So I don't have any open tanks as of right now so I want to replace the substrate in my ebi tank and put Ada Amazonia in it.. Only problem is I have cherries a crystal and a bristle nose currently residing in this tank with no other place to put them if I were to put the Amazonia in it and try to cycle the tank. It s there a way where I can just out the Amazonia in a bucket with a filter and some moss and just keep doing water changes until the cycle is complete? Or if anyone else has some suggestions they would be greatly appreciated.
Cycling amazonia
- Thread starter oobydooby
- Start date
LuminousAphid
New Member
What I would do: Go to the local thrift stores and see if you can find a 10 gallon or less, and use that temporarily. Usually they aren't pretty, and be sure to check for leaks before you start, but that's probably what I would do. I regularly find 10's at value village for $10 or less.
Or wait until petco has their $1 per gallon sale and get a 10 there, no worrying about leaks.
Of course a bucket will work if you don't care about seeing inside. If I was doing it, though, I would want some type of see-thru container; I've done the bucket thing before, and for some reason it bugs me to only be able to see from above.
Or wait until petco has their $1 per gallon sale and get a 10 there, no worrying about leaks.
Of course a bucket will work if you don't care about seeing inside. If I was doing it, though, I would want some type of see-thru container; I've done the bucket thing before, and for some reason it bugs me to only be able to see from above.
Haha yeah I used a clear ice cream container I had and just washed it really good.. I tried to do one of the diy shrimp traps and only ended up catching my pleco :/ most of the shrimp are in the bucket now and actually looking a little happier than in the tank.. When I get off work I will try to swap out the substrate to start the new cycle
LuminousAphid
New Member
Maybe they like ice cream 
In my experience you can never quite get all of the smell out of those things, so maybe the delicious scent of ice cream is what's making them happy!
In my experience you can never quite get all of the smell out of those things, so maybe the delicious scent of ice cream is what's making them happy!
pbmax
Active Member
You definitely don't want to move amazonia - put it in and call it good. You'll have a mud nightmare on your hands if you try to move it after it's been soaking. :affraid:
I'd throw some light over it and put in some floating plants too. Amazonia leaches tons of ammonia at first so it could be a while before it cycles unless you have a decent-sized filter with pre-seeded media.
I'd throw some light over it and put in some floating plants too. Amazonia leaches tons of ammonia at first so it could be a while before it cycles unless you have a decent-sized filter with pre-seeded media.
pbmax
Active Member
Hehe, it'll be fine, it's just a question of how long it'll take to cycle. The amazonia will likely overwhelm the existing bio filter, so it'll have to play catch-up for a bit. Who knows how long that'll be... you could get lucky and have it insta-cycle on you. Frogbit with decent lighting is a win for sure.
pbmax
Active Member
That depends on where the PH stabilizes. Amazonia tends to take the PH down quite a bit.
You shouldn't be keeping BVs with Cherries (you'll lose the pure blue coloration). That said, I keep RCS in a tank with Amazonia, but I fought with the PH for several months early on. Neocaridina is happiest with a PH above 7. Amazonia likes to stabilize somewhere between 6 and 7, depending on how high your KH is out of the tap. This makes it ideal for soft-water shrimp like CRS, CBS, OEBTs, etc.
You shouldn't be keeping BVs with Cherries (you'll lose the pure blue coloration). That said, I keep RCS in a tank with Amazonia, but I fought with the PH for several months early on. Neocaridina is happiest with a PH above 7. Amazonia likes to stabilize somewhere between 6 and 7, depending on how high your KH is out of the tap. This makes it ideal for soft-water shrimp like CRS, CBS, OEBTs, etc.