[cbui]Introduction
[ci]The nitrogen cycle should be one of the first bits of information beginners learn. Unfortunately, the complicated science-fictionesc explanation that is most commonly given tends to confuse beginners that are concerned with making sure their fish are healthy but do not have enough exposure to the hobby to understand to complex concepts like the nitrogen cycle. There's a lot of misconceptions on cycling and in this article, we'll provide a simple step by step process to cycle your first tank as well as an advanced explanation of exactly what cycling is and why the fish-out method works. There are plenty of methods and while others may be more efficient, this type of cycling is the most accessible to beginners with their first tank. Other methods will be explained in future articles.

[cbui]What is a cycle
[ci]The nitrogen cycle is a necessary part of all life. 78% of our air is nitrogen and an excess of the waste life creates can kill life. A nitrogen cycle simply keeps the waste we create in check. In the natural world, we don’t have to create it but in the home aquarium, it is important to recreate it to match how it functions in the wild as much as possible. The nitrogen cycle simply removes the toxins that fish create and turn it into much less harmful material that can easily be removed via a water change.

[cbui]Necessary Components
[ci]There are a few necessary components to cycling and there are a few recommended supplies that will make it so much easier to create the cycle.

[i]What you need
[i]1. A container to hold water.
[i]2. A biological filter media(read foot note) such as an aquarium sponge, lava rock or a filter cartridge.
[i]3. A source of ammonia(read foot note) such as bottled ammonia(read foot note), fish food and safe super market food such as salad shrimp.
[i]4. Dechlorinated water with either the use of dechlorinator or well water.
[i]5. Something to create flow in the water whether it’s a pump, hang on back or air line.
[i]6. Potentially you may need a calcium inducing agent such as crushed coral, snail shells or cuttlefish bones.

[i]What will help but you don't need
[i]1. A heater.
[i]2. A testing kit that measures pH, NH3(read foot note), NO2(read foot note) and NO3(read foot note).

[cbui]Set up
[ci]Start by adding the dechlorinated water into the container you will be using to hold everything. Whether the water is from a well or  has been dechlorinated does not matter. After that, test the pH of your water. You should test the pH over a period of two days. If the pH changes from day on to day two over that time, add the calcium inducing agent and wait one more day. If you do not have a testing kit, just add the Calcium inducing agent to be safe. Once the pH is stable add in the biological media. If you have a heater, add it and set the temperature to 86 Fahrenheit or 30 Celsius. Finally, add your aeration into the tank. Now, you are ready to start cycling.

[cbui]How to
[ci]Add ammonia to the tank. If you have a testing kit, measure the ammonia until it is at 2.0 ppm. Once you’ve measured it, check it as often as possible until it reaches 0 ppm and there are no nitrites. After you’ve waited, add more ammonia or until it reaches 2.0 ppm again. Repeat until you’ve got it so the ammonia drops from 2.0 to 0 with no nitrites in a single day. This is when the tank is fully cycled. Now, do a very high water change to remove any nitrates present in the water and fill back up with dechlorinated water. Now, your biological media is ready to support life. If done properly, it might only take a week to culture. Add your media back into your tank if it’s not already in it and you’re ready for fish.

[cbui]What might kill a cycle
[ci]Multiple things might weaken a cycle to the point where it no longer does what it is supposed to. Here are the most common things that endanger your cycle.
[i]1. Lack of ammonia. If your cycle doesn’t have any source of ammonia, it will die out.
[i]2. No aeration. If your bacteria is in still water for more than 8 hours, it will completely die.
[i]3. Being out of water. If your biological media is out of water for a significant amount of time, it will die off.
[i]4. Certain medications. Some antibacterial fish medications can kill a fish cycle.
[i]5. Certain diseases. Diseases like ich will infect filter media meaning that it needs to be killed off or it will permanently carry that disease. Examples of diseases this is true for is ones like ich.
[i]6. A pH swing. If the pH swings significantly, especially a switch between 7.1 and 6.9 will kill a cycle.
[i]7. Adding Chlorine into the water.

[cbui]How it works
[ci]So this explanation doesn’t exactly explain what a cycle is. It’s a very simple explanation to exactly what a cycle is. It is a culture of beneficial bacteria(read foot note). This bacteria is present in all water with no chlorine and adding ammonia gives it the food it needs to grow and become stronger. In a science class, this will often be called ammoniafication, nitrification and nitrafacation. The cycle in the wild ends with nitrates being consumed by plants and in aquaponics systems capitalize in the nitrogen cycle to fertilize their plants. In the aquarium, it is best to remove nitrate with a water change or it could build to the point where it poisons the fish. The addition of heater makes the bacteria culture faster. To check if a cycle is still alive, just make sure that ammonia and nitrite are always at 0 and that there are always nitrates present.

[bcui]Common misconceptions
[ic]1. Bottles of Beneficial Bacteria are a common misconceptions. Many bottles market that they will add bacteria directly into the tank. These generally do not work and if they do, to a very minimal extent. They aren’t harmful to the tank so add them if you’d like but they do not tend to have many proven results.
[ic]2. Water changes kill cycles. This is a common held belief that generally doesn’t have many proven results either. Due to the fact that freshwater cycling has its roots from salt water methods, this can generally be disproven.

[i]Foot Notes
[i]1. Biological media is a material that is porous or has a lot of small holes that can host beneficial bacteria.
2. A source of ammonia can come from pretty much all living waste in the form of dead beings, uneaten food or waste products.
3. Make sure the bottled bacteria you get is straight ammonia with no additives. A large portion of bottled ammonia used for cleaning comes with soap that could kill a lot of aquatic animals.
[i]4. NH3 is the chemical formula which is commonly called Ammonia but will be written as NH3 on the testing kit.
[i]5. NO2 is the chemical formula which is commonly called nitrite but will be written as NO2 on the testing kit.
[i]6. NO3 is the chemical formula which is commonly called nitrate but will be written as NO3 on the testing kit.
[i]7. Beneficial bacteria is often shortened to just being called bb in the aquarium hobby. The true names for beneficial bacteria are Nitrosomonas and Nitrobacter.

[cbui]Sources
[ci] [Sandzaquatics|https://sandzaquatics.com/blog]
[ci] [Seriously fish pt 1|https://www.seriouslyfish.com/cycling-an-aquarium/]
[ci] [Seriously fish pt 2|https://www.seriouslyfish.com/tag/fish-tank-cycle/]
[ci] [Aquatic community|http://www.aquaticcommunity.com/aquarium/cycling.php]
[ci] [Biogeosciences|https://www.biogeosciences.net/14/4229/2017/bg-14-4229-2017.pdf]