would this work too?

[Marx]

Cloning an aquarium

You will need;
An existing mature aquarium or access to one.

1. Siphon some tank water (from the mature tank) into a bucket.
2. Rinse the filter media (of the mature tank) in this bucket of water
3. Take you new filter media and also rinse this in the bucket.
4. Now add this new media to your new filter in your new aquarium. It now contains some of the beneficial bacteria.
5. Take some of the substrate from the mature tank and place it in some stockings (new preferably) and lay this on the new tanks substrate. The bacteria will multiply and migrate to the clean substrate.
6. After a few days remove the old substrate from your new tank and put back into the mature tank, without the stockings of course.
7. You now have a cloned tank and are ready for fish.

This process takes 2 to 3 days to complete. However be aware that adding too many fish at one time could overload the bacteria, causing the aquarium to re-cycle.

hmmm but would the bacteria die within 2-3days?

would you add some ammonia to the tank to get the bacteria to spread?

also would pouring 15-20 gallons of water in there help out?

[DARKPHREAK]

Fishless cycle seems alot easier. If your going to add ammonia anyways why not just do it in the first place.

[Marx]

so i still need to cycle the tank... so this process just speeds up the cycle right?

[pegasus]

I always clone my aquarium in this fashion. I like to mess it up even more by switching filters, the new in the old tank and the old in the new tank. If I'm using the same substrate, then the job gets even easier. Hey! I'll move rocks and algae when possible. I never had a problem adding the fish immediately. The secret is in evaluating how much bacteria I have transplant and how many fish (inches) it can sustain. Well done, I'll bring in half the amount of fish I had in the original tank.

BTW, don't try this technique if your original tank is a 10 gal and your new is a fifty. It might work if you add one fish per week or so.

Something else to consider. Bacteria are surface media beast, so the more surface I can offer them the better. I use flat rocks to double the bottom surface, hey! I'll even use plastic plants for this technique. I have a 10 gal tank running for the last four years without any filter in which I raise up to 30 fry up to an inch before moving them. (I guess I could call this technique: Above ground filtration    )

The technique that you brought to the discussion is sound; try it at first to be safe. I always tell my students to learn and understand the basic rules before daring to break them. That's why I love this hobby.