After a few years with Gravel, today i moved my tank and switched to plant substrate. i was able to keep about 50% of the original water and its all set up now, but is cloudy from the substrate (it told me not to rinse). the fish i have are in a large metal bowl with a bubbler on low to keep air in. How long can they stay in this bowl while i let the tank cycle as much as possible? Please help soon.
Tank Being Moved Help ASAP Please
- Thread starter MattCantSwim
- Start date
Could you answer some further questions so we can help you better?
What kind of fish are these? Are they cold water or tropical?
If they are cold water you can keep them in the bowl for days if you do water changes everyday. If they are tropical you need a heater in the bowl.
What substrate are you using?
The tank should be fine to put the fish in btw. As long as the temp and ph match you can just dump them in and they will be fine. The ph is less of a worry rather than temp. Fish adjust to ph over a prolong period of time usually a week or two. But don't dump in rays with different ph's or they will surely die if the difference is to much. Different types of fish are more sensitive to ph so answering what fish you have will give you a clear answer.
I'm sure your ph has changed as gravel substrate generally has a harder ph than plant substrate. So it would be nice to know what substrate you are using.
What kind of fish are these? Are they cold water or tropical?
If they are cold water you can keep them in the bowl for days if you do water changes everyday. If they are tropical you need a heater in the bowl.
What substrate are you using?
The tank should be fine to put the fish in btw. As long as the temp and ph match you can just dump them in and they will be fine. The ph is less of a worry rather than temp. Fish adjust to ph over a prolong period of time usually a week or two. But don't dump in rays with different ph's or they will surely die if the difference is to much. Different types of fish are more sensitive to ph so answering what fish you have will give you a clear answer.
I'm sure your ph has changed as gravel substrate generally has a harder ph than plant substrate. So it would be nice to know what substrate you are using.
They are Tropical, but i guess that doesnt matter if i can place them in the tank. I tested my water and the PH is almost identical. it is Flora Max Plant substrate. but i must comment the tank is dreadfully cloudy right now, will this cause any health issues of my fish?
Hello; I have cleaned gravel by rinsing it and then put it back into the same tank. This has worked well for me many times. While some beneficial bacteria (bb) will be rinsed off, some will also remain. You will remove the detritus by the rinsing of the gravel, which is likely a part of the cloudy water.
There will be bb in the filter media that is on the tank now, you can save that in a wet container to reseed the tank after it is clean. The bb will be on the surface of the live plants.
I have never kept fish in a metal container, so cannot comment on that. I use plastic buckets with a bubbler and a heater if needed.
Here is a link to an article about bb and the nitrogen cycle.
http://www.americanaquariumproducts.com/nitrogen_cycle.html
Good luck
There will be bb in the filter media that is on the tank now, you can save that in a wet container to reseed the tank after it is clean. The bb will be on the surface of the live plants.
I have never kept fish in a metal container, so cannot comment on that. I use plastic buckets with a bubbler and a heater if needed.
Here is a link to an article about bb and the nitrogen cycle.
http://www.americanaquariumproducts.com/nitrogen_cycle.html
Good luck
hopefully you are hooking up your old filter in this tank, then NO time is needed to cycle, because most of your beneficial bacteria is inside the filter, not substrate.
regardless, fish are much better off in a large volume of water than a bowl. and I agree with previous post about being careful to match the temperature.
regardless, fish are much better off in a large volume of water than a bowl. and I agree with previous post about being careful to match the temperature.
I am using the same two filters i have always used, however it has new cartridges in it. And the bowl is a large cake mixing bowl, so i believe they have ample room for the time being. I plan to release them back in the tak as soon as i have finished re setting it up. Thank you for your time.
Thank you for your time. But i must add, this isnt the same gravel, it is brand new substrate for planted aquariums. (i decided to switch to live plants)
A word of advise is dont throw the old filter cartridges away! Rinse them off in some dirty tank water when your doing a water change and put them back. Replacing the whole cartridge will make you go into another cycle as thats where the main portion of beneficial bacteria live. Because the gravel is out of the tank and thats also a key place beneficial bacteria live, I advise you to cut back on feeding and test your water just to be sure your fish dont get ammonia/nitrite poisoning. Best of luck.
^ Agreed. Also, it's always best to alternate filter cleaning when you have 2 or more...never completely clean out filter media.
Hello; With the additional information you gave, much will depend on how well you have cleaned the tank and the things used in it. As stated by others, in the future, save some filter material and/or substrate from an established tank to reseed the bb into the cleaned tank.
I keep a sponge filter running in one of my tanks. I bought some replacement sponge material that is thin enough to have two layers. If I need to set up a new tank quickly I can place one of the layers in the new tank. I also have a HOB filter with two slots for filter media and can pull one for a new setup. Some gravel from an established tank in a mesh bag can do the same.
If you cleaned things too well it may be that you will have started a new cycle at some level. The live plants are very likely to have some bb on their surfaces. Perhaps not enough to prevent a mini cycle, but likely enough to give the cycle a good start.
If you have the old gravel in a bucket it may have some bb still on it's surfaces if it was kept damp and not too much time has passed.
The bb are reported to stick well to surfaces and should stand simple rinsing. If you only rinsed the equipment and did not let it dry out, there may still have been some bb stuck to the surfaces.
In any event the bb will need their food, the ammonia, and the fish waste is a main source of that. The fish may do better in the tank than in a metal bowl, as from your description the bowl is not likely to have any bb. It may be that once yoy get the temperature in the tank right, the fish will be as well off in the tank.
Check the water parameters of the tank for ammonia after the fish are added. Reduced or no feeding for a few days can help keep the ammonia levels down and some water changes will help to dilute it. You may be faced with a new cycle if this is your only tank. If another cycled tank is available you can get some bb from that.
A member posted recently about using septic system stuff such as RID-X to seed a tank. I have not tried this myself so cannot verify that it is safe. Perhaps a search???
Good luck
I keep a sponge filter running in one of my tanks. I bought some replacement sponge material that is thin enough to have two layers. If I need to set up a new tank quickly I can place one of the layers in the new tank. I also have a HOB filter with two slots for filter media and can pull one for a new setup. Some gravel from an established tank in a mesh bag can do the same.
If you cleaned things too well it may be that you will have started a new cycle at some level. The live plants are very likely to have some bb on their surfaces. Perhaps not enough to prevent a mini cycle, but likely enough to give the cycle a good start.
If you have the old gravel in a bucket it may have some bb still on it's surfaces if it was kept damp and not too much time has passed.
The bb are reported to stick well to surfaces and should stand simple rinsing. If you only rinsed the equipment and did not let it dry out, there may still have been some bb stuck to the surfaces.
In any event the bb will need their food, the ammonia, and the fish waste is a main source of that. The fish may do better in the tank than in a metal bowl, as from your description the bowl is not likely to have any bb. It may be that once yoy get the temperature in the tank right, the fish will be as well off in the tank.
Check the water parameters of the tank for ammonia after the fish are added. Reduced or no feeding for a few days can help keep the ammonia levels down and some water changes will help to dilute it. You may be faced with a new cycle if this is your only tank. If another cycled tank is available you can get some bb from that.
A member posted recently about using septic system stuff such as RID-X to seed a tank. I have not tried this myself so cannot verify that it is safe. Perhaps a search???
Good luck