Pet Information > ASK Experts > Pet Fish > Saltwater Aquarium > Live Bacteria

Live Bacteria

25 9:47:07

Question
QUESTION: I just recently put live bacteria in my tank. Is it true it cuts down the amount of time needed to cycle my tank/ I have a 55 gallon tank and put in the live bacteria at the same time that diatoms were growing in my tank.

ANSWER: its possible i guess,to be honest these live bacteria probucts are a bit of a gimic.

i cant see live bacteria staying live in a bottle thats been on a shelf in a shop for god knows how long.

the best thing to do is pinch some sand from another mature reef tank, this will seed your sand and get things started much quicker.

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: The live bacteria is refridgerated. It is Bio Spiro. Have you ever heard of that?  

Answer
yeah i have heard of it. again its still sat in a fridge for weeks probably, i really dout that any kind of bacteria will be alive.

best to stick to the traditional methods really, don't get into the habbits of using additives and chemicals in your tank, some of them can totally wipe out your corals.