And, many fish won’t survive the process. Yep, fish-in cycling is very stressful for your fish. If that’s the case, cycling with fish is perfectly acceptable because your fish might die if you don’t.īut if you have a choice, then you shouldn’t be cycling your aquarium with fish inside. In an emergency, a fish-in cycle might be your only option. Well, that’s exactly what brings me to my next point… Why shouldn’t you use a fish-in cycle? If ammonia is harmful to fish, and you are using your fish as a source of ammonia, doesn’t this harm them? And to do that, you need some help from your fish, well from their pee and poop.Īs the poop breaks down, it releases ammonia and encourages the beneficial bacteria to appear. So, it’s up to you to kick-start the nitrogen cycle. And without it, toxic ammonia and nitrites build up, causing serious harm to your fish… There aren’t any beneficial bacteria in a brand new aquarium. Remember… Nitr ites are highly toxic to your fish while nitr ates are not harmful in small amounts. Important: With just a single letter separating nitr ites and nitr ates, it’s easy to confuse the two. Stage 3 A second type of beneficial bacteria eat the nitrites and convert them to nitrates, which are harmless in small amounts and are removed from your aquarium each time you perform a water change. Stage 2 Beneficial bacteria eat the ammonia and release nitrites, yet another toxic chemical. Stage 1 Waste such as pee, poop and uneaten fish food break down, releasing ammonia, a toxic chemical, into the water. If you are new to the hobby, it’s worth reading because an effective nitrogen cycle is perhaps one of the most important parts of a healthy tank.įor the rest of you, here’s a quick recap of the nitrogen cycle in action… I cover the nitrogen cycle in much greater detail here. The purpose of a fish-in cycle is to kick-start the nitrogen cycle, an invisible three-stage process where beneficial (good) bacteria establish themselves in your filter, keeping your fish safe from ammonia. Step 8: Continue testing and performing water changes.Step 7: The second beneficial bacteria appear.Step 5: The first beneficial bacteria appears.Step 4: Water change after water change.Performing fish-in cycling with water changes.Step 3: Test, test, test, and test again.Performing a fish-in cycle with Seachem Prime.How do you perform a successful fish-in cycle?.Essential products to perform a fish-in cycle.The secret to successfully cycling with fish in your tank.
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