Fishless Cycling & Bleach in Tank & Dirty Lego

[bizzy928]

Hey everybody!

I have an other question! I've decided to fishless cycle my tank for about 2 weeks after I set it up. I will have bought a used 10 gal tank and put in my Lego Theme.

My question is that, lets just say when I clean my tank with bleach, I don't rinse the tank out properly and a TRACE of bleach is left. And Lets say when I put in my Lego that for some reason there is a TRACE of contaminants in them.

Will the fishless cycle "kill" or help get rid of any of these unwanted products in my tank?


From what I have read, the fishless cycle helps build up bacteria needed in a fish ecosystem, removes chlorine and rids the tank of any other form of waste/particles (the foam filter will get these).

Thank you!

 

[kveeti]

The statement ”I've decided to fishless cycle my tank for about 2 weeks after I set it up” makes me think you might want to familiarize yourself a bit more with fishless cycling. You can’t choose the length of time it takes your tank to cycle, and usually it takes a lot longer than 2 weeks. You will need to add ammonia and do testing to monitor your ammonia, and then nitrIte levels, in order to find out when it is finally safe to add your fish.

The fishless cycle will not remove traces of bleach. (Clean the Lego well; buy a new toothbrush or scrub-brush and scrub the Lego, then soak it in bleach). After cleaning and rinsing the tank, put the Lego in it, fill the tank with water and put in a heavy dose of dechlorinator to remove any traces.

The bacteria eventually built up in your ecosystem will not remove chlorine, either. You need to buy products to do that. You should find out if your water system has chlorine or chloramine, so you will know which product to use.

 

[OrionGirl]

Agreed on all points. Cycling refers to any process used to provide the tank with a biological means for processing nitrogen toxins--ammonia and nitrites. All other toxins are unaffected by this process.

Also, chlorine will dissipate naturally, but it won't be beneficial to the bacteria population. In an unestablished tank, chlorine can kill off enough bacteria to extend the time needed to reach a balance. Using a dechlorinator such as Amquel will help.