# seeding = instant cycle?



## splat (Nov 17, 2010)

i have a 30 gallon tank and i took about 1/2 of the filter floss out of my canister filter and put it in the canister filter of my new 50 gallon set-up. i also put about 12 white clouds in there to help cycling. is my 50 gallon cycled with the filter floss/mulm from my old tank or do i have to wait before i put more fish in there? i have never seeded a tank before
thanks


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## discuspaul (Jul 2, 2010)

Assuming your existing 30 gal. was fully cycled/mature, the seeded floss from the old filter should do the trick, although it may be somewhat light, given you've added 12 fish to the new set-up, & it may take some time for the bio-filtration level to develop the necessary concentration to deal with that fish load. 
Would greatly assist if you can get, and add, some Seachem Stability.
Good luck


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## tony1928 (Apr 22, 2010)

I use seeded bio media all the time to start my new tanks. It works fairly well and will allow you to add some fish immediately. The key that it will take a while for the new tank to reach that balance of bioload versus bacteria. Just be careful how quickly you add stock. Adding too little stock could also cause you to end up starving the seeded bio media, but still, adding slowly is generally a good idea. Seachem Stability does work, but you need to be fairly rigorous with following the dosing. According to Seachem, you should be able to add fish to an uncycled tank just by following their Stability regimen.


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## discuspaul (Jul 2, 2010)

Yes, Seachem Stability really works - have used it twice with no loss of fish.
But yes, you do need to follow the dosage directions religiously.


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## splat (Nov 17, 2010)

thanks! will check seachem stability sounds like it might be good product


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## neven (May 15, 2010)

imo dont need stability if you are seeding, in fact you dont really need it at all. you shouldn't be cycling with sensative fish in the first place. For a seeded filter wait 2-3 weeks between new stock to let the bio build up enough, and never add more than 30% of the total fish inches capacity of the tank.


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## 1843 (Oct 23, 2010)

Another opinion: You did good. Yes, the biomedia from the cycled tank will lend cycling to the new tank. Adding fish right away is essential, because you need fish waste to keep feeding the biomedia (beneficial bacteria) that you just brought over from the old tank. 

Instead of buying bacteria in a bottle, you can continue with what you're doing with your very own free bacteria. White clouds are a good choice, very hearty. You can boost the beneficial bacteria load by swishing or squeezing a bit of goo from your old tank's filter into the new tank. Even just into the water, you don't have to put it in the filter. Everything should be stable by one week, in my experience. Keep an eye on the parameters and be on the lookout for a bacteria bloom (cloudy water). If the ammonia starts to creep up, do a partial water change to keep it down.


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## discuspaul (Jul 2, 2010)

There's almost always more than one way to do almost anything, isn't there ?
And it's good to get different opinions - different views - some things work for some - not so for others.
Some people can be adverse to a particular system, technique, or practice, by virtue of their negative experience with it, but as they say, "if you haven't tried it, don't knock it". 
If anyone has tried seeding with Stability, or Bio-Spira, and it didn't work, it's probably because they didn't follow directions properly, or they got a bottle whose overlong shelf time caused the bacteria to perish before it's use.
And, aren't all fish sensitive to one degree or another ? How many tens of thousands of fishkeepers have cycled their tanks with fish, after all ?
Not meaning any offense here, simply pointing out that a tank can indeed be immediately cycled using a bottled product, and there are times when a particular "seeding" from an established tank may be insufficient to quickly produce the level of bio-filtration necessary to deal with the bio-load put into it, and it can help to assist and hasten the process with additional bottled bacterial seeding.
That's my opinion, for what it's worth.


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## katienaha (May 9, 2010)

use a water test kit - you will know for sure if your tank is cycled then


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## splat (Nov 17, 2010)

thanks for all the replies. i didn't know i could just squeeze the filter media into the water..i thought it had to be in the filter. makes sense when i think about it. i am all for low-budget aquariums so prefer to do things the cheap way, lol. but will keep seachem in mind if something should go 'off'.
it has been a while since i started a new tank..what water parameters should i look for to determine if my tank is cycled?


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## Death's Sting (Apr 21, 2010)

I use pure ammonia, that way I can cycle the tank to any size bio load I want. Without harming any fish. Its also a hell of a lot faster then using fish since, you have to feed the fish and wait for their waste to break down and produce the ammonia. simply adding ammonia skips all those steps.


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## katienaha (May 9, 2010)

0 ammonia, 0 nitirites, and 10-30 nitrates. ammonia should consistently be at 0, say for 2-3 days, same as nitrites.

I agree with death's sting.. you shouldnt have to harm fish. Pure ammonia works just fine. 

But slow stocking helps too. If you have say, half the bacteria required for your bioload, adding 2 fish at a time should prevent a mini-cycle from occuring. This should be considered when stocking ANY tank. Slow and gradual addition of bioload is the safest. 

If you plan on having a large bioload right off the bat, when there is no fish in the tank currently, increase the amount of ammonia to mimick the increased bioload from a fish, and then you are safer to add more at once.


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## discuspaul (Jul 2, 2010)

If you've gone through some period(s) when your testing has in fact clearly registered the presence of ammonia, then nitrites following that - and later testings of your water show:
0 Ammonia, 0 Nitrites, and some (possibly 0 or very little) nitrates, and the latter reading is at a 'safe' level, i.e. under 40 ppm - then you're cycled & good to go. If the nitrate reading is high, do a water change to bring the level down within reason, and that's it.


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## doogie (Nov 5, 2010)

Well the more I read the more confused I get! I have what I feel is an established 20G with an AC 50 on the back. I also have an 11" cmn pleco and a baby BGK. I have resealed 
a 72G bow front, washed and resused the gravel, added previously used wood and rocks after washing and soaking. Bought a new Eheim 2217 filter and run it as is for 2 days and boy is it quite. My question is how do I prep the new tank and safely get the 2 fish living in their new home? I will either sell or use the 20G so I do not really care what happens to it. Any ideas?
D


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## discuspaul (Jul 2, 2010)

Simply transfer the AC 50 over to the new tank, without removing or changing any of the media from it - no washing down - nothing. Then net your 2 fish out of the 20, & place them in the 70 - and that's it - you're done. (I'm assuming here that the water temp & Ph in both tanks is pretty much the same - check the temps & test your Ph in both tanks.)
After a few days, the AC 50 will have seeded your new canister on the 70 gal. & you can remove it. Easy, huh ?


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## doogie (Nov 5, 2010)

Well now that is simple enuf. Thanks will try that as soon as the 72G is up to temp.


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## discuspaul (Jul 2, 2010)

Oh, and this is of course elementary, but I thought I'd better mention it.
RUN BOTH filters in the new tank for those few days. I told this same thing to another fellow, and he did what I said, but left the old filter unplugged in the new tank - didn't run it ! His beneficial bacteria didn't survive without the water flow from the ( previously seeded but now inert) filter.
I know, I know, you knew this didn't you ?


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## splat (Nov 17, 2010)

just to add...i did this and it has worked out great! (with the 2 filters)


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## anessa (Apr 26, 2010)

With seeded filters, I find that I sometimes end up with a mini cycle of a few days of nitrites but it equalizes very quickly. If you are dramatically changing tank size (we moved fish from a 75g to 180g) it would be good to use pure ammonia (there is lots of info online about fishless cycling and it is easy) for a few days or a week to build up the bacteria a bit. Normally, however, you just transfer some gunky filter pads into the new filter and you are good to go.


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