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Amazonia II cycle subtrate questions

974 views 8 replies 6 participants last post by  Diana 
#1 ·
quick question

so my tank has been set up with regular sand for 2 weeks now , with java fern , driftwoood , anubias , amazonian sword


its a 7.5g

and i recently bought a pack of amazonia II subtrate
if im going to replace the sand with the subtrate and start cycling , will i need co2 to cycle the subtrate? and will my plants die without the paintball co2?

so far its just a heater,filter,light my diy set up parts havent all come in yet
 
#3 ·
yeah i am familiar with the nitrogen cycle. its been 5 years since , and i just got back into the hobby. sorry i am a little rusty but i asked this question because my lfs said inorder to put the amazonia II subtrate in i would have to have co2 .
without co2 i could not cycle with my plants otherwise they would die.

so thats why i asked cause idk if the lfs was just feeding me bs to buy a co2 kit
 
#4 ·
Yeah no need for Co2 to cycle a tank. Now with ASII it does leach ammonia for a few weeks from the get go. Most people put the ASII in, add plants and wait for the ammonia to go away before adding any livestock. And ASII has nutrients in it so the plants would not die without the Co2.
 
#6 ·
Tanks actually cycle more quickly if you maintain an alkaline pH because beneficial bacteria colonizes more rapidly in alkaline water. If you do want to buy a paintball co2 system, you should absolutely not buy one from a brick and mortar lfs. Probably one of the biggest rip offs in the hobby and I'm sure the store owner was sick of watching the unit gather dust on the shelf.
 
#7 ·
if im going to replace the sand with the subtrate and start cycling , will i need co2 to cycle the subtrate? and will my plants die without the paintball co2?
No only do you not need co2 to cycle (it has no effect), but you don't need co2 at all for this tank... Unless you feel like trimming plants daily and worrying about water chemistry. Simplicity + patience are the best "supplements" in this hobby.
 
#8 ·
yeah i realized alot going to this lfs the other day. this lady grew up wit the hobby of freshwater , now she grows old wit her husband breeding and selling plants and fish. i noticed wit her low lighting and simple filteration her plants are wayyy more healthy then the stores that use co2 for their plants. its ridiculous how much this hobby has changed in the 6 years ive been on hiatus.

my next question is the subtrate has been turning my water dark beer color yellow. i change the water 50% a day in the past 2 days. the most i did was 80% water change , and i dont even think that is necessary. should i just be patient and do normal water changes a week? will it eventually go away and my water will turn clear again?
 
#9 ·
Do enough water changes to keep the ammonia about 5 ppm max, and the nitrite also under 5 ppm. It is OK if the ammonia is kept at 3 ppm.
These levels will grow the maximum bacteria the fastest.

Do not do more water changes that would keep the ammonia lower than that, the nitrifying bacteria will grow slower.

The natural tannins from the substrate can block the light to the plants, so OK to do water changes to help that situation, just don't drop the ammonia too much.
 
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