2nd Time Around Fishless Cycling 120gal Tank

[tinkster87]

this time tomorrow...fishy time!

what I like to hear!

Nice one congratulations

 

[Ann7667]

Oh Goodie! I'm Happy!

Well, how about THAT!
On the sand, think I'll leave it along for now, as long as the pH holds. I mean . . . I've been messing with this since April and the thought of tearing it down . . . one more time is or .
I don't mind waiting. The color of this sand is a little darker than the sand of the tank they are currently in. So that will mean that Angelina (the Juru Pari) will probably darken up a bit. But the clown loaches might want to come out more because they'll feel safer with the darker sand.
So I think, after I test the water in the morning and the pH holds and the Am and NitrItes are at 0, I'll prepare the tank for the fishies and move them.
Then I can get back to my website, which is a mess and my newsletter, which is coming along, and my blog.
I'm really happy though and thank you so much eco for your coaching; it's been invaluable! I'll let you know what happens tomorrow and will end this thread with a photo. Yeaaaaa!

 

[FishieMomma]

My tank is cycling pretty fast thanks to Eco's instructions. In addition to his instructions, I also added a pinch of pulverized fish food in case the little buggers need something besides ammonia. i also increased the temp in the tank to 84 and added a bubblebar for extra oxygenation, which the BB's like.

 

[Ann7667]

Thank you Jen. It's been a bit of a long road for me because I started off on the wrong foot! But it's going well now. Fishless cycling is the only way to cycle our tanks! So glad I was the only one who suffered through this and not the fishies!

 

[librarygirl]

Ooh I'm excited for you! Um, maybe your tank could teach my tank what it's supposed to be doing? lol

Pics please when you put your fishies in!

 

[Ann7667]

Hi Library Girl, How is you tank coming along now?

 

[librarygirl]

Hi Library Girl, How is you tank coming along now?

Well I'll sum it up this way:

 

[Deckape]

Well I'll sum it up this way:

That tank has a curse. My father in law used to say, when you've done all you can...punt.

 

[Ann7667]

I think we are ready!

Water parameters for 7/30
pH=7.6
Am=0
NI=0
NA=40+
Temp=87
So that is the 2nd day in a row that the Am and NI are 0 after 24 hours.
The pH is fluctuating though has been like this:
8/23=7.0
8/24=7.6
8/25=7.0
3 days later
8/28=7.2
8/29=7.2
8/30=7.6

What do you think? Is that that going to bother the fish?
I'll just feed the BB's 1.0 of Ammonia every day until we decide about the pH and what to do about it if anything - like tear down the tank and change out the sand

 

[Ann7667]

Library Girl, I'm so sorry about your tank. But I DO understand! Here's a flower for ya!

 

[eco23]

You have a 100% cycled tank

I don't like the way pH is fluctuating though.

I'm not sure it's a giant deal...the nitrification is one of the major contributors of pH fluctuations...and once we aren't forcing that thing to pump 4ppm through the bio-filter every day...I hope it'll calm down.

One thing I would do is SLOWLY acclimate all the fish into the new tank. Do you know how to drip acclimate? That's what I'd do.

Regardless, congrats on your completely fishless cycled tank!!!

 

[eco23]

I'm about to take off for the day...so I'll go through how I drip acclimate in case you decide to add the fishies today after a big water change

- You need a large clean pitcher, a bucket, and a piece of airline tubing (you can just use the bucket if you want. Make sure it wasn't used for cleaning purposes.
- Place the pitcher inside the bucket (to catch overflow)
- Place the fish and some of the water they're in now into the pitcher ( you can add as many fish as will fit comfortably in the pitcher)
- Start a syphon from the new tank (you can just suck on the end)
- Tie a knot or two in the airline tube so it restricts the flow and you get a slow and steady drip (maybe one drip per second)
- Let the pitcher slowly fill. Once full, dump half the water out of the pitcher and let it refill a second time
- After that, pour the water out of the pitcher through your net, and catch the fish then place the fish into the net
- Voila! You've drip acclimated them

 

[Ann7667]

Thank you so much for the info on the drip acclimate info. I will need to buy a bigger pitcher and a larger container for the bucket. I'm also going to get one of those battery operated bubblers. I need a larger pitcher because Angelina is big - about 6" from nose to tail and I just don't want to cramp her. But then if I get a bigger pitcher it will take longer to drip it full. How long can she tolerate being cooped up. And if she is in there too long the temperature would drop. How long do I have, considering the temperature, to acclimate her?
I do have one of those big "cool-ade" type pitchers, you know, with the ball shaped base. She would fit in there and could swim in a little circle. But I think I want a pitcher with a wider opening at the top.

I will do this dripping the fish into the new tank tomorrow afternoon
Thank you so much.

 

[eco23]

You can use just a bucket and forget the pitcher if you want. I just personally use a pitcher so I can basically pour the fish into the net. I don't know how I'd do that with a bucket alone. If you're trying to take algae out of the equation...I guess you don't want to introduce water from the other tank (guessing). I wouldn't worry about temperature. They can take a swing of a few degrees without problems. It's how I always do it.

As for the algae, have you looked into causes? You obviously don't want it happening to the new tank.

I've been fighting some off myself, and I seem to have been fighting it off successfully. I got some Awesome advice from fort384 (one of the mods), I'll link the thread he helped me on as well as an article on algae.

http://gwapa.org/wordpress/articles/algae-in-the-planted-aquarium/
http://www.aquariumadvice.com/forum...roblems-and-a-fert-dosing-routine-162224.html

I'm officially heading out now...bye!

 

[Ann7667]

Yes, I know exactly how it happened. I purchased some plants from a LFS (which is no longer in business) and one of the plants had a little rim of black on the edge of the leaves. And that's how it got into my tank - on a plant from a fish store. grrrr
Not too much upsets me, but it's been such a struggle with that stuff.

I will definitely use a pitcher for my fishies because it will be easier to transfer them.

 

[Ann7667]

If it's the dosing of the tank to 4ppm while cycling causes the pH to rise and fall, maybe I'll wait a few days to transfer the fish. I think I'll just dose the aquarium now with Am 1ppm (to feed the BB babies) and see if the pH holds, then I'll move the fish. I don't want to be trying to work with unstable pH when the fish are in there.

Also, I think you are right about the drip method introducing spores from the old tank into the new tank. So, to avoid that, I could give them a dunk in a bucket of new tank water (they are still in the net), then put them in the new tank. They won't like that. But they won't like any of this. And they need to get into the new tank - without the spores.

 

[eco23]

Just don't let the old water into the new tank. Net the fish and put them in. I pour the pitcher through the net into the overflow bucket. None of the water gets into my tank.

Dosing the tank to 1ppm for a few days and seeing what the pH does is a good idea though.

 

[Ann7667]

Sorry eco, for another question. But you said "net the fish and put them in." . . . in the new tank or in the bucket for a dunk, or . . . what? I'm getting so darn confused here Oh dear . .. or rinse them off by pouring new water over them while they are in the net and that water will fall into the bucket. Sorry I've been doing this so long I'm cracking up here. I just need to keep it together for a few more days.
So . . . I net the fish and I put them in . . . in what?

 

[librarygirl]

Sorry eco, for another question. But you said "net the fish and put them in." . . . in the new tank or in the bucket for a dunk, or . . . what? I'm getting so darn confused here Oh dear . .. or rinse them off by pouring new water over them while they are in the net and that water will fall into the bucket. Sorry I've been doing this so long I'm cracking up here. I just need to keep it together for a few more days.
So . . . I net the fish and I put them in . . . in what?

I think it means pour the water from the pitcher with the fish onto a net which catches the fish, then put the fish into the new tank I've never tried it of course but I'm thinking that would be some rough handling, pouring the fish into a net? I'd probably be inclined to just net them out of the pitcher and put them into the tank without the pouring, unless there's a specific reason to pour? Maybe it isn't as rough on the fish as I imagine.

 

[Ann7667]

Eco23 - I have a couple of questions. I hope I didn't scare you and everyone else away with my imploding a couple of posts ago. I'm okay now. And I'll be serious and I'll stop that laughing (but that's what I do when I am overly tired and well, maybe a little stressed - everything seems just hysterical)
So my questions are . . .
1. Could I do this . . . do a massive water change in the aquarium to get the NitrAtes to a nice low level, and lower the temperature to about 80 deg. which is where my cichlids like it and then add plants while I am dosing Am 1ppm until Tue when I will stop dosing and add the fish. But can I add the plants now while I am dosing Am 1ppm?
2. Also I have a bog log with plants growing on it. I've been nursing that along all this while. (It's been sitting on the kitchen counter in a plastic umm . . .lake which is my cat's favorite drinking spot.) Can I put THAT in the tank or does bog wood lower pH? (please say it doesn't lower pH) Will dosing the Am to 1ppm hurt the bog log or the plants growing on it?
Thank you -