Fishless Cycling Question

[Elementality]

Hello RC members,

I'm about to begin cycling my tank, and have a couple questions about the fish less cycling method.

Is it okay to use frozen, package shrimp from the supermarket? If so, how do you "suspend" the shrimp in the water column, and should I wash the shrimp before placing it into the tank?

The reason I ask is I'm worried that the preservatives used in the packaging of the shrimp would / could cause problems for my reef tank either immediately or down the road.

Being located in central Canada makes it near impossible to find fresh shrimp, however fresh fish, mussels, and scallops all seem to be abundant. Would any of the above work as substitutes?

Thanks,
Elementality

 

[shifty51008]

any of those should work just fine and will create ammonia. you can also just use fish food to start the cycle.

there is no need to suspend the shrimp just let it fall to the bottom of the tank.

 

[hollister]

If u have enough Rock and sand u dont need anything else to cycle.................

 

[izzy123]

Or you could just ghost feed the tank, look through the stickys on how to do it

Hope this helps

 

[reeferstace]

Ghost feed +2
I prefer this method because I don't want rotting shrimp in my tank.

 

[MrTuskfish]

Rotting shrimp, rotting fish food.....something has to rot to produce ammonia. Shrimp packaged for human consumption are safe in a tank. Feeding chopped frozen shrimp to our fish is very common.

 

[jerseygurl]

If you're going with a shrimp or something similiar, I'd stick it in a bag or a nylon stocking so you can fish it out easier.

 

[MrTuskfish]

May this be the biggest headache you ever experience in our hobby!

 

[Elementality]

May this be the biggest headache you ever experience in our hobby!

Here's hoping! Haha. Thanks for all the help guys! I'll run down to the grocery store and drop one of these in the sump tonight!

 

[Bigcefa]

I like the idea of going to the seafood section and ordering 1 shrimp please! When they ask why one you say I'm not that hungry

 

[bamf25]

May this be the biggest headache you ever experience in our hobby!

lol, I just dropped mine in and let is disintigrate.

 

[torvall]

lol, I just dropped mine in and let is disintigrate.

Same here. I once tried the put-it-in-a-baggie idea, but it just seemed to make the whole process take longer rather than help.

 

[Joel_155]

Keep in mind and that after a few days the shrimp will really start to stink! I pulled mine out and went to ghost feeding instead.

Sent from my DROID RAZR using Tapatalk 2

 

[Reeferz412]

I used live rock, no random visits to the market for me lol.

 

[Elementality]

Dropped the medium size shrimp in the sump a couple of minutes ago. I guess I should go buy some air fresheners, shouldn't I? :worried:

 

[thegrun]

Or just buy a small bottle of pure ammonia at the drug store and put in a tablespoon or so. Test and add enough to get your ammonia level up to 1 or 2 ppm.

 

[dwd5813]

Or just buy a small bottle of pure ammonia at the drug store and put in a tablespoon or so. Test and add enough to get your ammonia level up to 1 or 2 ppm.

this. get the one without additives. shake the bottle at the store and if if foams up at the top, it's not the right one.

 

[blazemore]

Throwing a whole shrimp in the tank to cycle can get pretty smelly.

 

[Elementality]

Well, went to check up on the shrimp this morning and it looks like it's been "cooked", it went from a grey to a red color overnight. Normal, right? Didn't think the shrimp would cook in 79 degree water!

 

[Malign Reefer]

Keep in mind and that after a few days the shrimp will really start to stink! I pulled mine out and went to ghost feeding instead.

Sent from my DROID RAZR using Tapatalk 2

Yup, thats what I did. Mine smelled like road kill when I got home one day from work...lol