HELP! need to keep a cycling tank going for a month w/ no supervision!!!

bluelagoon

bluelagoon

Member
i know i've posted this before, but i needed to change the title, and put it in a different forum to hopefully get more response...
christmas break is coming up, so they're kicking us out of our dorms for nearly a month. my friend down the hall has decided to start her own tank just a couple days ago, so it's still got quite a while before she can get her fish anyways... so here's what we're planning so far:
-move the rocks and heater down so that they will not be affected by evaporation.
-turn the temp of the heater down a couple degrees to keep water cooler so it doesn't evaporate as quickly.
-set lights to stay on for only a couple hours each day.
-lower the salinity slightly so that evaporation doesn't cause salinity to rise too high...
if there's anything anyone suggests that i do/don't do/do differently, please LET ME KNOW!!!
thanks a bunch!!!
 
wax32

wax32

Active Member
Unplug the tank and start over after break. You can't leave it unattended for a month.
 
bluelagoon

bluelagoon

Member
gee wax, thanks for your optimism...

it's a 10 gal. break starts on the 16th, or whenever she's done w/ finals... class starts again on the 10th, so she should be back by the 9th.....
i checked with the director of housing, the power will be left on, and the heat will be turned down.
the tank is only cycling, so there's only lr in it... nothing that needs fed or anything...
and IF we are successful, then she can move on and get her fish and stuff. if not, she'll just have to start over, so she'd be at the same point as starting once we get back anyways. so i think it's worth a shot.
***)
 
birdy

birdy

Active Member
With a 10gallon tank I would just take it home with me. Let it cycle during the break at home, pack it all up and take it back to school, it will be ready to go when you set it back up (test levels of course).
The only other thing I can think of is getting a 5gallon kent aqua dose. try to figure out how much you evaporate over a week and undershoot it a bit (you don't want to overflow the tank when no one is there. drip the water in slowly and I think you will be fine, sort of scary with no one there, but better than letting the salinty get too high and kill all the fauna.
 
mikeyjer

mikeyjer

Active Member
Here's my thought! If you have a top on the tank and a regular lighting kit that came with the tank. Not to worry about evaporation, not much would be evaporated. I have tried this myself. You can keep the heater at 76-78 and keep the lighting schedule low, since it's really not needed to cycle your tank. Just make sure she does a good amount of water change right before she leave. Then the tank should be fine in a month. My tank only evaporated less then a inch in one month! Once she gets back, just replenish the tank with fresh RO water. Then she should be set! :happyfish
 
1journeyman

1journeyman

Active Member
10 gallons, with Lr weighs less than 100 pounds full of water.
Get a couple of new 5 gallon buckets, move the rock and some of your water and set it all up at home.
MUCH better than wiping out your live rock with an unsupervised tank...
Not to sound overally critical, but are you sure this is the right hobby for your friend? Seems like they should have planned this out a little better...
 
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