Just got a huge tank, what's next...

[Daxster]

Okay, so we just got a tank from craigslist advertised as 110g but I think it's really 125 (72x18x22). I got it setup with the pumps(still trying to figure out what part is the bio filter media) it came with, gravel and heater, filled with water and dechlorinated.

My question is what's next? I know the tank needs to cycle. I read about the fishless cycle but I'm leary. The huge water change at the end and the fact that we don't plan to stock this tank to capacity, but rather grow gradually. Can I cycle with a few fish? Since it's such a large tank will it negate the harsh effects on the fish?

Also, we have a 29g tank that's been running for a year. Would it be helpful to add water or gravel to the new tank or not really make a difference because it's so big?

 

[Purple]

Advice depends on your filter set up – what are you running ?

 

[lauraf]

If you have a healthy tank up and running, you can use filter media from that tank to help cycle your new one. Can your 29g filter take more than one sponge at a time? If so, stuff an extra sponge in there for a couple of weeks, or you can even take the old sponge, rub a bunch of it's gunk onto a new one, and put that in the new tank's filter. A few scoops of gravel from the established tank will also help - if you don't want to mix it up with the gravel for the new tank, you can put it in a mesh bag or old pantyhose and eventually remove it. Water doesn't have a lot of the good bacteria - the filter media, gravel and decor have way more. You do need to give the bacteria an ammonia source right away, so you can add a few fish or even snails to do the job - that's a big tank, so it should be quite forgiving. Just be prepared to test the water daily for ammonia, nitrites and nitrates, and do water changes if ammonia or nitrite spikes. Live plants, if you were planning on aquascaping with foliage, will also help offset the negative effects of a cycling tank.

 

[Daxster]

Advice depends on your filter set up – what are you running ?

It came with a Millenium 3000 and a whisper 60. From what I saw on aqadvisor this looks like more than enough for a 125g tank fully stocked. These filters don't seem to use sponges. My 29 gal. uses a marineland bio wheel and carbon cartridges(which based on advice here I rinse but don't change). I'm not sure if I sure put new media in these or not?

It looks like the prev owner was using the tetra bio-bag(looks like a filament bag with charcoal inside) for both filters. I read an article here that suggested putting new filter media right in your old tank for a week.

 

[Daxster]

If you have a healthy tank up and running, you can use filter media from that tank to help cycle your new one. Can your 29g filter take more than one sponge at a time? If so, stuff an extra sponge in there for a couple of weeks, or you can even take the old sponge, rub a bunch of it's gunk onto a new one, and put that in the new tank's filter. A few scoops of gravel from the established tank will also help - if you don't want to mix it up with the gravel for the new tank, you can put it in a mesh bag or old pantyhose and eventually remove it. Water doesn't have a lot of the good bacteria - the filter media, gravel and decor have way more. You do need to give the bacteria an ammonia source right away, so you can add a few fish or even snails to do the job - that's a big tank, so it should be quite forgiving. Just be prepared to test the water daily for ammonia, nitrites and nitrates, and do water changes if ammonia or nitrite spikes. Live plants, if you were planning on aquascaping with foliage, will also help offset the negative effects of a cycling tank.

I can definitely move some gravel over, and try to transfer some gunk from the cartridge, but the new cartridge is too big to fit in the old filter.

I read a post that said to use 2 to 5 inches of fish per ten gallons of water so for me(125g) that would be 25 inches of fish minimum to start if I'm doing my math right?

I wasn't planning on planting my tank until I get everything cycled. We haven't really had the best luck with plants, not the right lighting on the 29g. We are hoping that will change with this tank but I don't want to cycle and deal with plants at the same time if I don't have to.

As far as the water change, I am a bit confused. I thought you weren't supposed to do a water change until the levels dropped to 0?

 

[DclownD]

minor water changes you can always put a second filter media into your 29g tank and then kind of move it into the filter on the 125 with the correct media in them.

With the fish in cycle its good to do minor changes to keep the fish safe..

 

[Purple]

That's one seriously incompatable (with your existing filter) set up. However, you could run the HOBs on the old tank alongside your working filter for a while if you're not in a hurry – I'd do it for two weeks if I had the time, then run the HOBs on the large tank they came with combined with about 2 inches of fish per ten gallons – can't see things going wrong. The filters will be seeded, and 2 per 10 shouldn't stress it while it builds up.

If the HOBs are going to create too much turbulence in the smaller tank, then buy a small to medium standard sponge in-tank filter for a few bucks, and run that in your old tank alongside your working filter for a fortnight before transfering as above – the effect should still support a 2/10 stock level. After a month or so, take out the sponge filter and run the HOB only, testing as you go along. (While you're doing that, put the sponge filter back in your first tank and run it in case you need to get it back into the large tank in a hurry). If you do take this route, a handfull of crud on top of the nice shiny new sponge filter will help a lot.

Simply hanging a media bag in a cycled tank won't have a great effect, as the bacteria are mostly in the filter media, not the water, and there's no flow going through it either.

I'd go for the second option, and buy a simple cheap sponge in-tank filter – handfull of gunk near the intake side of the sponge – run it in the old tank for a while – it will be the faster and stronger way of seeding it. When you do put it into the new tank, the longer you leave it in there the better. On a 2/10 ratio the new sponge filter doesn't need to be huge – anything rated at around 25 gal should do her while your HOB gets up to speed.

The last water change you are asking about only comes into play if you are doing a fishless cycle – which isn't the case if you do things this way – you'll be adding the fish and the seeded filter at the same time, so there's no need to change the water.

 

[aakaakaak]

Take the cycled filter from your 29g biowheel and do your best to jam it into your tetra whisper 60 behind the existing filter. Overspill may occur back into the tank, and that's fine. Add a new filter in your 29g. Since your 29g is an established tank the gravel and other cycled surfaces should prevent a mini-cycle. Be sure to add fish within a couple days or the beneficial bacteria will starve. If you want to be extra sure you can add a bottle of Tetra Safe Start or Seachem Stability to be sure the cycle works well. Be sure to double dose your Seachem Prime to minimize any ammonia you may get if the 110g mini-cycles.

By the time your tank is set up with a couple fish and you're somewhat confident with the cycle (probably a week or two) you should have figured out how to add media to your canister. I'm not familiar with the setups for canisters, but I've heard people use pre-cycled bio-balls (which you could toss in the Tetra 60 during initial cycle) or rip out a hunk of cycled filter from the old 29g filter media once you've established the beneficial bacteria in the Tetra 60's filter.

With a bunch of pre-cycled media you shouldn't have a problem.

 

[nanu156]

I would take the cartrige out of the 29 and give it a swish in the new tank try to get as much gunk in the new tank as possible while the new tank's filter's are up and running. I would also do a really thorough gravel vac and try to get as much of that gunk into the new tank as possible too.

I would then add fish slowly, starting with no more then 10 fish and adding 3-5 fish weekly/biweekly until the tank is up and running steady. Once you have added fish the bacteria colony will grow enough to support what you have in the tank each time you add more fish the colony of bacteria needs time to grow bigger to take care of their waste.

 

[Daxster]

We started with 5 buenos aires tetra. After 2 days I threw in a cup of gravel from the established tank and to my suprise we had nitrites 2 days later. The ammonia levels never went above .25. I'm hoping in another couple days we'll have nitrates, I added another cup of gravel from the other tank in case the nitrite bacteria died in that 2 days.

 

[Daxster]

Today we had nitrates! Nitrites are down to 0 and ammonia was down to .25

I did a partial water change 10% and was thinking of adding my cardinal tetras from our smaller tank. (It's kind of an emergency situation, we have a killer fish in the 29g tank)

 

[aakaakaak]

Move em. They should be fine....or at least less likely to be eaten.

 

[Kiara1125]

What killer, the red tailed black shark?? My lfs has a small RTBS with an 8" Barracuda. Sweet!! Your Cardinals should be fine, what type of fish do you want to "grow big" in that tank?? Golfisheseses??? Or maybe some Oscars. BARRACUDA!!!

 

[Daxster]

We are actually thinking this should be our semi-aggressive tank and have the 29g be our community tank.

Is it bad to switch fish around? If we made a mistake?

 

[lauraf]

We are actually thinking this should be our semi-aggressive tank and have the 29g be our community tank.

Is it bad to switch fish around? If we made a mistake?

No, IMO it's worse not to fix your mistake. Fish can be moved from tank to tank if necessary - just ensure that you acclimate them, as even tanks in the same home with the same water source may have very different parameters . . . .