Is my tank ready for a new fish after 3 days?

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Sonsinator

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
May 6, 2008
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I'm just wondering if my aquarium is ready to house a fish now since I just set it up 3 days ago. I was following the nitrogen cycle method and upon checking the water yesterday and 2 days ago, the ammonia level is at .25 or in between 0-0.25 ppm. However, upon checking the ammonia level this morning, the ammonia reading was at zero. Does it mean that my aquarium has already started the nitrogen cycle?

I don't have a nitrate and nitrite reader yet but what could be your insights on this guys? :)

I also put in a piece of feeder goldfish as a producer of ammonia in the tank as well and put a piece of hikari foodstick everyday (sorry I don't have money to buy flakes neither would I need them in the long run :()
 
The cycle has only just begun! :D Now, that doesn't mean you can't keep fish in it. I've always been more savvy of cycling a tank with a little help from one or two small fish because it seems to do the job better but I wouldn't go out and start fully stocking it. Also, if you do add fish make sure to do daily water changes of about 10%-20%
 
@Deep Blue Sea, yep, it is my first time doing the nitrogen cycling because I have really terrible experiences with juvs. Just lost 2 jar arowana 4 days ago, someone probably got poisoned by ammonia or insecticide while the other one bump his head so hard on the glass cover :((( I want to give the third one the best home he could ever have and probably turn him into a monster in the future. Would you think it would be better if I leave it be a for a week or 2 before putting one in? :)
 
Well, how big is the tank vs. the size of the arowana and what is he in now? It honestly wouldn't matter between adding him now or in 1-2 weeks because the cycle takes around a full month
 
It's a 20 gal long aquarium, the jar I would be buying is only 3" so I think he would be good there for 2-3 months or probably more depending on how the experts see this, alone and afterwards transfer him to my 100 gal. I don't have the fish yet but I'm planning to buy one after 2-4 weeks depending on the readings of the water
 
If you don't already have the fish I'd suggest waiting and in the meanwhile (if you're really itching to get a fish in there as I sometimes am) maybe get a small fish you can enjoy but that's also hardy to help cycle it? Perhaps a baby catfish or even just a pretty goldfish :)
 
Like previously stated, the cycle has just begun. Depending on tank size, it could take a week or a month for it to complete. If you want to accelerate the cycle I would suggest using SeaChem Stability. I'm trying it now for the first time myself and am interested to see how it works. Basically, it is "Beneficial Bacteria in a bottle." If you are familiar with the nitrogen cycle you probably know that beneficial aerobic bacteria build up in filtration systems and in the tank and general, providing the biological filtration (they eat ammonia, essentially,) that your tank needs. After just 3 days, I can assure you that your tank is not cycled. Using stability will allow your tank to cycle with fish in it, though since I am using it for the first time, I've only got some cheap barbs in there for now.
 
letstalkfish said:
Like previously stated, the cycle has just begun. Depending on tank size, it could take a week or a month for it to complete. If you want to accelerate the cycle I would suggest using SeaChem Stability. I'm trying it now for the first time myself and am interested to see how it works. Basically, it is "Beneficial Bacteria in a bottle." If you are familiar with the nitrogen cycle you probably know that beneficial aerobic bacteria build up in filtration systems and in the tank and general, providing the biological filtration (they eat ammonia, essentially,) that your tank needs. After just 3 days, I can assure you that your tank is not cycled. Using stability will allow your tank to cycle with fish in it, though since I am using it for the first time, I've only got some cheap barbs in there for now.
Click to expand...

I fell for stability once. It isn't possible to bottle the bacteria. In a bottle there would be no food for it and it would die. Stability is most likely a neutralizer like prime to make the cycle less stressful on the fish.

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Unless all the equipment substrate and decor are coming from a well established tank and still has live bacteria then go for it. If not then wait it out you'll be thankful in the long run. If your that impatient throw some feeders in to help speed up the process


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