which fish do i use to cycle my tank?
by Aquaboy on Tuesday, April 20th, 2010 | 5 Comments
i want to cycle my tank using fish, but i dont know which fish i should use. i have a 10gal tank, and i want to eventually have colorful tropical fish in it. would 2 zebra danios do the job? how long would the cycling take, and do u have any other suggestions for fish that cycle?
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Please explain what cycling the tank is? I put just a few fish to start, let them get adjusted, for about two weeks, the add a few more. Do not add more than you already have. If you have two fish, add two new ones. But give them a few weeks to adjust. Have plants, artif or real and a cave or two for the fish to hide in. They get nervous when people are always looking at them, dont you?
Instead of buying fish to do this, you could use a chemical that can be added to the water which is called cycle the water will be ready in about a week.
Danio’s are fine to start the cycle however fish themselves are not needed.
The link above explains both ways to cycle.
If you are planning on keeping the danio’s in the tank, get them. Remember your ammonia is going to spike so be prepared (test kit) for your water changes.
Cycling is different for every tank. While some will take two weeks others take 4. There are many factors that play into the cycle. You will know it has finished cycling when the ammonia has spiked and subsided then the nitrites spike and subside.
Are you going to stick with a cold water tropical tank? I would steer clear of any scaleless fish since they are very water quality sensative.
cycling is only done for saltwater (way better IMO) fresh water all you have to do is throw the fish in
Zebra danios work well. A female betta, a handful of ghost shrimp, and a mystery snail works well too. (Note that female bettas aren’t good in pairs 1, 3+ are fine. No males.) A couple of male guppies would work. Cycling is going to take at least a month. Note that after that month you should add fish slowly maybe 1-2 a week at most.