

[Toirtis]

1) do u only take filter media from a FULLY CYCLED tank????

Yes.

because i just took some media from my LFS/LPS...and i tested the water for ammonia...and it had ammonia.

Water from the bag or water from the tank after you added the media? Swapping media will not givew you an instantly cycled tank, but will speed things up a great lot. How long between tanks was this media, and how was it transported? Bacteria in media begin to die rapidly after about 30 minutes without aeration.

also.
2) if you take DIRTY filter media (sponge, filter floss)...
won't u be ADDING ammonia to your tank...cuz there is fish poo and waste in the media??

Only if it is excessively dirty....a little bit of grunge is required for those bacteria to live on.

 

[TankGirl]

I personally find that using really cruddy filter floss from one of my other tanks in the filter box of a new tank, or rubber banded to the filter cartridge, works better than just about any other means I have used. I'm talking about the stuff that looks brown and muddy, that you really think ought to be pitched. I have had a tank that was on the first day of zero ammonia and starting to show nitrite, not a trace of nitrate, and the next day after adding cruddy floss I was completely 100% cycled. I left the cruddy floss in there for another 5 days to give things a chance, but it has to be my fastest cycle ever.

I would really, really caution against using media from the LFS - I would be very nervous about what nasties you might be transporting to your own tank. If I don't put LFS water in my tanks with new fish I certainly won't put dirty media from there in my filter. If you have a hobbyist friend who has known healthy tanks that's another story.

 

[draX]

sorry to steal the thread...
I have a 24g tank with an ugf that has been running for about a year now, stocked and cycled...and I have a 29g tank that is empty. I have bought an aquaclear 200 for the 29g. Can I just put the aquaclear on my 24g for a while (how long?) and then move it to the 29g to help cycle it? The 29g has water, decorations etc but no plants or fish.

 

[Bubble_Boy]

it would be MORE EFFECTIVE if you took some gravel from the 24g tank....
and put that in the new 29g tank.

 

[TankGirl]

If you want to "pre-seed" your filter run it on the established tank for at least two weeks.

 

[draX]

cool, thanks guys. sorry for stealing the thread!

 

[Toirtis]

If you want to "pre-seed" your filter run it on the established tank for at least two weeks.

Precisely what I do...I always have an extra filter or two running on tanks in case I bring something home unexpectedly.

 

[TankGirl]

Me too - I run sponge filters on my larger tanks where I can hide them. Very handy!

 

[pkremer]

Just a personal experience to add...I cycled my tank using a biowheel from the LFS. There is always the risk of bringing something bad into the tank, but I personally was lucky. The owner of the store gave me the biowheel from a tank that he said had been healthy for months, though, so he said he felt confident that it would be fine, and it was!

It is a viable option and should be a very quick cycle as LFS tanks are often overstocked, but do strongly consider the risk. Make sure you get media from a tank that has not had any disease in it recently. If they can't guarantee you that the tank has not been infected or if it has new fish in it from a recent shipment, be very careful...

Paul

 

[chrism]

also make sure you can trust the person / lfs that tells you its fine! there are some dodgy ppl working in lfs

 

[MarkLehr]

I have not had to cycle an aquarium for longer than a few days in years. I seed from an established tank just by using dirty filter pads. This process in extremely effective. If you have the same color gravel, transporting some gravel from one tank to the next works just as well.

I have even found that gravel which has been used before and is sitting damp in my garage in a tote, will have some residual waste in it which drastically speeds up the cycling process.