Shrimp cycle?

[AnthonyF]

Hey everyone, so I have everything going aside from a controller that may come hopefully around March.... Only problem right now is I'm not sure what to do to kick off my cycle. I have heard a lot of people talking about the shrimp method where they just take a shrimp and toss it in and let it decompose to get the ammonia up and then I can add my bacteria. Only question I have is do I need to do anything special to the shrimp other than take off the shell. Meaning do I need to cook it or just toss it in raw and do I need to clean the middle of it and take the vein out..... Kind of a silly question but I never really thought much of it. Or if there's a better way to kick off the cycle that would be great. Thanks!

 

[PSU4ME]

Take the shell off it, rinse it off and throw it in. I would do 1 regular size shrimp for each 30-40 gallons of tank size.

 

[CrypticLifeStyle]

Is it true using the raw shrimp method you run the risk of a saprolegnia outbreak though?

 

[AnthonyF]

I'm not sure. I was originally going to use some pure ammonia but the person in was getting it from didn't have any at the moment so I was told to do this but before I do I'm trying to see the pros/cons and if there's a better way.

Is it true using the raw shrimp method you run the risk of a saprolegnia outbreak though?

 

[Reeferer]

Drop in a raw shrimp and cover it in your sand bed. This would be my choice over pure ammonia.

 

[Jeff.:P]

Ive used Instant Ocean Bio-Spira twice now to cycle my tank. I put corals in my tank 2 weeks after Initial dose. you can find it at your local petco.

 

[Jeff.:P]

Started in October





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[Ffej]

I just finished cycling a fresh water tank for my daughter using this method. I did so without any issues at all.

 

[AnthonyF]

So the smell aside (see other thread) this method has been going well. I put the shrimp in about a week ago and let it go. Looks pretty crazy right now! On Tuesday, my ammonia had hit 0.5 ppm but no nitrites or nitrates. Then from Wednesday to Thursday, the ammonia hit 1.0 ppm. I tested last night and ammonia was down to 0.5 ppm with nitrites at about 1 and nitrates at 20. Best part is that I haven't added any bacteria. All the bacteria thats in there came either with my sand (Fiji pink) or with the Petco water! My plan is to let the ammonia and nitrites hit 0, then throw a second shrimp in and let it happen again. I know its probably overkill but at least I'll know that I have enough bacteria to handle an overstocked tank!. Before I put fish in, I will add about a cup of other bacteria I purchased to to make sure but so far so good with this method!

 

[Marshall O]

Your plan sounds good to me. However you should not need to add any additional bacteria, but it shouldn't hurt anything if you do.