A Cycled vs Mature Aquarium

Finally!

The long-awaited post about a cycled aquarium vs a mature aquarium!

To distinguish between the two we must go all the way to the beginning, the very first thing you do when you have your tank set up... At first you start out with nothing but the equipment. You have your tank, your filter, a light and hood/fixture, maybe a heater or chiller, your saltwater is all mixed up and you've filled your tank with it and some decorations perhaps. But it's not an aquarium yet, there's absolutely nothing in your tank that's alive yet!

The very moment that you put a living organism into your aquarium you begin the cycling process. But what is the cycling process?

Simply the cycling process occurs when a living organism produces Ammonia as a waste product, which could be from excretion or death and decomposition in the aquarium. The cycling process is the process in which bacteria forms to break the Ammonia (bad and harmful to aquaria) down to Nitrate (or even to Nitrogen gas - which then leaves the aquarium).

Two types of bacteria are needed to break down the Ammonia into Nitrate (a less harmful substance, but is still harmful in higher amounts - which is why we do water changes), the first type of bacteria breaks down the ammonia into Nitrite (which is not as harmful as ammonia, but even in small amounts adversely affects aquaria). A second type of bacteria develops and breaks down the Nitrite into Nitrate (which isn't as harmful until at higher quantities. These two types of bacteria are aerobic, meaning that they need oxygen to do their job in breaking down the Ammonia to Nitrate. This is why a filter is needed and perhaps an extra airpump or powerheads in the aquarium. The movement of the water - particularly at the surface - is what gets more oxygen into the aquarium for the bacteria to do it's job and protect your fish. (This is why power outages can be so damaging to your fish!)

There is the possibility for a third form of bacteria to form in your aquarium that breaks down the Nitrate to Nitrogen gas, which then floats to the surface and leaves the aquarium. However, maintaining a population of this form of bacteria is very complicated and involves delicacy. Even if you are able to get this form of bacteria to stay in your aquarium and you don't maintain high levels of Nitrates you will still have to do water changes anyways! You can't ever really get away from doing water changes, no matter how balanced your aquarium may come to be.

Imagine being in a 20' X 20' room with five other people. Then imagine that that room, it's atmosphere and all are closed off to the outside world. You still always have enough oxygen food and water. But you never get any new air or atmosphere. Now imagine being in that room with those people for a month straight. So for a month you don't get any new air/atmosphere. After even a week can you imagine what the air and atmosphere in the room would be like? Imagine it at a month?

This is what it is like for the fish in the aquarium but instead of air as their 'atmosphere' it's water. They would like to have a full gill of clean water as we would like a full lung of fresh water, so keep this in mind whenever you think about your fish! And do some water changes - maybe more frequently.

That's what cycling an aquarium is in a nutshell, and why water changes are so important. Next, I will describe what makes an aquarium 'mature'.

Jay Kahn