just wondering......

[corinda]

i have 30+g tank it only has 4 adult guppies and a lot of fry in it. I was just wondering if i got a 10 g tank kit from walmart and put the gravel and water in the tank . would i have to cycle the tank any way. i want to buy a red devil and put in the 30 +g tank.. I want put the guppies from onr tank to another the same day.What do you think???

 

[Brobro]

a red devil needs a 55 gallon, just for 1 fish. a 30 gallon is too small. red devils are extremly aggresive and get huge, so they arent a choice for a 30 gallon.

 

[toodles]

Brobro is right, red devils get big!

I still wanted to answer your question though......I have jump started many tanks by using gravel, rocks, plants, other decorations and some of the filter media from established tanks. Sort of an instant cycling! One thing to remember is if you use the filter media from an older tank, rinse the pad/whatever in dechlorinated tap water or tank water, NOT straight from the tap as the chlorine will kill the bacteria.

 

[rocketshrimp]

To toodles

so if i took some gravel from a cycled tank and put it in a power filter that wood jump start the cycle.

 

[toodles]

Taking a handful of gravel will get you some bacteria going, but it won't be enough to fully stock the tank. It will just get things going a bit faster than doing a regular cycling from nothing. In order to fully stock the tank, you are going to need more than that, and one thing I forgot to add, is to check your water parameters and if anything is spiking, be prepared to do water changes!!

 

[sinasster]

If you have enough gravel in your 30 gallon to fill the 10 gallon and perhaps some of your decor, you should not have any problems at all.