Habitat - Indoor :: NEED HELP WITH "NITROGEN CYCLE"

[Kiranin]

Hello, I need some help with the nitrogen cycle in my tank, it's been a week and it hasn't cleared up, so I went to the pet shop to see the filters and found three Fluval filters (2 canister filters and one in-tank filter) The FLuval 205, and 305, and the Fluval Plus. Problem is these are very expensive, here in mexico they cost about $220, $310 and $100 (USD) respectively. and the only other thing I found were airs tones and air pumps that were more or less cheap.

So I wanna know if there is something besides a new filter that can help for now, and if the air stones will help at all.

[SpotsMama]

Try Aquarium Products Freshwater Biozyme. It's living bacteria you can put in your tank to speed up the cycling process. Around here you can get it off the shelf at pet stores and places where fish are sold. If you have to order it on-line, your tank will probably have cycled naturally by the time it gets to you.

Unless.....your tank/filter is too small for the bio load (ammonia and waste from turtles, fish, left over food, etc) in which case it may never finish cycling.

I don't think an air stone will help.

It's not unusual for cycling to take more than a week - in fact it's pretty tyical. If it bothers you, do partial water changes every few days to keep the aappearance and smell from getting unbearable.

[MoreBloodWine]

I'll vouch for BioZyme did me wonders so long as you follow the directions.

[thegrandpoohbah]

It takes about 4-6 weeks for your tank to cycle under normal conditions. Just let it run it's course and do 25% waterchanges if the ammonia or nitrite levels get too high. Cycle, Biozyme and other such products don't work so save your money. A better filter is always a good thing but it won't speed up your cycle. The beneficial bacteria still need time to colonize the media in a new filter.

[res08]

Depending on the size of your tank, sometimes it's cheaper to do a 50-100% water change before ammonia and nitrite levels get too high.

[grem89]

cycling Can take 4 to 6 weeks without any living things in the tank. Possibly longer with any animals living in the tank due to waste they put into the water. You need lots of bio media in your filter if you want it to correctly cycle. Doing 50% water changes with no bio media will work against you and prevent your tank from cycling.