The Nitrogen Cycle & Fishless Cycling Methods

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What is tank cycling?

In an aquarium or fish bowl the fish give off waste, which over a short time breaks down into toxic ammonia. We all know that ammonia is quite dangerous even in small quantities so as aquarists we need to take steps to combat it. In a small fish bowl that might mean making full 100% water changes every week but what if the tank were larger like 10 gallons or what if it were a body of water like a pond or lake? How do we contend with ammonia in a situation like that? Well, in nature nitrification occurs. This is a natural process where beneficial bacteria consume ammonia and intern creates water conditions safe for aquatic life. In our aquariums we have learned to encourage this bacteria growth and to monitor it so we can recreate a similar ecosystem safe for our fish.

The Old Way

The old way of doing this, and some people still use it, is to set up your tank and add some disposable fish that the aquarist doesn't care about. For the process to work, ammonia levels first need to build to a level that is unsafe for fish. This is why inexpensive minnows or guppies are used typically. If the fish die during the process it's no major financial loss to you.

These days' aquarists are changing their old ways. We now know how to recreate the nitrogen cycle without using any live animals and can do it just as inexpensively without compromising the health or life of a single fish.

How the process works

The process begins with ammonia building in the tank. Through the old method, the fish would do their business in the water and that waste would breakdown becoming ammonia. Over the course of several days and weeks the ammonia levels would build. Living naturally in the water, on the tank décor, the substrate and filter media are small nitrifying bacteria called Nitrosomonas. These are the first bacteria we talk about in the nitrification process because they consume ammonia directly. In their small numbers they begin to consume the ammonia as it builds and as long as there is enough ammonia they will continue to reproduce to consume it almost as fast as it's being created. In the first few weeks the ammonia is created quickly and the numbers of Nitrosomonas are growing…growing…growing. Eventually the bacteria will catch up to the ammonia and will consume as fast as it's being created. For the first few weeks while you test your water you will see the ammonia levels rising and eventually reaching the point where they spike and then begin to fall as the bacteria consume it.
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