Cycling?

[Rorsia]

Maybe I'm just a lazy kid, but I've honestly never 'pre-cycled' a tank. I give tips and help for family members and friends because I wouldn't like for their fish to die and what not.

I've started numerous ten gallon tanks, a few 29s, and one or two 45s, and I've always put water into the tank one day with fish/plants/other organisms going in the next day.

The best part: I've never had a fish die on me during the first two weeks to a month. So is it luck or what? I don't think it's got anything to do with the water hardness or chlorination. I've set tanks up in atleast 4 different places uses different sources of water.

Telling people that one to two months of cycling is required for live fish can be wrong.

I use one capfull of StartRight (from Wal-mart or other crapholes such as that) per five gallons as directed. Other than that, nothing special is being done.

 

[buddha_red]

I disagree based on what i know about water chemistry. Plain and simple, Fish less cycles are the humane way to cycle a tank.

 

[sqrle]

Is it luck?? YES!!

 

[missileman]

You haven't had a fish die in 2 weeks to a month?
What about after that?
It takes 2 weeks to a month for a lightly stocked tank to build up toxic levels of amonia and start getting nitrite which is even more deadly.
It takes 6 to 8 weeks, or longer, to completely cycle an unseeded tank.

 

[Fishyfanatic]

If you aren't losing fish within the first 2 weeks, it could be that it is taking that long before the ammonia and nitrites build up to toxic levels.

 

[HooKooDooKu]

...Telling people that one to two months of cycling is required for live fish can be wrong....

Sorry, I must strongly disagree with you on this point unless you can add some very specific qualifiers.

Your argument is akin to telling a new parent that they do not need car seats for their children because you've never had a car crash and therefore car seats just get in the way.


Now if you want to qualify the statement with something like "It is wrong to tell people they MUST spend one to two months cycling a tank before they can add live fish BECAUSE you can instead start with a low bio-load and do daily PWC to keep ammonia and nitrite levels low", then you might have some footing to start a debate.

BTW, I will add that I have had a fish tank for three months so far, and because of the things I've learned in this forum and watched ammonia and nitrite levels and did frequent PWC while doing a cycle with fish (was given the fish before I had the tank), I have not had ANY livestock die on me (if you discount some of the failures I've had with plants).

 

[Rorsia]

Roflz.

The only fish that have ever died was from other fish.

Kk. I lose, you win,

 

[jim692]

I don't understand what you mean by "from other fish"? How so?

 

[fort384]

I started a tank without a fishless cycle and lost half my fish, and had to do daily PWCs after I figured out why to keep my ammonia levels below lethal to save the other half.

My second tank I am currently fishless cycling. It is easy, requires almost no maintenance, and I haven't killed a single fish in the process.

So yes, you can do a cycle with fish, but it is a lot more work, and a lot less healthy for your stock. And I think if you spent some time reading through past posts, you will see that a heck of a lot of people shared the same experience as me -- a lot of fish fatalities, and a lot of maintenance to keep the tank hospitable for fish.