cycle and aqua plus questions

[Paroon Shark]

hey every1 i ahve another question.
i have been using cycle (2 caps a day first 2 days and each week after and its been 3 weeks)in my new 25 gallon tank and i hope it is working but i am wondering if there if any other way to check if it is. like some sort of test by the local fish store. Also i am wondering if i should be useing aqua plus in my aquarium, if so when should i bee useing it (doesnt say on bottle.)
any help would be appreciated

 

[deocder]

You're best way to tell if it is working is to monitor ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate levels. Do a search for cycle using the search function. There are a lot of topics on this issue.

 

[ScottoMacD]

Cycle and almost all the products like just do not work. Snake oil. The only exception to this is Marinelands Biospira. That has been proven to work on many many occasions. Unlike the others.

There are only two ways to cycle a tank. With fish or fishless. Both have their pros and cons depending on the person. You should look into those and continue from there.

As for the aquaplus. All that it is is a water conditoner. Thats all dispite what the bottle may say. It removes chlorine from tap water using a chemical called sodium theosulfate. It works on water with chlorine. If you have chloramines in your municipal water you will have to use another product. Aquaplus will not work.
Amquel and prime are the two best on the market for chloramines. They both use a chemical called sodium hydroxymethanesulfonate to neutralize the chloramines in the water.

You only add the water conditoner when you add new (tap) water to the tank. Either for topping off or when you do a water change.

The whole aloe thing is a crock and it DOES NOT help fish wounds heal.

That woould be the equivalent of saying that adding a teaspoon of aloe to your pool will help your dry skin. It won't.

One more thing about water conditioners. The ones for chlorine only all use the same chemical to neutralize the chlorine. So buy the cheapest one. They are the same. Don't let name brands get you to thinking that they are better because they are more expensive. They aren't.