Use one tank (already cycled) to help cycle a new tank?

Finthusiast

Plecostomus
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Sep 2, 2019
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I have just bought a new 75 gallon tank that has not been cycled yet can I use my existing ten gallon cycled tank water to help cycle my new tank? I would just be using the water from water changes from my ten gallon to my 75 gallon
 

deeda

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Mar 26, 2008
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Old/used tank water won't help cycle a new tank set up. Are you planning on moving fish from the existing tank to the new 75G tank, if so, just move the filter along with them assuming the 10G filter is mature.
 

pacu mom

Goliath Tigerfish
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Jun 8, 2006
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No. The beneficial bacteria is mostly in the filter media. Most of us do water changes to lower nitrates. The high nitrate water is great for growing plants, but not for cycling a tank. If you were to move the filters over to the new tank, you would be transferring the beneficial bacteria over. However, you would only have enough beneficial bacteria to deal with the fish which were in the smaller tank, i.e., you can't move the filters over to the bigger tank and throw in twice or three times the number of fish and expect the tank to be cycled.
 

Finthusiast

Plecostomus
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Wow thanks for the quick responses! This was just a thought and I am reading now more about cycling to better understand thanks for the info!

and yes I am bringing the one fish I have to the new tanK not planning to add any more until I learn more on that too lol
 

Finthusiast

Plecostomus
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Thanks for the compliment! I am doing my best to give this fish a safer life than in the wild lol I mean I got him from a lake that has plenty of alligators so I think hes better off as long as I keep the tank to his liking
 

pacu mom

Goliath Tigerfish
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Refreshing to see someone ask the questions prior to the action. Lol. I am fairly certain we have all made that mistake.
What??? You mean like the time I bought a new 55 gallon tank, put two new HOB filters on it and turned the filters on. The water was "cycling" through the filters so I moved my fish over and almost killed them from a severe bacterial bloom that resulted from that uncycled tank. I almost killed my poor fish. To save their lives, I had to move them back to the old tank. The stench from the bacterial bloom filled the whole house, and I had to use bleach on my arms to get the horrid smell off.
 

islandguy11

Redtail Catfish
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Sep 17, 2017
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Thanks for the compliment! I am doing my best to give this fish a safer life than in the wild lol I mean I got him from a lake that has plenty of alligators so I think hes better off as long as I keep the tank to his liking
What about the poor alligators, they have to eat too? Just kidding lol, you did a brave thing, not many here can say they personally got their fish from gator infested waters :) (not that I recommend making a habit out of that lol).
 

Finthusiast

Plecostomus
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Sep 2, 2019
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Yeah it isnt uncommon to see alligators where I live but yes that is number one precaution when near the banks always be alert of where you are at lol

so what about filter media? Can I move some of my (colonized) filter media from my current tank to the new one into those filters? Like will it make the process work faster or will it have no effect? even tho there arent fish or plants in there yet?
 
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