water from an other tank?

[Takumi665]

i have a friend that has been in the hobby for a long time. i think he has a 125 galllon tank. he said on his next water change he'll just give the water from his tank, so i dont have to wait the month or more period to cycle. is this a good or bad idea? i have a 29 gallon tank.


and also wanted ur input on some fish i want to get


8 Black Skirt Tetras (i already have em, same friend is holding them for me)
8 Neon Tetras
1 common pleco (i know they get big)


thanks for the help,
Tak

 

[YahooFishKeeper]

unfortunately the water would be useless. the water doesnt contain any of the needed bacteria to cycle your tank. you might ask your friend to borrow a handful of gravel from his tank to kickstart your cycle though. you just put it in a (unused) nylon sock and hang it over the side, and it will spread to your media in 1-2 months time. its not going to instant cycle but its better than nothing. you might also want to try bio-spira. i have heard wonderful things about it. that stuff realy does instant cycle your tank, but make sure its been refridgerated.

 

[JWright]

Even better would be if you could get some of his filter media.

Find out what kind of filter her has, most filters use a series of small sponges. If he can give you a couple of his sponges to cram in your filter, all will be good.

The bacteria that take care of the ammonia and nitrite need a place to grow. Very little (some, but _very_ little) of the bacteria exists free-floating in the water, since it grows in collections on surfaces like filter media and, to a lesser degree, the gravel.

 

[Pure]

Ditto what's been said on both accounts.

For your stocking, the tetras will be fine. But I am a little confused as to why you would intentionally get a pleco that you know will get too large for your tank? Especially when there are so many other species available that stay small.

 

[Takumi665]

i just like em and im getting a 55gal in sept. i just want it in there cause i like em. ive been told they dont grow that fast.

 

[Kuroshio]

I just got a zebra yellow blotched pleco last month and he's an eye catcher! Really does have the stripes of a zebra and only gets a few inches. Another TERRIFIC pleco is the albino bristlenose.....a lawnmower!! Eats all day. Will clean out your tank in hours and again maybe 4 inches as an adult. Try looking at other species of plecos before getting a common....its worth the research

Good Luck!

(and yes, if you get some filter medium from the 125 tank that should start your smaller tank without the cycle problems and he wont miss it at all. I have a 125 that i start all of my fry tanks with)

 

[rohnds]

Personally I do not recommend using filter media, gravel or ornaments from another tank to speed up the cycling process. This is due to the possibility that you might introduce any unwanted and harmful pathogen that might in the original tank. They might even be dormant and when introduced into another system, these pathogens might become active.
It is always best to cycle your tank using ammonia. Patience in key factor in keeping fish.

Rohn