cycling help

[sunkissedinCA]

i started cycling one of my 10 gallons 3 days ago, for the very first time. i've always had smaller tanks for my fishies, so i'm new to this lol. is it ok if ladybug is in the tank while its cycling? the water looks pretty grody right now so i might just take her out and put her in something while it finishes. and is the water supposed to be cloudy after the first couple days..?

[AngelicScars]

I'm not sure about cycling, but I think I've read that it's best to cycle the tank with a hardy, cheap fish. The ammonia levels get pretty high while cycling, so using a cheap fish will avoid losing the fish you want to keep.
If that makes sense. I'm sure other people with cycling knowledge will chime in! :)

[dramaqueen]

You CAN cycle with the fish in the tank but its stressful for the fish because of high ammonia levels.

[sunkissedinCA]

oh ok thanks :) do you by any chance know if the tank is supposed to get cloudy in the beginning stages of cycling? it looks like its clearing up a little bit though.

[dramaqueen]

I think that cloudiness the first few days of cycling is normal.

[neenjar]

yes new tanks will get cloudy during cycle. if you are doing a cycle with fish, do daily 10-15% water changes to keep ammonia at a level your fish can handle. It will stress them regardless, but the less the better. changing water daily will create a longer time to cycle, but be easier on the occupants. i usually do fishless cycles on new tanks.

[Twistersmom]

It is normal for a new tank to be cloudy for a few days after setting it up.
A tank needs a soure of ammonia to cycle. Either a fish or another source of ammonia.
Do you have an API liquid water test kit? I find bettas to be hardy fish. If you have the test kit, you can leave the fish in the 10 gal, test the water daily, water changes as needed to keep ammonia and nitrite under .25 ppm.
I would not think about adding any other fish to the tank until the tank is completely cycled.

In bowls and small tanks ammonia can build up quickly, I believe the fish is safer in the larger 10 gal, where larger water volume will keep toxins from quickly becoming out of control.

I have found my fish in cycles with lots of water changes to not take any longer than my fishless cycles.

Be careful to not over clean the filter and filter media. This is where most of the bacteria will grow. Make the filter media last as long as you can by cleaning it in old tank water you removed during the water change.

[Angelmonster]

As they have mentioned it is normal. Do not add any fish to the tank. I cycled my tank with my Betta Clark and he is fine. It was cloudy for a week so I would do daily 10% changes(use your gravel vac on the gravel each day so to get the extra food that drops. Do try to leave dome debris though haha).

When you set up a tank, atleast this is how I do it, I never change the filter cartridge/media for a month and a half. LEt the bacteria grow before you change it. It will estblish itself in the tank and then it is safe to replace the filter media monthly.

The tank will probably be cloudt for about two weeks. It took two weeks to cycle my tank and Clark is doing great! His tank is now crystal clear, beautiful water! And Algae is not growing out of control(yet). Once the wate ris clear start adding quarium salt and it (should) keep the algae under control. If it gets too bad a 10 gallon is big enough for a snail to eat the algae

[sunkissedinCA]

ok cool, thanks so much for the help guys!

[1077]

Originally Posted by Twistersmom

It is normal for a new tank to be cloudy for a few days after setting it up.
A tank needs a soure of ammonia to cycle. Either a fish or another source of ammonia.
Do you have an API liquid water test kit? I find bettas to be hardy fish. If you have the test kit, you can leave the fish in the 10 gal, test the water daily, water changes as needed to keep ammonia and nitrite under .25 ppm.
I would not think about adding any other fish to the tank until the tank is completely cycled.

In bowls and small tanks ammonia can build up quickly, I believe the fish is safer in the larger 10 gal, where larger water volume will keep toxins from quickly becoming out of control.

I have found my fish in cycles with lots of water changes to not take any longer than my fishless cycles.

Be careful to not over clean the filter and filter media. This is where most of the bacteria will grow. Make the filter media last as long as you can by cleaning it in old tank water you removed during the water change.

+one for everything mentioned!