# Possible bad seed filter during my fishless cycle



## SonicsDC25 (Jul 29, 2013)

I just started my fishless cycle today in my 30g tank and I went to a friend's house to see if I could use his filter as seed material. He wasn't home, but his wife said that the tank is pretty clean and she see's him clean it weekly. I took the filter cartridge home and placed it into my tank, but about 1 hour later he called and said that one of his platys died a few days ago (had some kind of white fuzzy lump on the side of the body and fins were gone). I immediately took the filter cartridge out, but I'm worried that if his tank had some kind of parasite or disease, it'd be in my tank now after being in there for 1 hour. What should I do and should I be this worried?

On a side now, after I add my first dose of ammonia to start off my fishless cycle, when and how often should I be checking the ammonia level and when it starts to decrease, should I check for nitrite right away or wait a few days?

Thanks!


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## GTZ (Apr 21, 2010)

SonicsDC25 said:


> I just started my fishless cycle today in my 30g tank and I went to a friend's house to see if I could use his filter as seed material. He wasn't home, but his wife said that the tank is pretty clean and she see's him clean it weekly. I took the filter cartridge home and placed it into my tank, but about 1 hour later he called and said that one of his platys died a few days ago (had some kind of white fuzzy lump on the side of the body and fins were gone). I immediately took the filter cartridge out, but I'm worried that if his tank had some kind of parasite or disease, it'd be in my tank now after being in there for 1 hour. What should I do and should I be this worried?


Not a whole lot you can do but wait and see. I certainly wouldn't dose any meds while cycling.



SonicsDC25 said:


> On a side now, after I add my first dose of ammonia to start off my fishless cycle, when and how often should I be checking the ammonia level and when it starts to decrease, should I check for nitrite right away or wait a few days?
> 
> Thanks!


Check the fishless cycling article in the library under 'Chemistry'.


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## SonicsDC25 (Jul 29, 2013)

Are there any tests or physical signs I can check to see if anything was transferred over to my tank?


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## SonicsDC25 (Jul 29, 2013)

He was raising different sorts of platies and his water conditions were: 7.5 pH, 0ppm Ammonia, 0ppm Nitrite, but *80ppm Nitrate*! I immediately helped him do a PWC, so now I'm wondering how that filter of his affected my fishless cycle now... Aside from that one death, all his other fish doesn't show any signs or symptoms of any diseases.


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## GTZ (Apr 21, 2010)

There's really no way to tell. I'd continue with your fishless cycle as if nothing happened.


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