Ammonia substitute during fishless cycling

[Grymatta]

I just cant find the right kind of ammonia to cycle my fish tank with. All the ones I see are scented with perfumes or some other weird stuff. The closest one i found contained something called "Quality Control Agent"...what the heck is that?

I've heard that you can use a piece of raw shrimp or fish or meat to create ammonia in the water. Can I use anything else, like dead plant leaves or something? Fish poop from my existing cycled tank?

Also..how long do I leave it in there? Do i take it out after high amonia is deteced?

thanks

 

[YahooFishKeeper]

i didnt introduce ammonia at all. i just swished a really dirty filter pad around the tank waited a few days and measured the ammonia, waited a few days measured the ammonia etc. when everything has bottomed out for about a week it should be fine, although some people may disagree, and say you need to wait longer for more stability. i think that introducing a clean up crew member at this time would help the cycle.

 

[Zman16]

Yeah I agree with yahoofishkeeper. You shouldn't have to introduce ammonia. Thats the last thing you want in a tank, Ammonia.

 

[homebunnyj]

Ummm..... you DO have to introduce ammonia in a fishless cycle. Otherwise, with no source of ammonia, you really are not cycling your tank. Grymatta has read and done the research. Good job, Grymatta.
I buy the el-cheapo, walmart ammonia, otherwise known as 'clear' ammonia-- no sudsing agents. It has a chelating agent in it; I wasn't sure if that was alright, so I crossed my fingers and hoped for the best. It musta been fine, cuz my tank cycled, I didn't lose any fish when I added them after the cycle was complete, and now, nine months later, they are all alive but one oranda, which died later of unrelated causes.
Yahoofihskeeper, did you get an ammonia reading at the beginning of your fishless cycle? If so, how was it introduced? Just wondering.

 

[mcsully]

You definitely need ammonia in the cycle bro. That is the key to get the "good" bacteria to create an environment.
I was running into the same issue this week. My 20 gallon had a high ammonia and nitrate count (after cycling). So I refilled the water (not cleaning the gravel) and just kept watching it for a few days my tank was ready to go.
Timbo (a user here) gave me some great advise. IF you want to use an alternative to the ammonia you get at the store, use some fish food. This breaks down into ammonia that the bacteria will feed off. Thought it was a great idea and wanted to share it.

 

[FroggyFox]

Have you tried looking at the grocery store in the cleaning aisle? I found mine at albertsons (dont know if they have those where you are)

 

[Grymatta]

thanks for all your advice guys..after 2 days of searching I finally found a Clear Ammonia bottle with just ammonia and water in it. I kept finding ones with sudsy, lemon scented, etc.

I live in BRooklyn but had to go into nyc at a Duane Reade to find one.

thanks again guys!

 

[Lotus]

Yeah, it always seems to be the cheap brands or store brands that have the plain ammonia. Congratulations on finding it