(more) Cycling questions.

[brancasterr]

I just started fishless cycling today and the tank has gotten pretty cloudy thus far. Is this normal?

Also, there are tiny bubbles building up around the edge of the tank. I know the ammonia I put in was pure and contained no detergents or anything. Is this normal? I also added a bit of Nutrafin Cycle, just to see if it will speed the process.

Any tips? How long should I expect it to take? (its 10 gallons)

[xxabc]

I'm pretty positive the cloudiness is expected. Bubbling (I said this before, lol), i'm not sure on.

People are saying one month, but I'm just...kind of saying that. Haha... Gives a general time, I guess. Take it with a bucket of salt, lol :)

[dramaqueen]

I think the cloudiness is normal, too.

[brancasterr]

I've read of people doing it in 10 days for a 10 gallon. I hope I can get it to work properly. :)

And hahaha, a bucket of salt, that one made me laugh. :P

I wonder what the bubbles could be from. Maybe its from the Nutrafin Cycle.

[xxabc]

Maybe it was seeded? Hopefully not though, 10 days for cycling fishless? That's way shorter than doing fish-in... and safer. Hmm, so many pros...

Not sure though... I can get gravel from familly-friend's 50 gallon to seed my tank, hahaha. I think he instant-cycled his other smaller nano tank with it.

[PinkDiamond]

I hate to bring your hopes down, but 10 days is really fast for any cycle (unless you jump start with mature media from another tank) from what I know. I think you're looking at more like 30 to 60 days for it to complete. That's been my experience with all my cycles.

The cloudiness is normal from what I know, and it will clear as the cycle progresses. Just keep an eye on it.

As for the little bubbles showing up on the inside of the tank, could it just be the water outgassing? If you filled the tank up with water straight from the tap (ie: you didn't leave the water to sit out in an open container for a day or two before putting it in the tank) it's probably just the dissolved gasses in the water, which is definitely a good thing. You want your water to do this prior to a fish coming in contact with it, or else the bubbles can form in the fish themselves, producing nasty bubble embolisms, among other nasty symptoms of gas bubble disease. Aging your water is a great idea before doing water changes as well. :)

Hope that helps?

[brancasterr]

Thanks for the help, but I hope it doesn't take 30-60 days! I'm ready to put in my fish now! Haha.

As for the bubbles, they've gone away so I'm sure thats what it was.

[PinkDiamond]

Haha I know, right? Waiting on a cycle is soooo hard - you've got your tank set up nicely and running... it's torture when I'm cycling mine. :) Fingers crossed for your cycle to be speedy!

[brancasterr]

Well I got the plants from a fish store that had TONS of plants growing with a few fish in a tank. So they must have had good bacteria on them. I also got the driftwood from the same place which was already soaking in another tank with corys and tetras, so that must have had some bacteria with it. So I'm hoping my tank was seeded with that. :P

[Mister Sparkle]

It'll definitely help!