Restarting tank

[silentbiscuit]

Hello everyone,

How do I know if my tank needs to be cycled again or is going to cycle its self again?

I have a 15g tank that has been running with nothing but live rock and a handful of snails in it for about 10 months now and I just restarted it yesterday. Did about a 10g WC and changed out all of the rock with new Caribsea life rock, kept all the old media in there and the sand as well. Nitrates are about 15-20ish, Ammonia 0ppm, Nitrite 0ppm, pH 7.8-8.

How do i know my tank isnt going to cycle again or how will I know my tanks ready for fish?

Thanks

 

[Quintin]

Your tank constantly goes through cycles where bacteria play catch up to anything new added to the tank and will eventually reach an equilibrium.

It’s not just a big cycle at the start, all that that cycle does is ensure you have enough bacteria to handle a sufficient amount of ammonia, nitrates and nitrites for future fish you are going to be adding to the tank.

I would suggest adding a relevant amount of bottled bacteria to help seed your tank bacteria population again and if not adding fish straight away add some bottled ammonia.

If you go by the instructions provided by Dr Tim’s, ammonia, plus bacteria, should be ready for initial fish on day 12, provided your levels are good.

 

[Gregg @ ADP]

Tank is cycling, bacteria are there, and it’s ready for fish. I don’t think you need to do anything additional.

 

[silentbiscuit]

Your tank constantly goes through cycles where bacteria play catch up to anything new added to the tank and will eventually reach an equilibrium.

It’s not just a big cycle at the start, all that that cycle does is ensure you have enough bacteria to handle a sufficient amount of ammonia, nitrates and nitrites for future fish you are going to be adding to the tank.

I would suggest adding a relevant amount of bottled bacteria to help seed your tank bacteria population again and if not adding fish straight away add some bottled ammonia.

If you go by the instructions provided by Dr Tim’s, ammonia, plus bacteria, should be ready for initial fish on day 12, provided your levels are good.

Yes, I was thinking about just adding some bacteria to help with the new rock while I get livestock and QT it. Thank you!