cycling

[karvis]

i went to some fish stores and one person told me to wait 1 week to add more fish. teh next guy yold me 3 weeks and the other a month, my tank has cycled but i want to know if it is safe?

 

[kris]

Unfortunately you will mixed views here as well--as this is actually more of a personality thing. I tend to be on the cautious side and give my tank 4-6 weeks before new additions,as to make good and sure my filtration is adapting to the previous increase in load. One week is really pushing it, I would say minimum of 2, but always check your levels before hand. Another factor is fish sensitivity--if you're considering your next purchase to be something delicate--I would go 2 months of perfect levels before bringing it home.
Good Luck

 

[blondenaso1]

Welcome to the board....and since you are new you are going to get the patience speech which all new members get and which I still give to my girlfriend everytime we go to the lfs.
PATIENCE is a must in this hobby. Wait, wait, and when you think you are done waiting, wait some more. The only thing rushing into the hobby and stocking your tank to fast will get you are a lot of dead fish and an unhappy experience in the hobby. You should not go by bare minimums. One week or even two it three would be the bare minimum time to wait. Take it slow, and in the long run you will be much happier.

 

[predator]

I'm one who was very impaitent and payed for it dearly. I lossed alot of fish and money do to my own stupidity. Now, I'm very cautiuos and understand the importance of taking it slow. Make sure water perameters are where they need to be. Then when right add a new member to your tank. Wait a month or so before adding another fish but in the mean time keep a close eye on your water. Once things continue to stay stable for at least a few weeks then consider a new fish. It will pay off in the long run.

 

[chevron tang]

I agree patience is the biggest factor in this hobby. The amount of time you wait before putting another fish in greatly depends on how delicate the fish is. Personally I would wait AT LEAST three weeks between adding fish. And try getting down a plan of what fish you want because you also have to be careful of overstocking your tank. That was my problem for a while. I just wanted one of every fish. But I learned to narrow it down to the ones I really wanted the most and slowly add those to my tank.

 

[chevron tang]

By the way good luck and welcome to the hobby. I think I speak for us all when I say you should really enjoy this hobby.