I am going to start a new (much larger) tank than my current one. I only have one goldie and his current tank is too small. I have major issues with ammonia levels and I can't get them down. So...when setting up the new tank would it be beneficial to add a gallon or so of the water from the old tank with nine gallons of fresh tap water? I was thinking that the old water has the essential bacteria which should be helpful for the new tank....right?

if your ammonia levels are that high, and you cant getthem down, i would guess you dont have much benificial bacteria in your tank anyway. cycling small tanks is harder, and often they are more difficult to keep in balance. you would probably be just as well off, taking part of your filter medium(the floss or gauzy part) and cutting it free, and putting it in your new filter housing. a lot of the good bugs live in the filter media anyway.

It sounds as if I should just start fresh with a new tank and all new water. My small tank uses an under gravel filter so there is nothing to transfer to the new tank. But you're right, there probably isn't much beneficial bacteria in the tank and it probably hasn't properly cycled ever since I put it together about three months ago. Thanks for the reply.

Whatever beneficial bacteria is in your current tank is living on the gravel and any other decorations you might have in the tank. Putting these items in your new tank will help cycle it.

As a side note, I have cycled tanks as small as 2 1/2 gallons with proper conditions, and I've certainly never had troube cycling something as large as a 10 gal. So long as your pH is in the proper range and your KH is sufficient, you shouldn't have any problem cycling a 10 gallon with a goldie in it provided you're not doing something to disrupt the cycle.

I don't know where I got the idea you had a 10 gal, but I see now I was wrong. Yes, a 1.7 gallon tank would be hard to cycle, especially with such a large demand on the system (messy goldie). Definitely do move over the decor, though, even if you don't plan on keeping it in the tank (put the gravel in a mesh bag or old stockings if you want to remove it later) just to seed the good bacteria.

Good luck!