troni Posted December 4, 2011 Report Share Posted December 4, 2011 so i'm setting up a new tank here tomorrow and am wondering if i put the new filter in my old cycled tank how long till the new filter will be fit to be used in the new tank? it should definately be faster then normal month. its a 90 gallon tank and i'm not sure what type of filter just yet. my old tank has a ac hob and bubbled sponge filter. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ron Posted December 4, 2011 Report Share Posted December 4, 2011 If you decide to do that, you'll have to increase your bioload in your old tank to properly populate your new filter media. I suggest taking some of your old media and doing a fishless cycle in your new tank. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jayba Posted December 4, 2011 Report Share Posted December 4, 2011 I would squeeze all the crud out of your media and sponge filter into the new tank, that will give you a head start. If you can transfer over a sizeable amount of substrate and water from the old tank. The new tank is ready to go with a moderate bio load. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fairdeal Posted December 4, 2011 Report Share Posted December 4, 2011 For 30+ years all I have ever done is to squeeze the old filter media into the new tank until the water turns a dark brown and let the new filter do it's job for 2 days, then add 6 or 8 fish that you can stand to lose in case of anything going wrong, feed those fish for another 2-3 days and then if all goes according to plan then take out those fish and replace with the ones you want in the tank. Of course take it easy on the fish count for the 1st week or so but after that you can add as many as you want. I don't recall ever having problems doing this and I've done it more than just a few times. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
troni Posted December 4, 2011 Author Report Share Posted December 4, 2011 but i'm squeezing a 20 gallon media into a 90 gallon. dont think it will tunr brown or even cloud up. as for substrate i dont think i want to disturbe it as i made a deep sand bed with play sand. i'm going to try the new filter in old tank and increase bioload. ill report back Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JORG Posted December 4, 2011 Report Share Posted December 4, 2011 Nitrifying bacteria will double their population 2-4 times a day if conditions are good. So if you start with 1 million and they multiply 4 times you will have 16 million in 1 day and 128 million in 2 days. I would just give your old sponge filter a few good squeezes in your new tank and add some fish. I use this method all the time and have never had a problem. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ron Posted December 4, 2011 Report Share Posted December 4, 2011 but i'm squeezing a 20 gallon media into a 90 gallon. dont think it will tunr brown or even cloud up. as for substrate i dont think i want to disturbe it as i made a deep sand bed with play sand. i'm going to try the new filter in old tank and increase bioload. ill report back I would follow what Harold and Jorg have suggested, they have lots more experience than most. If you don't want to chance any fish, follow what I said and get a bottle of ammonia and do a fishless cycle. Good luck. Ron Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
troni Posted December 4, 2011 Author Report Share Posted December 4, 2011 ok well maybe ill try that then instead. So will the bacteria be ok for those 2 days before i add fish? and would it be ok useing feeder fish for those ok to die? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ron Posted December 4, 2011 Report Share Posted December 4, 2011 ok well maybe ill try that then instead. So will the bacteria be ok for those 2 days before i add fish? and would it be ok useing feeder fish for those ok to die? Why would you harm or kill any fish when all you need to do is buy a bottle of ammonia, google fishless cycle and give it a try. No fish get harmed and once you've completed the cycle, you can fully stock your tank right away. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JORG Posted December 4, 2011 Report Share Posted December 4, 2011 I don't recommend using cheap feeders to cycle your tank. They are generally the least cared for fish at the wholesalers and pet stores. I think you just take an extra chance of introducing harmful parasites or worse into your tank. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ted Posted December 4, 2011 Report Share Posted December 4, 2011 We just squeeze the sponge, generally the most mucky one we have, into the new tank water and then trade the bio balls. Take the bag of the new rinsed ones and put them in the old filter and add the pre-cycled ones to the new filter and sponge. We've added a small fish load the same day ( on 20+ tanks) and had no ill results. The more tanks you have the easier this becomes as you have more bacteria to add to the mix. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
troni Posted December 4, 2011 Author Report Share Posted December 4, 2011 ok that was dumb. ya i know about the fishless cycle. just add ammonia and test. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jayba Posted December 5, 2011 Report Share Posted December 5, 2011 Just add fish and test. A light bio load is fine, just don't over do it by overstocking. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
troni Posted December 7, 2011 Author Report Share Posted December 7, 2011 so i had an idea. i have ugly brown algae in the tank i want to seed my 90gwith (20g). i dont want brown algae in my 90g...its ugly. any suggestions? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jayba Posted December 24, 2011 Report Share Posted December 24, 2011 so i had an idea. i have ugly brown algae in the tank i want to seed my 90gwith (20g). i dont want brown algae in my 90g...its ugly. any suggestions? Bad idea. Algae is not bacteria, it is merely algae, a plant. Just squeeze filter media in the new tank and your golden. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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