Betta Care 101: Part Three
Alright, so you've got the tank, you've got it set up, the filter and heater are running like a dream.
Now what?
Now you need to cycle your tank.
What is "cycling your tank?"
This refers to the nitrogen cycle. Here's what happens:
Fish produce ammonia. Even the tiniest amount of ammonia is toxic and poisonous to fish. It's bad.
The presence of ammonia leads to the production of nitrItres, which is also very toxic and poisonous to fish. The nitrites feed on the ammonia, so the presence of enough nitrites will cancel out the ammonia.
Which is cool, at least there's no ammonia, but nitrites aren't any better.
In come the nitrAtes. Nitrates are also toxic to fish, but only in large amounts. They feed on the nitrites and cancels it out.
So ammonia is created, which leads to the creation of nitrites, which leads to the creation of nitrates. And once the nitrates have been created and given the chance to grow to acceptable levels, both ammonia and nitrites will disappear, and your fish will have a safe, non-toxic environment.
You can do a fishless cycle or a fish-in cycle.
The Fish-In Cycle Debate
You get a lot of very passionate opinions about whether you can cycle a tank with the fish in it. The majority thinks that fishless cycling is better and you should absolutely never cycle your tank with a fish in it.
I'm sort of in the middle. Fishless cycling is definitely better, there's no doubt about that. I always recommend doing a fishless cycle.
But sometimes, you've got to cycle a tank with a fish in it. I had to cycle a 1.5 gallon tank with a very sick fish in it (that was fun) when I got Grim. I also cycled the twins' tank with them in it.
It can be done, but it's not easy, and you definitely want a bigger tank for it, and you've got to be prepared to do a lot of work.
Fishless cycling is easy. Just drop in 5 pieces of fish food and wait. As the fish food rots and decays, it will release ammonia, which will get the cycle started. Just make sure to drop in a couple more pellets twice a day to keep the ammonia coming. Otherwise you'll starve the nitrites, which will starve the nitrates, and you'll have to start all over again.
You can also use additives like Prime or Tetra SafeStart, or any number of the brands out there. But fish food is the easiest way to go. Just drop the number to 1 or 2 pellets twice a day after a week or so, so you don't end up with an algae problem.
Test the water once or twice a week. When you have zero ammonia, zero nitrites, and less than 5 nitrates, your tank is cycled. It can take anywhere from 2-4 weeks. You can speed it up by keeping the temperature around 85 degrees.
If you do a fish-in cycle, it's a little tougher, and takes a little longer, and you run the very real risk of your fish dying.
The bigger the tank, the easier this will be.
You won't have to add ammonia, since your fish will produce it, but you'll have to make very sure there's nothing else creating ammonia. Be very careful about how much food you feed, and make a point to remove any uneaten food. You need to test your water every day, and if the ammonia is above 1 ppm, you need to do sufficient water changes to get it back below that. Chemical additives and water conditioners are super important, but you have to read labels to make sure your conditioner isn't affecting your cycling additives.
It's a steep learning curve to cycle a tank with a fish in it. I strongly recommend doing a fishless cycle if you've never cycled a tank before. Once you get a feel for how to do it and how to get the bacteria right, you can decide for yourself if you want to cycle a tank with a fish inside.
Now what?
Now you need to cycle your tank.
What is "cycling your tank?"
This refers to the nitrogen cycle. Here's what happens:
Fish produce ammonia. Even the tiniest amount of ammonia is toxic and poisonous to fish. It's bad.
The presence of ammonia leads to the production of nitrItres, which is also very toxic and poisonous to fish. The nitrites feed on the ammonia, so the presence of enough nitrites will cancel out the ammonia.
Which is cool, at least there's no ammonia, but nitrites aren't any better.
In come the nitrAtes. Nitrates are also toxic to fish, but only in large amounts. They feed on the nitrites and cancels it out.
So ammonia is created, which leads to the creation of nitrites, which leads to the creation of nitrates. And once the nitrates have been created and given the chance to grow to acceptable levels, both ammonia and nitrites will disappear, and your fish will have a safe, non-toxic environment.
You can do a fishless cycle or a fish-in cycle.
The Fish-In Cycle Debate
You get a lot of very passionate opinions about whether you can cycle a tank with the fish in it. The majority thinks that fishless cycling is better and you should absolutely never cycle your tank with a fish in it.
I'm sort of in the middle. Fishless cycling is definitely better, there's no doubt about that. I always recommend doing a fishless cycle.
But sometimes, you've got to cycle a tank with a fish in it. I had to cycle a 1.5 gallon tank with a very sick fish in it (that was fun) when I got Grim. I also cycled the twins' tank with them in it.
It can be done, but it's not easy, and you definitely want a bigger tank for it, and you've got to be prepared to do a lot of work.
Fishless cycling is easy. Just drop in 5 pieces of fish food and wait. As the fish food rots and decays, it will release ammonia, which will get the cycle started. Just make sure to drop in a couple more pellets twice a day to keep the ammonia coming. Otherwise you'll starve the nitrites, which will starve the nitrates, and you'll have to start all over again.
You can also use additives like Prime or Tetra SafeStart, or any number of the brands out there. But fish food is the easiest way to go. Just drop the number to 1 or 2 pellets twice a day after a week or so, so you don't end up with an algae problem.
Test the water once or twice a week. When you have zero ammonia, zero nitrites, and less than 5 nitrates, your tank is cycled. It can take anywhere from 2-4 weeks. You can speed it up by keeping the temperature around 85 degrees.
If you do a fish-in cycle, it's a little tougher, and takes a little longer, and you run the very real risk of your fish dying.
The bigger the tank, the easier this will be.
You won't have to add ammonia, since your fish will produce it, but you'll have to make very sure there's nothing else creating ammonia. Be very careful about how much food you feed, and make a point to remove any uneaten food. You need to test your water every day, and if the ammonia is above 1 ppm, you need to do sufficient water changes to get it back below that. Chemical additives and water conditioners are super important, but you have to read labels to make sure your conditioner isn't affecting your cycling additives.
It's a steep learning curve to cycle a tank with a fish in it. I strongly recommend doing a fishless cycle if you've never cycled a tank before. Once you get a feel for how to do it and how to get the bacteria right, you can decide for yourself if you want to cycle a tank with a fish inside.
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