Most people think that fish-keeping, as a hobby, is easier than taking care of other pet animals, like dogs or cats. After all, you just buy an aquarium, put some rocks, sand, gravel, add some ornaments, put some water, then put your pet fish. Bingo, you are now a great fish keeper, feed the fish every once in a while, clean the aquarium once in a while.
Easy as it sounds, right? Of course, we serious fish-keepers never do it that way. Fish-keeping is meticulous, if not demanding. From selecting the appropriate fish tank to selecting the gravel, sand, and rock, up to the ornaments that you will put inside, will require great knowledge.
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Why do you need to cycle your fish tank?
You have to cycle the aquarium to make it completely habitable for your pet fish and other organisms. Cycling is the method of normalizing the nitrogen cycle in the aquarium. You must bring down nitrogen and ammonia to tolerable levels, and make your aquarium habitable and safe for your pet fish.
Cycling a saltwater tank may take a while, from few weeks to as long as two months. It depends on how much effort you are willing to put to quickly make your aquarium habitable and safe for your pet fish. Fortunately, there is a way to cycle a saltwater tank in 24 hours.
Things to consider before cycling your saltwater tank
There are things you must do before you cycle the saltwater tank quickly. Since you are going to speed up the normal process of cycling the saltwater tank, some things must be done and put in place. Doing these things will help in the process of cycling your saltwater tank in 24 hours.
But first, if you already have your pet fish and other organisms in the saltwater, tank, you have to remove them. Quickly cycling the saltwater tank with your pet fish will kill them.
Testing the waters
You have to adjust the temperature in your saltwater tank, depending on the method that you are going to use. Some methods require a lower amount of temperature, while some require a higher. This is due to the nature of the bacteria and/or chemicals you are going to use in cycling your saltwater tank.
You also have to make sure that the acidity level of the water is at the ideal before you start the cycling process. Ideal water conditions will help achieve the desired results of cycling your saltwater tank in 24 hours. You must, then, test the ph level of the aquarium water.
Filters must be in place
Make sure that your filters are in place and properly working. You will need them working once you start to cycle your saltwater tank. It is even better if you can use cycled filters that already have some beneficial bacteria in them. It can help speed up the process of cycling.
Put some objects
Make sure that there are also some gravel, sand, rocks, and ornaments inside the saltwater tank before you start cycling it. These objects can help to speed up the cycling of your saltwater tank. They can contain some bacteria and thus can contribute to the overall process of cycling.
In using these objects, however, you might have to take the good with the bad. Some unwelcome organisms may be hiding under and within these objects. They might eventually disturb the balance and the environment of the saltwater tank. These things, however, can easily be taken care of once you are done with the cycling of your saltwater tank.
The Best Way to Cycle Your Saltwater Tank in 24 Hours (Add bacteria)
So what is the best method you can use to cycle your saltwater tank in 24 hours? You can add bacteria. The use of bacteria is one of the quickest, surest ways to cycle your saltwater tank relatively quickly. The presence of bacteria speeds up the process of cycling your saltwater tank.
How do bacteria contribute to the speeding up of the cycling process in a saltwater tank? There are some organic compounds in the water which cause high levels of nitrogen, and they can turn into ammonia. A high level of ammonia is harmful to your pet fish. Bacteria can consume all of these compounds. The more bacteria in the saltwater tank, the more ammonia consumed.
In the process of consuming ammonia, bacteria can stabilize the nitrogen levels in the water. Bacteria turn organic waste and ammonia into harmless chemical elements in the water. It stabilizes the toxic level in the water, allowing your fish to have a healthy environment in which it can thrive.
Bacteria compounds are available in aquatic stores and other pet shops and are stored in a bottle. You just have to release the bacteria compounds into the water to speed up the cycling of your saltwater tank.
Some Issues in Using Bacteria Compounds
There are things that you must bear in mind, however, in using bacteria compounds to quicken the process of cycling your saltwater tank. For one, too much bacteria can be bad for the habitat of your fish. You need to stabilize the bacteria levels before putting your fish back into the aquarium.
Having these in mind, you must always test your water’s ammonia levels once in a while after cycling your saltwater tank. This is to ensure that bacteria levels, the ph levels, or acidity are just right and perfect for your fish. Having everything in the right amount and levels ensures a perfect, safe environment, and habitat for your pet fish.
The eventual effectiveness of using bacteria in the process of cycling the saltwater tank, and how quick or slow it will be, also depends on other factors and conditions. That is why those mentioned above, about things to consider before starting the process of cycling using bacteria, must always be bear in mind. Optimum conditions mean a quicker cycling process.
Conclusion
It is important to cycle your saltwater tank to ensure a safe, habitable environment for your pet fish. After putting things in place and adjusting everything, you can use bacteria compounds to cycle your saltwater tank in as little as 24 hours. Speed and pace, however, will ultimately depend on other conditions. In general, however, bacteria can be used to accelerate the cycling process.