what is a mini cycle and what are some of the causes?

Question

this is a question form a test my fiend gave me and she said i can use this :o

for goodness sakes!
i ment in a fish tank!

Answer 1

A mini cycle in an aquarium is when the aquarium has been fully cycled but then goes through another smaller nitrogen cycle due to a change in the environment. Mini cycles are caused when you add new fish, when you replace or clean your filter cartridge, or if you do too large of a water change. Some mini cycles cause barely any change in your ammonia, nitrates, and nitrites, and are caused by adding one or a few fish, or rinsing or replacing a cartridge in an aquarium with another source of biological filtration (like a biowheel). These are safe cycles, and are pretty much unavoidable with an aquarium. Bad mini-cycles cause larger changes in ammonia, nitrates, and nitrites, and can be bad for the fish. These are caused by water changes of over 50% of the water, replacing the filter cartridge or rinsing a filter cartridge in tap water in an aquarium without other sufficient biological filtration, and adding too many fish at once.

Answer 2

A mini-cycle happens when you add too many fish to an existing aquarium that has already been cycled. The addition of too many new fish causes a spike in the ammonia which triggers the corresponding spikes in nitrites and nitrates. The water will cloud a little but clear up in a few days if you have not overstocked the tank by adding the new fish.

Answer 3

Ditto above answers, can also be caused by using antibiotics to treat a disease, the antibiotics can/usually kill off some of the beneficial bacteria in the tank as well.

Answer 4

A small wash load in your machine.?.
Less clothes, less water, less time to run.
A MINI CYLCE.