cycling with stability

[aquaholic]

hi all
Haven't put a post on for awhile as i have been on holidays but i am back now and ready to crank up the fish tank again :D .
Iwas wondering wether anyone has used or has an opion on seachems stability as it says that you can bung your fish in there whenever you like.

[dwilder]

i've never used it but heard it was one that actually worked

[Baro]

Cycling still takes time with cycle and similar products. It may work with many fish, but I would wait for several weeks before adding discus. It will help kickstart the seeding of your filter with bacteria to convert the ammonia to nitrite to nitrate. Also keep a close eye on the levels of ammonia, nitratite and nitrate while your tank cycles. If you are doing a fishless cycle you will need to add a source of ammonia (ammonium acetate, a peeled green prawn, fish food) to provide a nitrogen (and carbon) source to fuel the process. The amount of bacteria in your filter is on thing that limits the stocking level in a new tank and how quickly you can add fish. After a week or two test water and if ammonia and nitrate are not detected you could add a hardy fish or two such as bristlenoses or rummynosed tetras - if you have any nitrate do a water change to bring it to <5ppm. Algae can be a problem in new tanks so I would add a BN to start with. After a week, if the new fish look healthy and water tests are good you could double the fish load.

Cheers,

Paul.