I have a 10 gallon aquarium with 20 gallon filter. I plan on buying a 20 gallon aquarium with another 20 gallon filter and I was wondering if I could just take out the filter cartridge from my 10 gallon's filter and put it into my new filter so that I won't have to wait so long for the new aquarium to establish.
Will this work?
2007-08-30 10:10:54 · 5 answers · asked by Anonymous in Pets ➔ Fish
Also if it will work, how long would I have to wait until the tank has established or will it automatically be established if I put the used cartridge in?
2007-08-30 10:11:43 · update #1
Well aren't you supposed to replace your cartridges every 2 weeks any way?
2007-09-01 02:19:01 · update #2
Rather than type a long answer i have posted a link all about "new tank syndrome".
It has everything you need to know about starting up a new tank
http://www.xanga.com/Expert_Fish_Help
2007-08-30 10:45:07 · answer #1 · answered by Pete 4 · 0⤊ 1⤋
It wouldn't instantly be cycled. It would speed it up so it might be a good idea to do that. If you are getting a 20 gallon tank, get a 40 gallon filter.
2007-08-30 10:54:46 · answer #2 · answered by Chris 5 · 0⤊ 1⤋
It will jumpstart your cycle, but it won't be cycled right away
You still have to wait for the cycle to complete
you can also use part of of the water and gravel from your 10 gallon to help put more established bacteria in it
hope that helped
2007-08-30 10:22:31 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
Yes,it will work,but it will leave you with two tanks with weakened bacteria colonies.
The safest way to do this method would be to start a third filter(a medium sized sponge filter will do nicely) in your existing tank,and allow it time to come up to full bacteria colony status(maybe two or three weeks,an then move it to the new tank,and leave it there until your new filter is up to a full cycle.(Again two or three weeks)
It's always reassuring to have the redundancy afforded by a spare,well cycled sponge filter to help out in emergencies.
When using this method it's always safer to add to the bio-load slowly,(two or three fish at a time) so the bacteria colonies have time to adjust.
2007-08-30 10:25:20 · answer #4 · answered by PeeTee 7 · 1⤊ 1⤋
yes it will work as long as you de-chlorinate the new water first and don't add any more fish as the bacteria levels are high enough for the amount of fish that you have. To be certain it would be best to monitor ammonia and nitrite levels with a good test kit.
2007-08-30 10:25:32 · answer #5 · answered by nugget 2 · 0⤊ 1⤋