to cycle or not to cycle?

[copperband]

Ok I have a 29 gallon reef tank that i want to upgrade and a 55 gallon freshwater tank I want to down size so the question is if i switch the two out would i need to cycle the 55 or not because the reef tank has been set up for a year now. There would only be 26 gallons of new water going in the 55 and 29 gallons of saltwater so let me know your oppinion thanks.

[MissT]

It would be a good idea to give the tank a couple days to ensure that it is cycled. That being said, I have done single day switchovers of a smaller reef tank to larger (recently a 65 to a 120 for a friend) and everything went well. Saved maybe 30 gallons of old tankwater, all the rest was new. All liverock was fully cured and plumbing was as completed as possible before moving the tanks. So, long story short, it is possible you just need to know what you're doing and exactly how you plan to get it done. Also, plan for things to go wrong because thy usually do right after you have everything disassembled.LOL
You're not putting your African Cichlids in a 29 are you?

[copperband]

only 2 full grown ones that are each 2 inches long and then im just adding 4 silver dollars and cory catfish and a 5-7 inch pleco

[MissT]

any chance you can be talked out of that one? They'll either kill each other or you'll be doing huge water changes every week just to see your nitrates skyrocket again... That's a lot of messy fish in a small tank. Sorry for the freshwater talk in the Reefkeeping Discussion forum; I understand you're enjoying the reefkeeping, but I would get rid of my Cichlids before I stuck them in a small tank ... Just my two cents.

[copperband]

so those fish couldn't stay in the 30 because i have had way more fish than that in that 30 before that were freshwater and they did really well i was just wondering because these are my favorite freshwater fish out of that tank. Also does River City Aquatics take freshwater trade ins for store credit thanks

[merlin0883]

I have had all types of cichlids, of all sizes, and have kept a mixture of just about all possibilities to try to get a good diversity in the tank. What kind are the 2 cichlids?

[copperband]

i have no clue what they are but they are small and white one of them has a little tint of yellow but they are so small

[MissT]

it really depends on what you're keeping. If you've got tetras, sure you can keep like 20 of them in there. The Africans are fairly territorial and most of them will claim as far as they can see, which is pretty much everything in a 30" tank... Yes we do take trade ins- call or PM me with what you have and we can see what we can do for you

[MissT]

let's get this back on topic and not turn it into something that should be on a different forum

[copperband]

ok well the two cichlids are actually like a pair because the two of them do not fight at all because they have different colors but are the same species and they are male and female and i will pm you tonight i was planning on trying to go to RC on the 15th

[copperband]

ok so does the amount of time to wait before the switch happens have anything to do with what type of fish are in the tank

[MissT]

not necessarily if you're completely emptying the tanks and changing over the filters.It's a good oppurtunity to get a good cleaning in... Just don't use Windex or anything on the inside of the tank if you're filling it right back up.

[copperband]

ok you use vinegar and water to clean glass correct

[copperband]

oh its good thing my skimmer is rated for a 65 gallon tank and i have tons of filtration and pumps so i should be good on that stuff and someone from my lfs might drill my tank or if i decide to use a sump and refugium should i just use an overflow

[MissT]

I don't understand the question

[copperband]

what should i use to clean the glass

[SABOB]

On the inside if glass,scrape witha razor blade,wipe with vinegar then wipe off with freshwater.If it's acrykic use a credit card to scrape then use vinegar followed by freshwater wipe down.

[erikharrison]

As far as the overflow question, if you want it drilled, get it drilled! I have a HOT/HOB overflow that I have never had issues with.

[copperband]

ok thanks

[jtrux]

I'm no expert but if i'm not mistaken most of your store bought 55 gallons are tempered. DON"T DRILL IT. My friend was on his back porch drilling his and BOOM, it shattered into about 175,876 pieces, we counted them.

[copperband]

wow

[MissT]

yeah, it's not a great idea if you're not sure whether or not it's tempered. a HOB overflow would work fine on a tank that size, you can easily get 950 gph out of a standard dual overflow and that's about max what you'd run for a return pump on a tank that size. You'd be happier with that than if your 55 was in pieces.

[99taws6]

I'm no expert but if i'm not mistaken most of your store bought 55 gallons are tempered. DON"T DRILL IT. My friend was on his back porch drilling his and BOOM, it shattered into about 175,876 pieces, we counted them.

lol, you guys must have lost a few pieces... The spec sheets on the 55's say there are over 175,900 pieces.. ;)

[jtrux]

lol, you guys must have lost a few pieces... The spec sheets on the 55's say there are over 175,900 pieces.. ;)


I got tired of counting. But seriously I wouldn't take a chance with it. If anything, buy a 75 and sell the 55 to get some of the money back. I think all 75's are not tempered.

[copperband]

well im going to stay with my 29 reef so i can enter it for totm because the 29 is doing well.

[copperband]

im going to keep the 29 for a while so this way i can get it the way i want it and enter it for totm thanks all