Sera Nitrivec vs Microb-Lift

lizardking · Post by **lizardking** » 28 Aug 2003, 03:42

Hi guys...need some help here.

Which of the 2 above bacteria start-up solution is better for plecos? I will be using Sera Aqutan to condition the water for 2 hours before using the bacteria start-up solution.

Any advise will be appreciated!! Thanx

S. Allen · Post by **S. Allen** » 28 Aug 2003, 05:01

I've never used those, but I will say that cycle is useless. My suggestion would be, if you can't wait to do a fishless cycle, get some filter material from your LFS and that'll be better than those things.

PauloSR · Post by **PauloSR** » 28 Aug 2003, 10:51

The Sera Nitrivec is very good. I use that with success. If you get some filter material from someone you probably can carry some diseases too.
Sincerely,
Paulo

S. Allen · Post by **S. Allen** » 29 Aug 2003, 00:13

you can, but... the likelyhood is very low if you've got a reasonable lfs...

I hate to start a fight, but...

These bacteria need 2 things to survive, ammonia, and oxygen. now you can seal ammonia and oxygen in a bottle(the oxygen, actually, is left out in the bottling process to my knowledge), but if that bottle has even a few useful bacteria they'll use the stuff up immediately, and multiply. Then the larger group will be stuck with nothing, and will die off, producing ammonia, which may feed a few survivors, but the oxygen would be depleted, so it doesn't matter. I'm thinking this would take, at max, one week in a sealed container. Shelf life of those things is normally listed at 4 months I believe, and I'm guessing the bulk of it sees even longer shelf time than that. The products MIGHT be useful if you bought them directly after bottled and got them home that day, but after sitting on a shelf, all that's in there is ammonia and water. Barbie, if you've got a link to BJ's old site, I can't seem to find it. He ran an experiment with the stuff I believe.

Snake oil, ladies and gentlemen...

Post by **Dinyar** » 29 Aug 2003, 03:45

I have to agree with S.Allen. These products are what we in America call "snake oil", i.e., totally useless in fact, but marketed as magically useful. There are better ways to spend money on your fish hobby. Unless you're starting your first aquarium, the simple solution is just to use some mature filter media from an established aquarium. And if you ARE starting your first aquarium, either get/borrow media or substrate from someone else's, or just be patient and cycle your tank by adding fish gradually.

Dinyar

RogerMcAllen · Post by **RogerMcAllen** » 29 Aug 2003, 05:51

I put something called Microbe Lift PL in my pond, it was supposed to clear algae and it did. It worked for me every time I use it. Is this because it is a different bacteria that breaks down the organic matter, and it can survive better/longer.

Post by **Barbie** » 29 Aug 2003, 07:30

Algae is a plant, which feeds heavily on the end product of the nitrogen cycle. Meaning that its doubtful that the bacteria you're adding are actually having any effect on the wastes the fish put off, and probably its a type of flocculant that binds the particles together, allowing your current filtration to remove it.

I've always been adamant about not using ANY bottled snake oil crap in my tanks to cycle them. There is just no way that the bacteria can feed, or stay in "stasis" the way the claims were made, and I personally tested a few bottles, and carefully watched numerous threads on the subject.

Until my recent move that is. I had 4 BIG boxes of expensive plecos, synos, and cichlids to ship to Spokane to go into new tanks in our new house. Talk about worried. A good friend of mine SWORE that Marinelands new patented biospira worked, and offered to send me some to test it, since we couldn't find it here in Spokane. During the week and a half I was actually moving my things, we had a non fish person coming in to feed the tanks and check for any losses, but you all KNOW how risky that can be. Miss one dead fish in an uncycled tank and you're going to lose most, if not all, of them.

I didn't lose a single fish. Not one. I've never even SHIPPED that many boxes of fish without a loss or two, let alone shipped them to be put into uncycled tanks. My tanks only ever registered very low levels of ammonia and nitrites and were showing nitrates at 3 weeks after they'd been set up. I've heard mostly good reviews for biospira, with only one person that wasn't happy with their experience with it. The product has to be kept refrigerated, so I guess its possible there was a problem with that single bottle in transit or something. Who knows. I just know that my fish made it through the experience just fine, and even though I don't plan to ever cycle a tank again (since I'm not leaving my house with the pool and the hot tub unless they drag me out of it

), but I do definitely recommend that one single product for people that don't have the luxury of waiting through a fishless cycle.

Barbie