What's with all the "Cycling Questions?"
- Thread starter Bottomfeeder
- Start date
Bottomfeeder;2696156; said:Ive noticed that I'm the only person who "instant-cycles."
Why?
By instant cycle i mean take gravel or decor or hard surface from an established tank, put it in the new tank, run the filter for a few days, and viola!
"Instant cycle"
You are not alone, there is most likely a great majority of people here and outside of this forum who use this method in one form or another to start a new tank. Gravel, tank water, plants, drift wood, and of course the filter media "squeeze" it's all good and even better in combination! I have done it for many years as well. Just be careful about stocking with too many expensive or "favorite" fish to quickly.
Al of my tanks have at least 1 HOB filer, regardless how much primary filtration they have. In each of these HOBs I keep a bag of ceramic bio media, for the primary purpose of instant cycling new tanks. Recently I started a new tank which I felt was started too soon after the last one I started, so I was not comfortable that I had enough seeded bio media in my secondary HOBs.
To get the new tank started, I swapped Bio wheels with one tank, took the filter pad from a second, and used a whisper filter which I had filled with carbon from a third. All of the tanks I took media from have plenty of additional bio media so they will see no change in water quality.
I'm not convinced biospira or cycle really work, and I couldnt imagine waiting a month for a tank to cycle. The LFSs should sell their used media or give it to customers of tanks.
To get the new tank started, I swapped Bio wheels with one tank, took the filter pad from a second, and used a whisper filter which I had filled with carbon from a third. All of the tanks I took media from have plenty of additional bio media so they will see no change in water quality.
I'm not convinced biospira or cycle really work, and I couldnt imagine waiting a month for a tank to cycle. The LFSs should sell their used media or give it to customers of tanks.
Your "instant cycles" have have become instinctive to us and are fairly commonly used. Relatively easy, but impractical for those starting a new tank from scratch without a source of media. The infrequency of posts about them is probably due to their prevalence in the hobby- for example, I wouldn't post about breathing since I do it all the time.
johnny roastbeef;2696491; said:
Bio-spira is pretty much the only one that many people agree works. However, it is pretty hard to come by and must be refrigerated, therefore it's not too popular.
Also, "instant" cycling has been used by a ton of people, and like stated before, newbies asking questions about cycling most likely don't have other tanks.
Thant made me laughDruu;2696565; said:
Personally I wouldn't be to happy even going for an instant cycle, I always go extreme setting up a new tank. New everything apart from water which is dirty tank water from a water change on a another tank. Keep adding to it until full and then after a week, water change the dirty water out until clear.
did it ever occur to you that not everybody has an established tank or a source for used media??? 
