Mark me down as one who does a cycle by adding 2ppm ammonia and use bottled bacteria. Recently i rarely ever even check the ammonia though i just wait a couple weeks and never have an issue. I never do this "very large" water change you suggest must be done. I like to run my tanks with nitrate between 5 and 10....and thats the range it ends up in after the ammonia processes. Sometimes in 10 days or so i add cheato and then do another 2ppm ammonia. Gets the cheato growing and happy and still keeps me where i want to be on nutrient levels.
This works great for me no issues whatsoever. However i fully realize there are countless other ways to start a tank that also work just fine....that is where i have an issue with this type of post. There is no single right way to do most things in the hobby. Discussing alternatives is great, but i dont understand the need to convince people that a common way of doing it(that generally works just fine) is the wrong way to do it.
This works great for me no issues whatsoever. However i fully realize there are countless other ways to start a tank that also work just fine....that is where i have an issue with this type of post. There is no single right way to do most things in the hobby. Discussing alternatives is great, but i dont understand the need to convince people that a common way of doing it(that generally works just fine) is the wrong way to do it.