What is the best bacterial supplement on the market?

[tommygun]

I've looked at some top choices like Seachem Stability, Prodibio, and Red Sea Mature Kit. Starting a Reefer 170 soon and need suggestions for the fastest cycle. Thanks!

[Newstead]

I like Microbacter7 for both cycling and a boost every so often. I also added Dr. Tim's for cycling.

[RIP Sebastian]

I used BIO-Spira.

[tommygun]

Does mixing 2 brands of bacteria yield better results?

[Newstead]

Does mixing 2 brands of bacteria yield better results?

I don't know for sure, just hedged my bets when setting up my 75 with both Dr. Tim's and MB7. I keep a bottle of MB7 on hand and dose both my tanks weekly. Plus I use it to "seed" a sponge filter when running a qt.

I have noticed in the year I have done the weekly dosing that I have had no cyano in either tank. Now I have challenged the reef gods and will wake up tomorrow to both covered in cyano.

[VW_TDI_02]

I've always used MB7 and have had good luck. Never taken longer than a month to cycle from completely dead rock.

[squamptonbc]

I've always used Sea Chem, seems to work, and is easiest for me to obtain. I wanted to try Dr. Tims but nobody carries it locally, and even online in Canada is hard to find.

[burtbollinger]

I used a refrigerated product called Dr. Fritz Turbo Start 900. Held in fridge at LFS. When you visit Vivid or that LAX? Maybe see what they carry or recommend. I cycled with dry rock and sand in 16 days using Turbo Start and an ammonia additive

[Eisernes]

IMO a combination is best. You can't really overdose bacteria in a bottle. In my latest venture I used two small pieces of cycled rock, MB7, and Stability and dosed straight ammonia and cycled in a week. The majority of my rock was Key Largo dry rock and I used Tropic Eden reef flakes.

[ajmckay]

Lol I think you're going to find that people recommend whatever brand they've used. Not sure many people use multiple brands but as long as you buy a supplement that states it specifically contains bacteria of the genus Nitrobacter then you should be good.

[Eisernes]

Well yeah. No one is going to recommend a brand they haven't used. This hobby is 90% anecdotal.

[Partially Submerged]

an ammonia additive

 

So...ammonia?

[burtbollinger]

Something like that.

[Starvin Marvin]

Seachem Stability is what I have used for about 2 years. (So, since my first tank).

 

There was a guy in a LFS in Edmonton, AB who told me that many of these products are sitting on the shelf with dead bacteria.

 

Stability supposedly didn't have dead bacteria. I was pretty well brand new and sort of bought what I was told to buy.

 

I left with Prime and Stability. Since then, in every tank I've run, I always default to those 2 products and have never bothered to try anything else except for Pristine which is also a Seachem product just a different bacteria strain for a different purpose.

 

I can't prove it works, I have no science to back it up really, except that I've jump started 2 nano-tanks without cycling AT ALL using Stability and it has worked perfectly both times. Both times I used dry rock that had zero die-off already present on it. I added corals and fish literally within a couple of days, had nothing die, no ammonia spikes that I even had to use Prime to control.

 

So I sort of have a gut feel that Stability works. It has a 4 year advertised shelf life as well. I don't know how it's possible for bacteria to live at room temperature in that bottle for so long... but I'm probably going to continue using Stability forever because as another member mentioned above - it is easy to get in Canada. And it just seems to work.

 

I think.

[squamptonbc]

Seachem Stability is what I have used for about 2 years. (So, since my first tank).

 

There was a guy in a LFS in Edmonton, AB who told me that many of these products are sitting on the shelf with dead bacteria.

 

Stability supposedly didn't have dead bacteria. I was pretty well brand new and sort of bought what I was told to buy.

 

I left with Prime and Stability. Since then, in every tank I've run, I always default to those 2 products and have never bothered to try anything else except for Pristine which is also a Seachem product just a different bacteria strain for a different purpose.

 

I can't prove it works, I have no science to back it up really, except that I've jump started 2 nano-tanks without cycling AT ALL using Stability and it has worked perfectly both times. Both times I used dry rock that had zero die-off already present on it. I added corals and fish literally within a couple of days, had nothing die, no ammonia spikes that I even had to use Prime to control.

 

So I sort of have a gut feel that Stability works. It has a 4 year advertised shelf life as well. I don't know how it's possible for bacteria to live at room temperature in that bottle for so long... but I'm probably going to continue using Stability forever because as another member mentioned above - it is easy to get in Canada. And it just seems to work.

 

I think.

 

 

 

This is what Sea Chem say's about the product and why it doesn't need to be kept cool.

 

A: The bacteria in Stability are alive but not active. They exist in a spore form. They can withstand extreme temperatures and do not require food to survive. When you add them to your aquarium they become active due to dilution.

The bacteria that require refrigeration are active. Refrigerating them slows down their life cycle and they require less food when cold. Because they are active they do require food, and that is packaged with them. They also will not survive extreme heat or cold and will die when they run out of food.

[Starvin Marvin]

Oh thanks, that's really interesting actually.

[brandon429]

hey you know whats weird about that

 

the nitrifiers aren't spore formers, weird

 

they may mean cyst but to write spore is literally incorrect. Mr A, a fine microbiologist that once posted here once zapped me on that in about 2007 I never forgot lol.

[ajmckay]

hey you know whats weird about that

 

the nitrifiers aren't spore formers, weird

 

they may mean cyst but to write spore is literally incorrect. Mr A, a fine microbiologist that once posted here once zapped me on that in about 2007 I never forgot lol.

 

Actually I don't see that Seachem states Stability contains Nitrosomonas/Nitrobacter anywhere... So maybe it doesn't?

[squamptonbc]

That is one thing Sea Chem won't divulge, the strains of bacteria in Stability, they say it's proprietary. I've asked before, and others online when doing google searches have asked and always told the same.

 

If not in the US though, other products can be impossible/very difficult to find, where nearly every fish store carries Stability which is the reason I tried it, but not having the scientific lab needed to verify if it works, impossible to say if it does.

 

If I had deep pockets I would fund some independent testing of these products...lol

 

 

Closest answer they seem to provide.

 

"Please be assured that the strains of bacteria used in Stability are cultured specifically for the purpose of consuming nitrogenous waste to effectively reduce these pollutants present in water. As an aquatics-based company, all of Seachem’s products were developed solely for use in an aquatic setting. The notion that only limited species of bacteria, such as nitrobacter, nitrosomonas, and nitrospira are capable of facilitating the nitrogen cycle is simply false; there are numerous other species that are also capable of nitrification and denitrification. Stability contains a synergistic blend of aerobic, anaerobic, and facultative bacteria which facilitate the breakdown of waste organics, ammonia, nitrite and nitrate."

 

 

Actually I don't see that Seachem states Stability contains Nitrosomonas/Nitrobacter anywhere... So maybe it doesn't?

[reefist]

I've used Bio Spira, Fritz, Seachem, and TLC Smart Start. They all have worked however the TLC product seemed to produce the most visible bacterial colonization in the form of mats and strings.

[ajmckay]

That is one thing Sea Chem won't divulge, the strains of bacteria in Stability, they say it's proprietary. I've asked before, and others online when doing google searches have asked and always told the same.

 

If not in the US though, other products can be impossible/very difficult to find, where nearly every fish store carries Stability which is the reason I tried it, but not having the scientific lab needed to verify if it works, impossible to say if it does.

 

If I had deep pockets I would fund some independent testing of these products...lol

 

 

Closest answer they seem to provide.

 

"Please be assured that the strains of bacteria used in Stability are cultured specifically for the purpose of consuming nitrogenous waste to effectively reduce these pollutants present in water. As an aquatics-based company, all of Seachem’s products were developed solely for use in an aquatic setting. The notion that only limited species of bacteria, such as nitrobacter, nitrosomonas, and nitrospira are capable of facilitating the nitrogen cycle is simply false; there are numerous other species that are also capable of nitrification and denitrification. Stability contains a synergistic blend of aerobic, anaerobic, and facultative bacteria which facilitate the breakdown of waste organics, ammonia, nitrite and nitrate."

 

 

Interesting response. I don't doubt at all that there are multiple species of bacteria that can perform the functions of ammonification/nitrification (not sure the intent of starter bacterial supplements is denitrification) but it's my understanding that nitrosomonas/nitrobacter are the overwhelming majority and most commonly found in both terrestrial and aquatic environments. It could be that they use other bacteria to prolong the shelf life of their product and to provide a sufficient starting point, but that it's expected over time for their bacteria to be replaced by more common species?

[squamptonbc]

I know its anecdotal and non-scientific and freshwater but I thought I would share.

 

I had to set up a temporary emergency 10 gallon for 12 zebra danio's, everything was new out of the box.

 

I dosed stability as per the directions on the first day*, and each additional day for the last 3 days.

 

My tests have thus far showed 0 ammonia, 0 nitrite on each day I have tested.

 

Nitrate has steadily been increasing, and are at 20ppm as of today.

 

Everything in the tank was brand new, including water straight from the tap (chlorine removed of course) only thing added to the water prior to the fish was stability.

 

 

*fish were added 12 hours after stability was dosed.

[dmw913]

+1 to both Bio-Spira for my IM 10 and Dr. Tim's for IM 20.

[gone_PHiSHin]

I used Dr. Tim's and ammonia about 5 days after I added my dry rock and live sand. my IM10 was finished cycling about 9 days later.  

 

this is the first time I've used Dr. Tim's but like others have said, based on that experience alone I would recommend it.  in fact I was shocked by how fast it worked, as I've never cycled a tank this way.

 

side note: if you order dr. tim's, get it from there website so you know it's not 'expired', and just ask for the bottle of ammonia in the comments and they'll give it to you free. 

[Asureef]

Prodibio for 2yrs now, have kept my sand clean without any maintenance.   But if you're looking to cycle quickly, Dr. tims and bottle of ammonia.