seting up my 265 gallon tank

[kia]

im going to put a snow flake eel a black edge eel and a spotted and wanted to know what fish should i cycle the tank with would a 5 in blue line grouped be good?

 

[Chiefmcfuz]

Welcome to MR.

Don't cycle tanks with fish.

 

[kia]

so when i start the tank when can i start adding fish and what fish can i mix in with the eels can i put puffers triggers lionfish what can i put

 

[1UCKY]

Let the tank cycle for a few weeks b4 adding fish to it. You can mix puffers, triggers, and large angels with eels. Always make sure that the fish you select are bigger then the eels mouth:lol2:

 

[scarf_ace1981]

i've heard of people using a dead shrimp to start the cycle and others use damsels

 

[jhale]

do not use live fish to cycle a tank it's not necessary and is cruel to the fish.

welcome to MR

 

[crox99]

I cycled my tank with 2 damsels. They are still alive and if you want they are yours for free.

 

[marrone]

You can cycle a tank with Eels, they're actually very tough and a lot of people do use them.

But before you do that you should list what your setup is going to be, filters, live rock and such. If you're going to use Live Rock then you should let it cure first before adding any fish. This way you wouldn't need to use the eels or any other fish for you cycle. If you don't plan on using Live Rock you should then look at a couple of products that will cycle your tank for you and let you add fish right away without harming them. Like Nitrex and

 

[jhale]

do not use live fish to cycle a tank it's not necessary and is cruel to the fish.

I cycled my tank with 2 damsels. They are still alive and if you want they are yours for free.

do you not believe this? the ammonia during the cycle burns thier sensitive gills. if it does not kill them it will definately hurt them.
again do not cycle the tank with live fish.you can accomplish the same thing with a piece of dead shrimp and three weeks of waiting.

 

[Aqua Pro Builder]

There is no need to cycle a tank with live fish so use other method is preferrable.

But to set the record straight, a lot of the eels have special mechanism to defeat cycling ammonia and ammonia build up in their own tissue. Of course, very high ammonia concentration will kill or hurt them. Same goes for any chemicals in the water. Too much of the good calcium or the humanly hated sodium will also made them into preserved fish. With that being said, a common cycle process would have minimal or no effect on them for weeks.

For the ones you mentioned, especially the snow flake, I have no confirmation that they have nor don't have the ammonia defense capabilities that other eels have.

NOTE: I am not advocating to cycle tank with eels though.

 

[crox99]

do you not believe this? the ammonia during the cycle burns thier sensitive gills. if it does not kill them it will definately hurt them.
again do not cycle the tank with live fish.you can accomplish the same thing with a piece of dead shrimp and three weeks of waiting.

I had them for two years now and they are still going strong. I had LR in my tank for over a month before I put the damsels in.

 

[jhale]

I had them for two years now and they are still going strong. I had LR in my tank for over a month before I put the damsels in.

then the live rock cycled the tank not the damsels

once again do not cycle a tank with live fish :anger2:

 

[jackson6745]

Cycle the tank with only rock. Its cruel to the fish and doesn't make sense to feed the tank (fish food) when there is already a ton of die-off spiking your nutrient level.

 

[Aqua Pro Builder]

Cycle the tank with only rock. Its cruel to the fish and doesn't make sense to feed the tank (fish food) when there is already a ton of die-off spiking your nutrient level.

STRONGLY AGREED. Why bother with the dead shrimp or a pinch of fish food if you are cycling with live rocks.

 

[Tonyscoots84]

wheres that pic that deanos posted earlier... :scratch:

 

[Tonyscoots84]

ahhh here it is... Thanks deanos

 

[bueller]

Question: I am going to get my tank started within the next week or so [ 125 gal FOWLR }. I ordered 75lbs of base rock from marco rocks and I have about 20 lbs of live rock that has been sitting in a rubbermaid with about 30 / 40 lbs of live sand for about a month with a heater & powerhead. I guess the rock is cured so will it still cycle my tank with the base rock? or do i need to throw a raw shrimp in there.

Thanks for any advice.
Bueller

 

[jhale]

bueller, the bacteria is on the live rock you have. when you place it in the tank with the base rock you will just need to give the bacteria time to grow on the base rock.
it's a good idea to cook the base rock when you get it, there may be lots of nutriants and phosphates trapped in the rock. just because it is only base rock don't think it does not have anything bad in it. take the time and place it in a covered dark container with just water, a piece of live rock and a couple of powerheads, then give it a couple of weeks and see what comes out of it. if you see lots of junk at the bottom of the container you'll know it will have to cook a bit longer. imo it's better to get that junk out in a bucket than in your tank. make sure you use the same quality water for your rock cooking as you would for your tank. hth.