will this work ? please any input appreciated

[scotty]

i am about halfway through a fishless cycle on a new 125g set up . and it is going very slowly (i am going nuts waiting to add fish) and the thought occured to me today , does an outdoor pond have the same bacteria as an aquarium ? i have a small garden koi pond in the front yard (about 1100 gallons) with a huge filter system meant for a much larger pond . this pond is about 3.5 years old with 5 12-14" koi and some new catfish .
could i or should i add some of the filter media to my new set-up , if so do i need to start over with the "fishless cycle" ?

thanks in advance for any input

[rich311k]

Yes you could seed with that media and no you would not have to start over.

[Northernguy]

I would seed with that and let it cycle through for a few hours and get some fish.thumbs2:

[HorrorShowRot]

I agree with NG aslong as your pond is healthy it would be a great seeder

[KingFisher]

I would use that media from the pond, wait for the ammonia and nitrites to go to zero in your tank, do a 50% water change, and start adding fish.

[scotty]

really ? you think i could get fish this weekend ? OMG! i wish i had thought of this sooner!

[scotty]

ok next question .... i wont be able to get my fish till tommorrow ,so, should i add some amonia this afternoon for a food source for the new bacteria?

[Northernguy]

really ? you think i could get fish this weekend ? OMG! i wish i had thought of this sooner!
I do agre with KF! Test your tank and make sure the ammonia levels drop to 0 first.
It will be safe then.Do not wait too long though unless you are going to add ammonia daily to keep the cycle.

[scotty]

my amonia is going from 3ppm to zero in about 4 hours now before adding media so i am sure amonia will be fine . i will deffinately check it before adding fish though it is the nitrites that are staying high , as i said earlier the cycle is bout halfway done . so how long would it take for the new bacteria to remove the nitrites?

[rich311k]

Add enough and the nitrites will drop in a day probably less. Good luck I hope it goes quickly for you.

[scotty]

thanks alot , you all are a great bunch of folks , and i really enjoy this site