Cycling my tank...

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Sep 25, 2006
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So, I am in the middle of my tank cycle, I believe. It is a 20 gallon aquarium. I got it going about 5 days ago, so I am guessing that it is cycling now. Online, I ordered a water test kit, like the strips. Do they work ok, or are they horribly inacurate? I mean, they're better than nothing right? I also put a handful of gravel from my more cycled tank, a 2.5 minibow, which has been going for a little over 3 weeks. Does the used gravel I put in help? And also, i have a couple of long finned danios and 1 male guppy in there right now, to help the process, but will they actually help speed it up? If anyone here has experience cycling a tank about the size of mine (20 gal), please tell me how long it took for you to cycle.

Thanks
 
The strips are pretty bad. They'll work in a pinch, and are sometimes used by folks to get a ball-park range before they use a liquid test. I'd really recommend getting a liquid one, especially if you're going to do a fishy cycle. Otherwise, the inaccuracy of the strips could result in your fish getting ill or even dying.

For cycling details, see this article http://www.aquariacentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=84598

From a totally virgin tank (e.g. no seeding with filter media or gravel), it will take at least 4 weeks to cycle. It may even take 6-8 weeks. Also, every time you add new fish, you will experience a mini-cycle where you will see a little ammonia or nitrite as the bacteria have to reproduce to keep up with the new bioload.

Your older tank (3 weeks) is not very mature. You will most likely still get ammonia, at the very least nitrite, in your new tank. In my experience, the nitrite stage takes the longest to get past.
 
How soon you think I can start stocking slowly?

When do you think I can start stocking, but slowly? Oh and, do you know any where to get a liquid test kit for really cheap? Online url's please :)
 
http://www.petdiscounters.com/product.php?productid=1005015&cat=772&page=1

Petsmart.com also has a good price on a master kit, but it doesn't include hardness tests as the above one does. Hardness is not a necessity. pH, ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate are the most important.

You can start stocking when there is no more ammonia or nitrite. If you get zero readings on those two, it's best to wait another two days just to make sure it wasn't a fluke. I can't give you an exact date, because that's what the test kit is for :)
 
mmkkkk..lol

Will the test strips do for now though? Or do you think I can cancel order lol. It's from ebay, and I ordered it today.
 
Wait what?

What's the price match thing? If I take that to petsmart, I can get it for $14 plus tax?? Are you sure??
 
No way!

Do you think I can still cancel my order from ebay, since I bought it today, and it's weekend? So I will get it for $14 plus tax in store? So for like 15 bucks!? U done the price match thing before? You sure?
 
Yes I have done the pricematch thing, all the time actually, so do a lot of other people on this site. You probably could cancel the ebay order, but keep in mind it costs money to post something for sale on ebay, and you might tick the person off.
 
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