how do you cycle a qt tank?

[disciple]

I have a 30 gallon that I want to set up as a qt tank. Do I put sand or live rock in there for the tank to cycle or do I just do water changes from my display? Other than a heater, light, powerhead, air pump, and a small skimmer what else would I need?

 

[Chris27]

You can get by without a skimmer, and the light need only be able to illuminate the tank, a small desk or clip-on shop light will do.

The cycling is done just the same way as the display, however you may want to avoid using calcareous material like rock and sand. Calcium will react with copper, basically stripping it from the water column rendering it useless against parasites.

For a filter, I like using hang-on ones with sponge media, sponge is a terrific medium for bacteria to populate and it is far superior to rock when it comes to surface area. Leaving a large sponge in your display sump for a few weeks will allow the bacteria to populate it, and when you're ready to QT, just transfer it over to the HOB filter.

 

[RegalAngel]

I have a 40g QT that I setup on an "as needed" basis. I fill with fresh SW, and I use an external Ocean Clear filter w/pump and associated canister with filter pads in the center.

In a couple of days after operating, I add Seachems Stability and then add any fish that I may have purchased (after acclimating).
I add the Stability for a period of 7 days.

I use a bare tank except for a couple of rocks.

I have never had any ammonia problems using this procedure, and the bacteria supplied perform as advertised..... see below.

[I also started up my 300g DT using the same process...never any ammonia!
Works great]


http://www.seachem.com/Products/product_pages/Stability.html

Stability® will rapidly and safely establish the aquarium biofilter in freshwater and marine systems, thereby preventing the #1 cause of fish death: "new tank syndrome". Stability® is formulated specifically for the aquarium and contains a synergistic blend of aerobic, anaerobic, and facultative bacteria which facilitate the breakdown of waste organics, ammonia, nitrite and nitrate. Unlike competing products, the bacteria employed by Stability® are non-sulfur fixing and will not produce toxic hydrogen sulfide. Stability® is completely harmless to all aquatic organisms as well as aquatic plants, thus there is no danger of over use. Stability® is the culmination of nearly a decade of research and development and represents the current state of the art in natural biological management.

Sizes: 50 mL, 100 mL, 250 mL, 500 mL, 2 L, 4 L, 20 L

Why It's Different
Illustration of Stability'sâ„¢ bacteria on biofiltration material. stability contains a synergistic blend of aerobic, anaerobic, and facultative bacteria
The bacteria used in competing products are inherently unstable. The conditions necessary for their growth and development fall into a very narrow range of temperatures, pH, organic loads, etc. When any of these parameters are not strictly within the proper range, the bacterial culture quickly crashes and dies. Stability® does not contain any of the aforementioned bacteria.

The bacteria strains in Stability® have been in development for over a decade. The necessary conditions for growth of our bacterial strains encompass a very broad range. When other bacteria begin to die off (usually from high organic loads caused by the undetected death of an organism), Stability® simply works harder and grows faster! The strains function in fresh or saltwater. Stability® contains both nitrifying and denitrifying bacteria, a blend found in no other product. Additionally, Stability® contains facultative bacterial strains which are able to adapt to either aerobic or anaerobic conditions. The bacteria in Stability® are non-sulfur fixing, another innovation in the industry. Most other bacterial supplements will form toxic hydrogen sulfide under the proper conditions. Stability® will not, ever

 

[l3leedingstar]

There's many ways of setting up a qt tank. Just as everything in this hobby everyone has their own opinion. I had no other option when it came to setting up my emergency qt/hospital tank and not waiting for the cycle. I decided to use copper safe (to get rid of ich) I did bare bottom with no rocks like I was told with a hob filter no carbon I just used nitrate pads and ammonia pads and a heater of course and threw the fish in. I was doing water changes once a week but could not get control of the ammonia and I lost one fish. I did 2 50% water changes in a 3 day span and things only got worse. So I went to my lfs and had them test the water to make sure my eyes were ok and sure enough they told me they don't know how my fish are still alive with the ammonia that high. Then they asked me if I had "seeded" the tank with a sponge from my dt and I remembered reading about doing this but then again I didn't have months to wait for a seeded sponge. So they gave me a piece of nasty filter sponge they had in their tanks and told me to squeeze it into my qt water then put it in the hob filter and to put a few pieces of live rock and stop doing water changes because that's making it re cycle and the ammonia to go higher again. I did what they said and I Did a water test 5 days later and my ammonia was at 0. I did like 3 test and went back to the lfs to have them test it. I know alot of people will tell you not to put in the live rock but again I was using copper safe which doesn't get absorbed into the rock (works great btw). So def. Seed your tank I think it's the best way to go and saved alot of fish lives for me . That Stability sounds alot like the seeding (wish I had known about that) I think I'm going to try it setting up my new 180 gallon. Is it ok to use that stability in 100% new water new dry sand and dry rock?