Hello, new here, and already crashed my tank :(

[GoldsGuy]

I have a aqueon quiet flow 10, that hangs on the edge of the tank. Its not a intank filter. I added the sand then added the water and let it settle before turning the filter and stuff on. Should I change the carbon filter to get any of the sand that is stuck in it out? Or should I just leave it since there is BB on there.

I also have HOB (hang on back) filters. I don't have internal. That's good u didn't have on until sand settled.
Did your filter ever dry out from when you cleaned the tank? If your filter dried out that killed any BB that was on it. It's ok to gently rinse filter in water you take from tank during your PWC. Never rinse in tap.
Only gently rinse in old water as needed until your BB. Is well established.

 

[Exotics]

This is poor advice and cruel for the goldfish involved in the process. The only fish that should be stocked in your tank are the fish you plan on keeping. The purpose of doing a fishless cycle is to prevent any harm to future fish by establishing the biological filter first before stocking.

Don't wanna argue but I believe other wise. Gold fish are really hardy fish they can take almost whatever you throw at them. they can handle high ammonia levels. And you could always give them away to whoever wants hold fish! Sorry didn't mean for it to sound so cruel but they won't die at least not in my experience. And not all my advice was bad by the way! Water from somebody else's filter will really help! So you should be a little more specific in what you think is poor advice.

 

[GoldsGuy]

Btw Guillermo. Consider using a log to monitor your water parameters either paper log, spreadsheet or similar.
I use an app on my iPhone and it definitely helps to look at the trend of the "normal" range for your aquarium as its more important for parameters to be stable versus adjusting to fit the fish. Fish are able to adapt to the natural environment in your tank as long as within an acceptable range for your stock.

 

[jlk]

Don't wanna argue but I believe other wise. Gold fish are really hardy fish they can take almost whatever you throw at them. they can handle high ammonia levels. And you could always give them away to whoever wants hold fish! Sorry didn't mean for it to sound so cruel but they won't die at least not in my experience. And not all my advice was bad by the way! Water from somebody else's filter will really help! So you should be a little more specific in what you think is poor advice.

There is actually very little bb in the water collumn- seeded media from an established tank is the most efficient means for speeding up a cycle.

Cycling a tank with 'feeder' goldfish is an old school notion that really should not be perpetuated. Common goldfish are just as suspectible to toxic levels of ammonia and/or nitrite as are any other species of fish. Just because you had goldfish that 'survived' cycling does not mean its an efficient means for cycling a tank. These fish will have suffered permanent damage that can not be reversed and their potential lifespans will be greatly diminshed.

 

[GoldsGuy]

There is actually very little bb in the water collumn- seeded media from an established tank is the most efficient means for speeding up a cycle.

Cycling a tank with 'feeder' goldfish is an old school notion that really should not be perpetuated. Common goldfish are just as suspectible to toxic levels of ammonia and/or nitrite as are any other species of fish. Just because you had goldfish that 'survived' cycling does not mean its an efficient means for cycling a tank. These fish will have suffered permanent damage that can not be reversed and their potential lifespans will be greatly diminshed.

I concur. As an owner of golds, they aren't expendable fish.
Also agree very little BB in water column as BB colonize surfaces so media or deco from established tank will speed up cycling.
If doing fishless cycling then that implies NO fish.
If doing fish, then I would select the hardier of the stock you want and then monitor water closely to minimize stress on fish.
I did cycling with fish I won at fair. I was paranoid of losing them and was careful to keep parameters below toxic to reduce stress.

 

[GoldsGuy]

Btw let's not get off topic. This tread is to help Guillermo with his tank.

 

[e30 gangsta]

You guys can go off topic I don't mind, its entertaining and helpful.

And yeah I started a log on excel with the parameters ive tested and what I've done to change the water etc.

Do you ever change your carbon filter? People have told me to change them once a month? Other people have just told me to rinse it out with some tap water, and drop it back in.

What is the correct process for the filter after the cycling has completed?

 

[jlk]

Just a suggestion here- since you are just starting the cycling process, dump the carbon & fill the bags with polyfill ($6-8 bag at arts & crafts stores). Or skip the filters altogether & opt for filter foam sponges instead ($4-5 box of 3). Carbon really is not necessary unless you need to remove meds or odors (which tank shouldnt have any) and just becomes an extra expense. Once your tank is cycled, you just need to swish your media in some tank water to remove debris once every week or two.

 

[Exotics]

I concur. As an owner of golds, they aren't expendable fish.
Also agree very little BB in water column as BB colonize surfaces so media or deco from established tank will speed up cycling.
If doing fishless cycling then that implies NO fish.
If doing fish, then I would select the hardier of the stock you want and then monitor water closely to minimize stress on fish.
I did cycling with fish I won at fair. I was paranoid of losing them and was careful to keep parameters below toxic to reduce stress.

Ok but by no means did i say they are expandable sorry if it sounded that way. Of course I don't let them die and like you still monitored the water parameters I didn't let everything go crazy. I just used them to help them speed up the cycle as you know they are dirty fish. And it only took my tank a week and half to cycle cause like you agreed the bb in the water. I think that was a huge help because I literally got the sponge and squeezed all the water out in to a bucket for my tank
Then those little feeder fish I wanna say helped too ( none died by the way)But since ppl disagree I guess it's not the best thing to do. But hey we are all learn something new everyday and that's why we're here to share info. Sorry to whoever I Offended.
And I agree let get back on topic

 

[Exotics]

Just a suggestion here- since you are just starting the cycling process, dump the carbon & fill the bags with polyfill ($6-8 bag at arts & crafts stores). Or skip the filters altogether & opt for filter foam sponges instead ($4-5 box of 3). Carbon really is not necessary unless you need to remove meds or odors (which tank shouldnt have any) and just becomes an extra expense. Once your tank is cycled, you just need to swish your media in some tank water to remove debris once every week or two.

I completely agree with him!
Carbon is only good to remove meds and maybe that brownish water you get when you don't soak drift wood right.
However I disagree with the sponge part unless you plan on keeping it or using it while using your filter builds the beneficial bacteria cause once you take out the sponge a lot of bb will be gone with sponge.
Still good advice in my opinion. I never use carbon and never had a problem.

 

[jlk]

I use filter foam sponges in addition to polyfill in my filters. They do not disintegrate (they last yrs) and have a ton of surface area for housing bacteria. They just need to be swished in tank water as you would do for any media. You can cut them to fit in any size filter. Aquaclear (filter foam inserts size 70) and Marineland (filter foam size T) are both good brands to use.

 

[GoldsGuy]

You guys can go off topic I don't mind, its entertaining and helpful.

And yeah I started a log on excel with the parameters ive tested and what I've done to change the water etc.

Do you ever change your carbon filter? People have told me to change them once a month? Other people have just told me to rinse it out with some tap water, and drop it back in.

What is the correct process for the filter after the cycling has completed?

Hi. You don't ever need to change your filter until its falling apart. Just rinse it weekly in the water you take from tank. Never rinse any filter media in tap as the chlorine will kill your BB.
many debate benefits of carbon. The carbon which is currently in your filter will actually house BB once no longer active.
You only need replace the carbon if needed. But reuse the filter.

 

[e30 gangsta]

So basically when I want to clean my filter, just pull it out and swish it around in my tank? Wouldn't that just be putting the debris back into my tank making it dirty again?

Or you guys are saying that whatever water I take out when im doing a pwc I swish it in there to take out whatever debri then place it back in the filter housing, and add the new treated water?

Sorry im a bit confused.

 

[GoldsGuy]

So basically when I want to clean my filter, just pull it out and swish it around in my tank? Wouldn't that just be putting the debris back into my tank making it dirty again?

Or you guys are saying that whatever water I take out when im doing a pwc I swish it in there to take out whatever debri then place it back in the filter housing, and add the new treated water?

Sorry im a bit confused.

Yes when doing your weekly PWC swish the filter in the water you remove and then put back into ur filter. Don't touch the filter pad. Then add the new treated water to tank.

 

[HeatherW]

So basically when I want to clean my filter, just pull it out and swish it around in my tank? Wouldn't that just be putting the debris back into my tank making it dirty again?

Or you guys are saying that whatever water I take out when im doing a pwc I swish it in there to take out whatever debri then place it back in the filter housing, and add the new treated water?

Sorry im a bit confused.

jumping in at the end of this thread without reading everything, but from what I understand is this. when you do your PWC put some of that in a bucket, take your filter out and swish it around in the bucket, then reinstert filter media into filter canister. pretty sure the key word here is swish not SQUISH filter media. you want to keep all that bacteria in there. am I right?

 

[e30 gangsta]

^ correct. That sounds about right.

 

[Exotics]

jumping in at the end of this thread without reading everything, but from what I understand is this. when you do your PWC put some of that in a bucket, take your filter out and swish it around in the bucket, then reinstert filter media into filter canister. pretty sure the key word here is swish not SQUISH filter media. you want to keep all that bacteria in there. am I right?

I agree!
I think you probably read what I posted earlier. That was to jump start the cycle from somebody else's filter to get bb.

 

[GoldsGuy]

^ correct. That sounds about right.

See you'll soon be giving advice Guillermo.

 

[e30 gangsta]

See you'll soon be giving advice Guillermo.

 

[GoldsGuy]

Keep us updated. Message me if u need any help. Be glad to assist