new tank without cycling ... will this work?

dna_errors

Registered Member
Oct 7, 2004
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Hi all,

Greeting all, I'm new to posting here but have been reading for a long time.

I have a 20 G tank currently with a fluval 204 canister filter.

The 20 G is currently overstocked. Overstocked as in ... 20 cardinals, 7 sterbai cory and 1 pleco (it's a tiny pleco, the LFS sweared that it will not grow big like common pleco, but it's not a bristle mouth, I have no idea what it is). But I keep the water very clean, test water every other day and the fluval 204 is doing its job.

Anyway, I am in process of setting up a 55 G tank, which will have a 404 fluval and a aquaclear 200. This is going to be a discus tank but will house my sterbai cory as well. Because of the overstocking situation, I want to get this 55 G up as quickly as possible.

Here is what I did, I bought extra bio rings and put them into the media baskets in the fluval 204 (all 3 baskets). They have been in there for a while now; and considering the amount of ammonia generated by 28 fishes, I think there should be a decent amount of bacteria in the rings now.

I am waiting for my fluval 404 to be delivered and will put 2 baskets of bio ring from the 204 to 404. Have the 55 G water conditioned to same pH and temperature as the 20 G and transfer the sterbai (7 of them) on the same day.

What do you think? Will the rings be able to support the 7 cory in a 55 G as if it is a cycled tank? This is just some idea I came up with, although overstocked, the cory seem to do fine in the 20 G right now, so going through the traditional cycling is still an option.
 
How many discus are you planning on getting? Will you have gravel or barebottom?

It would't be wisest to set up the tank and add the discus + cycled filter material all at the same time and allow the discus to be by themselves for a minimum of 4 weeks then add the sterbais. The reasoning for this is that, when they are first introduced into a tank (especially juvenille discus) are veneralbe to disease... I have unfortunately experienced this, so I am telling you from experience to ....quarentine, quarentine, and quarentine ;).

Also, for the first two weeks of Q you'll want the temperature up at about 88F.

HTH
 
Depends on your water

I am on well water and I have just dumped fish straight into a tank.

I wouldn't reccomend it but it depends on the species.
 
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