The Puffer Forum

Hi everyone,

I'm still quite green (really, really green) about this cycling business (only started doing it for the very first time two weeks ago, actually), but somehow I think I have managed to bumble through (by the skin of my teeth) it with reasonable amount of success, and now I have a cycled (I hope) 5 Gal tank with 3 Dwarf Puffer inhabitants and an Otocinclus. Through this forum, I have recently been made aware of how cruel it is to stuff three DPs in the living space of one, and thoroughly repentant, I'm currently in the process of planning and relocating the little puffers into a 17 Gal tank. The problem now is this; the 17 Gal tank has been sitting in storage for a few years, dry and gathering dust. I have washed and given it a good scrub earlier, and now it's sitting outside and I'm wondering what to do to cycle it ASAP. Can I use materials from my newly cycled 5 Gal tank to help get it started? If so, how? Suggestions, anyone?

Any assistance rendered will be greatly appreciated! =)

You can do so by moving over the substrate & filter from the cycled tank I believe, though its best to wait with that until someone can confirm that .

+1 to Tim. I dun think u "bumbled" thru the cycling process. Google for "silent cycle".

Yes transfer everything from the smaller tank and you are good to go.

How did you cycle the smaller tank so quickly? Are the ammonia/nitrite at 0 all the time? You said you keep other fish, arowana, I believe?

Pufferpunk wrote:How did you cycle the smaller tank so quickly? Are the ammonia/nitrite at 0 all the time? You said you keep other fish, arowana, I believe?

Ah, I think you took my words in a wrong context. I'm not keeping all my fishes in one tank. Currently we have four active tanks (and one tiny, plexiglass man-made pond) in the house, including mine. Mine is the smallest, where I keep only my DPs, one Otocinclus, and, after I settle all of them into the 17 Gal tank, hopefully a small colony of Amano and Red Cherry Shrimps and also maybe another two more Otos, bioload permitting, as well. Next up is the guppy pond, where we have a small handful of guppies swimming in there. Hmm, speaking of which, we also have two micro Kilifish tanks in the kitchen, but I don't really consider those as tanks. Following that is my Pig-nosed (or Fly River) turtle tank. He's still a juvenile, so we keep him in a 35 Gal enclosure (we usually upgrade tanks when the inhabitants outgrows their homes, not the other way around). After that, it'd be the 50 Gal tank, where we keep our largest red Arowana. Then, last but not least, will be the 100 Gal tank, housing a pair of foot-long Silver and Red Arowanas, as well as two Redtail Catfish (three and six inched respectively), all by guestimate. Out of all the aquariums, mine is the newest; the rest are all established and cycled for quite awhile already. Hope that clears up some confusion. =)

As for how I managed to cycle my tank so quickly, I'm not very sure how it works (not very sure if it is completely cycled already, for that matter), but I took some old filter media from one of my dad's Aro tanks and added it to my own when I first started my cycle, added nitrifying bacteria (Waterlife's Bacterlife) every time I perform a PWC, stuffed my 5 Gal tank full with hardy, fast growing plants (and tried to create an environment for them to thrive - CO2, liquid fertilizer, lots of light) and then crossed my fingers and hoped for the best. I think it also helped that I monitor the water conditions closely and do my best to never allow the Ammonia and Nitrite levels to rise more than 0.25 ppm (20 ppm, for Nitrates - haven't reached that high yet, though), performing PWCs as and when necessary. As mentioned, I'm really new at this so I'm not sure if I'm doing things correctly, and , that's about it.

Ammo and nitrite should never go above 0ppm as this can burn your fishes gills. If you use enough media from a cycled tank you should be cycled from the get go. Most bacteria products are dead bacteria which is worthless. * edited because I had a dumb moment*

bertie 83 wrote:Ammo and nitrate should never go above 0ppm as this can burn your fishes gills. If you use enough media from a cycled tank you should be cycled from the get go. Most bacteria products are dead bacteria which is worthless.

Uhm, I'm pretty sure nitrate is the one with a tolerance level between 0 to 40 ppm (but 40 is really pushing it). At least, that's what my API Master Kit tells me? For the other two, they have never gone up beyond 0.25 ppm for me before, that's why I use that figure as an indicator.

Nitrate should be kept below 20ppm, puffers are very sensitive due to them being scaleless fish. Ammo and nitrite should be 0. *still in dumb moment so edited, need more sleep I think lol*

Just use your old gravel and filter. Buy a new filter as well like s 30g filter while you run your old filter to collect thst good bacteria. You can buy something called turbo start and throw it in there. Its a bacteria headstart bottle which can be safely overused by 10x. .. i cycled a 60g in 3 days. Some people may disagree on that but i had success with it with no hardy fish to help cycle it.

bertie 83 wrote:Nitrite should be kept below 20ppm, puffers are very sensitive due to them being scaleless fish. Ammo and nitrate should be 0.

Okay, are you really sure about that? Because if you are right, then I have been reading my Test Kit table wrong all this time and am going to be needing some very serious SOS with the tank very soon:

He must have made a typo, nitrAte, should be under 20ppm, nitrIte and ammonia should be 0. Nitrate is the least toxic of the nitrogenous compounds, but can be harmful in higher concentrations - ie above 20ppm lol. If you have 0 nitrates, you either have ALOT of plants, or an uncycled tank.

Really sorry got those two mixed up. Yes nitrate should be below 40, ammo and nitrite should be 0. Sorry had a dumb typing moment there I think lol.

Oh, thank god! For a moment I thought that I was going to have to do an emergency PWC ASAP.

@Tim, scpion, bertie 83, defoo89 and G S P Freak: Thanks for all your inputs, really appreciate the swift replies.

FYI, I went ahead and upgraded my 5 Gal to the 17 Gal earlier this afternoon, after you guys more or less okay-ed it. I also took my time to acclimate the puffs and Oto slowly to the new tank; they were a bit shy at the beginning (or are just lost in all that suddenly available space) but they are now curiously exploring their surroundings and seem okay. It has been roughly six hours since I made the change. Here are the readings API's Freshwater Test Kit are giving me right now:

pH: 7.4
Ammonia: 0 ppm
Nitrite: 0 ppm
Nitrate: 5.0 ppm (This reading has remained been stable like this for the past couple of days. Does this means that the tank is already cycled?)

Will still monitor the water conditions closely for now, but that's all. =)

Anything else that I will need to take note of?

Thanks again, you guys.

Yup keep an eye on the parameters for a week or so. Sorry bout the dumb moment. They will be extremely happy in their new tank.