Can I speed up the cycling of my new tank?
I’m planning on setting up a tropical tank with a volume of 130 litres. A fellow fishkeeper has suggested adding a live bacteria product to the aquarium when cycling to increase the speed it takes to establish. Please could you advise on how to use these properly? MAJID ALI
JEREMY SAYS: PFK has always advocated the use of fishless cycling. No fish are harmed or stressed by ammonia and nitrite during cycling and when cycled, you get to add a number of fish all in one go. Most live bacterial cultures can be used in conjunction with ammonia to fishless cycle, and it’s still the method we would recommend.
Some bacteria cultures say that fish can be added on the same day, as—just like in fishless cycling—the nitrifying bacteria will actually need a source of ammonia in order to survive and function. But if you add fish and bacteria, and it doesn’t work as it’s claimed to, you may face lingering nitrite which can stress the fish, bring on disease like whitespot, and the whole cycling ordeal could end up lasting weeks or months anyway. Not the best way to start a new set-up.
If you know a fellow fishkeeper, why don’t you obtain some mature filter media from them? That will be carrying the right bacteria to convert the ammonia produced by fish from day one. Failing that, use bottled bacteria, but combine it with a bottle of ammonia and fishless cycle to be on the safe side. This may speed up things to about two weeks to cycle your tank, which isn’t that long.
(Ed’s note: If your water has a pH above 6.5 and a KH value over 4°, I would suggest Nitrico Goop as the go-to bacteria supplement to try, which has a good record of instantly cycling tanks. Simply add it directly to your filter media and ensure that fish are added to the tank within 48 hours.)