captaincritical
Aquarium Advice Freak
Hello everyone,
Please forgive me if these questions are immensely stupid, but I've been reading and reading for DAYS and I am now so bloody confused that I can't even think for myself anymore.
I am trying to cycle a 35g freshwater tank without fish. I have a solid theoretical understanding of how the nitrogen cycle works. Putting it into practice, however, is becoming increasingly difficult for me because of the lack of ammonia available for purchase where I live. I have checked hardware stores and big chain stores and can find NOTHING appropriate locally.
If I were to order it online, I would have to pay extra money to have it shipped with a heat pack in order to avoid freezing. The cheapest I've found is an additional $10 charge on top of a minimum $25 order. I'm looking to avoid this - spending nearly $40 for a bottle of something that only costs $4 is a little ridiculous.
Putting a dead shrimp in my tank is not an option. I'm a strict vegetarian, which causes an ethical dilemma for me in regards to bringing a dead animal home. I don't mind that other people do it and I'm glad that it works for them, but it's just not for me. Live and let live, I say.
I have some "Bio-Support" that I purchased from Big Al's (a national chain FS here in Canada), which has the same formulation as API's Stress Zyme. But adding beneficial bacteria is pointless without an ammonia source, correct?
I don't want to harm any fish by performing a fish-in cycle, and I don't know anyone locally with an established tank from whom I can pilfer any seeded filter media.
Am I stuck here or am I overlooking something obvious?
EDIT: Ugh, and naturally I posted this to the wrong place. Forgive me, I'm exhausted. If anyone could move this to the Freshwater Forum for me, it would be much appreciated.
Please forgive me if these questions are immensely stupid, but I've been reading and reading for DAYS and I am now so bloody confused that I can't even think for myself anymore.
I am trying to cycle a 35g freshwater tank without fish. I have a solid theoretical understanding of how the nitrogen cycle works. Putting it into practice, however, is becoming increasingly difficult for me because of the lack of ammonia available for purchase where I live. I have checked hardware stores and big chain stores and can find NOTHING appropriate locally.
If I were to order it online, I would have to pay extra money to have it shipped with a heat pack in order to avoid freezing. The cheapest I've found is an additional $10 charge on top of a minimum $25 order. I'm looking to avoid this - spending nearly $40 for a bottle of something that only costs $4 is a little ridiculous.
Putting a dead shrimp in my tank is not an option. I'm a strict vegetarian, which causes an ethical dilemma for me in regards to bringing a dead animal home. I don't mind that other people do it and I'm glad that it works for them, but it's just not for me. Live and let live, I say.
I have some "Bio-Support" that I purchased from Big Al's (a national chain FS here in Canada), which has the same formulation as API's Stress Zyme. But adding beneficial bacteria is pointless without an ammonia source, correct?
I don't want to harm any fish by performing a fish-in cycle, and I don't know anyone locally with an established tank from whom I can pilfer any seeded filter media.
Am I stuck here or am I overlooking something obvious?
EDIT: Ugh, and naturally I posted this to the wrong place. Forgive me, I'm exhausted. If anyone could move this to the Freshwater Forum for me, it would be much appreciated.