seeding tanks

[jtchia]

hi there,

i am about to setup a few breeding tanks, they will be 24" x 20" x 20" bare bottom tanks, they will all have just a large breeders sponge filter and a 200watt heater.

if i use 100% of the new setups tank water from a established 6x2x2 and large breeders sponge filters that are from that tank, will my new tanks be considered cycled? is it safe to add pairs into the newly seeded tanks?


regards

John

[ILLUSN]

not really,
you have some beneficial bacteria in your water but not enough to colonise a sponge filter fpor a "fully" cycled tank..

your best bet is to remove a little media from from your filter on your maintank and stuff it into the airlift tube of your sponge filter, if you do this you will have a cycled tank. put an old stocking and a ruber band over the top of the airlift tube so the media cant come out and your away.

then again if your going to be doing daily 90%+ water changes you wont need to cycle your tanks

[jtchia]

Hi ILLUSN. i dont plan to do a daily water change. Maybe once a week? Do you think that it is ok for this setup (130-150lts) with only one sponge and one pair per tank? Sorry i dont really understand what you mean by not enough to colonise a sponge filter for a fully cycled tank. Do you mean that there is not enough surface area on the sponge to grow enough bacteria? So people who do 90-100percent water changes daily dont need to cycle their tanks? So there will never be any nitrifying bacteria?
Thanks

[Hollowman]

What ILLUSN is saying that if you want to breed, then it is not unusual for people to change 90-100% of the water in the tank per day, sometimes people do more, as fry,and discus need absolutely pristine water....ALL the time......therefore no sponge is needed.

ILLUSN also suggested squeezing out some of your filter media from your mature filter and trap it by a stocking in your new sponges, this will help to collonise the new sponge a little quicker, and make a safer environment for the fish.

This said, breeding or trying to raise discus is labour intensive, you will not be able to raise the fry properly by only doing one water change a week. (for various reasons) If you do this, you will end up with a bunch of stunted, deformed and sick fish. I am not trying to put you off breeding, but unfortunately too many people cannot commit to the work needed to create the stunning fish that they see in shows or sold by the sponsors.

IMO, if you cannot create something that will perpetuate the highest standards, it is a lot of work for nothing, and no-one wants to buy poorly looking stunted fish generally seen in your lfs.

H :)

[jtchia]

hmmm... we have water restrictions in melbourne, 155lts per day per person..... might get in trouble with the water authorities!

i understand you need to do frequent water changes with fry to promote growth, what i meant was with one pair, is it ok to do less in a 130-150lt tank?

regards

John

[ILLUSN]

1 pair in a 130L will be fine, weekly water changes is a bit iffy 2x weekly will be fine even at 40% each, bare bottom breeding tanks are much easier imo then anytoher th=ank which ois why all my discus tanks are now BB.

1 sponge filter will be plenty, remember it isn't the filter that cleans the water, its the bacteria living in the filter that clean the water, if you just add water strait from your main tank to your breeding tank your only moving a very small number of bacteria into the new tank (bacteria live in filters on media NOT in the water column).

to seed your filter propperly take some media from the filter of your main tank (I'm assuming your using sintered glass media or similar "'rocky stuff") and stuff that into the airlift tube of your sponge filter (the pipe where air comes out as bubbles). put and old stocking over the top to stop the bubbles pushing the media out, and secure with a rubber band (small cable tie also works well) by doing this you have added a good population of bacteria to your filter and your tank is cycled, the bacteria will colonise out from the sintered glass to the sponge as the waste from the pair build up.

when you get fry (in such at tank you probably will) you WILL HAVE TO SWITCH TO DAILY CHANGES! if water restrictions are a problem for you please dont breed these fish, its cruel and heartbreaking to have to destroy so many small fish that just wont make the grade.

[jtchia]

Hi ILLUSN,

i got bio balls, ceramic noodles, seachem matrix and filter wool in my canister, all of them are to big to fit inside the airlift tube except the filter wool. will that be ok? why are we doing this? if the sponge filter has been running in the main 6x2x2, wouldn't there be enough bacteria already colonising the sponge filter?

regards

John

[Dave+Amy]

you could try collecting rainwater to help with the water restrictions, plus rainwater's good for Discus - heaps of breeders here in NZ use rainwater for their breeding tanks

[ILLUSN]

LOL didn't see the from the tank part LOL they'll be fine as is :)

[jtchia]

:) Cool. So there will be enough beneficial bacteria on the established sponge to keep the ammonia down right? Cause thats all i was planning to have. One sponge bare bottom on each tank.
Cheers