Re-Dosing Bottled Beneficial Bacteria

[JtheFishMan]

My aquarium is fully cycled. I used beneficial bacteria to help speed up the initial cycling, but I have a question regarding when to add more bottled beneficial bacteria.

I was thinking about adding a little every month after several weekly water changes. Is that too often? Do I even need to dose anymore at all since it’s already cycled?

 

[Uncle99]

Any time you want in small equal amounts.
Use a couple of different products for variety.
Turn off flow, UV and skimmer for an hour or two so bacteria can settle.

 

[Rovert]

If you're cycled, IMO the only reason to add more bacteria is if you put in more livestock than the capacity of the current population to deal with. IOW, too many fish all at the same time, and you may exceed the ability of the present culture to process it.

Remember: 'Nothing good happens in a reef tank quickly.'

Add a couple fish per week. Monitor ammonia, nitrite and nitrate. I started with 4 or 5 small fish, waited a couple weeks and added a few more. Slow and steady wins the race.

 

[Rovert]

Use a couple of different products for variety.

^ THIS

Diversity = Stability
Stability = Success

 

[JtheFishMan]

If you're cycled, IMO the only reason to add more bacteria is if you put in more livestock than the capacity of the current population to deal with. IOW, too many fish all at the same time, and you may exceed the ability of the present culture to process it.

Remember: 'Nothing good happens in a reef tank quickly.'

Add a couple fish per week. Monitor ammonia, nitrite and nitrate. I started with 4 or 5 small fish, waited a couple weeks and added a few more. Slow and steady wins the race.

Thank you so much.

 

[Spare time]

Which bottled bacteria?

 

[ectoaesthetics]

This is just my two cents and opinion. But the biggest thing you could do is add other sources of bacteria to the mix. The smaller the amounts the better. And unless you are starting a tank cycle I don’t have any bacterias in a bottle that I really like. When I start a tank my biggest goal is to have as many types of bacteria, Protozoa, fungi, sponge, pods and micro fauna as possible. These will then balance out forming your microbial plaques in the tank. Sponges and pods obviously don’t form them but probably have strong interrelationships with them. By adding small amounts of new stuff you allow it to integrate itself into the biome. By dumping a 1/2 bottle of something that’s already in there you simply disrupt the existing plaques forcing them to rebalance while probably having little benefit in the end. Just adding some new snails to the tank or few table spoons of sand (or better yet detritus) from a VERY trusted friends tank and I think you would have a much larger benefit.

 

[Nano sapiens]

Once your system is successfully cycled, there is no reason to keep adding bottle bac products. Consider that only 1% or so of the bacteria found on a coral reef can even be cultured and it's clear just how limited bottle bacteria are.

The only time you should need additional bacteria after cycling is if you started with 100% dry rock. In that case, a piece or two of cured live rock, live rubble, live mud or live sand would do the trick to seed the system with the multitudes of bacteria and archaea species that make up a reef microbiome. Once seeded, the bacteria/archaea population will sort itself out and will be with the tank as long as it exists (assuming they aren't killed off by some catastrophic event).

 

[HBtank]

No, once cycled and established, there is nothing to be gained by adding more bottled bacteria products intended for cycling tanks.

Adding microbial diversity via live rock or other sources is a different subject.

 

[Dan_P]

My aquarium is fully cycled. I used beneficial bacteria to help speed up the initial cycling, but I have a question regarding when to add more bottled beneficial bacteria.

I was thinking about adding a little every month after several weekly water changes. Is that too often? Do I even need to dose anymore at all since it’s already cycled?

Unless you know what is in bottled bacteria and what your aquarium needs need, don’t spend money on this type of product.

The bottled nitrifying bacteria is a good product for starting an aquarium because you know you do not have nitrifying bacteria to start and the vendor tells you nitrifying bacteria is in the bottle. This sort of thought process applies to anything you add to or use on an aquarium.

 

[JtheFishMan]

Which bottled bacteria?

Fritz Zyme 9 - Live Nitrifying Bacteria

 

[JtheFishMan]

This is just my two cents and opinion. But the biggest thing you could do is add other sources of bacteria to the mix. The smaller the amounts the better. And unless you are starting a tank cycle I don’t have any bacterias in a bottle that I really like. When I start a tank my biggest goal is to have as many types of bacteria, Protozoa, fungi, sponge, pods and micro fauna as possible. These will then balance out forming your microbial plaques in the tank. Sponges and pods obviously don’t form them but probably have strong interrelationships with them. By adding small amounts of new stuff you allow it to integrate itself into the biome. By dumping a 1/2 bottle of something that’s already in there you simply disrupt the existing plaques forcing them to rebalance while probably having little benefit in the end. Just adding some new snails to the tank or few table spoons of sand (or better yet detritus) from a VERY trusted friends tank and I think you would have a much larger benefit.

Once your system is successfully cycled, there is no reason to keep adding bottle bac products. Consider that only 1% or so of the bacteria found on a coral reef can even be cultured and it's clear just how limited bottle bacteria are.

The only time you should need additional bacteria after cycling is if you started with 100% dry rock. In that case, a piece or two of cured live rock, live rubble, live mud or live sand would do the trick to seed the system with the multitudes of bacteria and archaea species that make up a reef microbiome. Once seeded, the bacteria/archaea population will sort itself out and will be with the tank as long as it exists (assuming they aren't killed off by some catastrophic event).

Unless you know what is in bottled bacteria and what your aquarium needs need, don’t spend money on this type of product.

The bottled nitrifying bacteria is a good product for starting an aquarium because you know you do not have nitrifying bacteria to start and the vendor tells you nitrifying bacteria is in the bottle. This sort of thought process applies to anything you add to or use on an aquarium.

Thank you so much for the information! I'll do some more research on the diversity of aquatic bacteria.

 

[Nano sapiens]

Thank you so much for the information! I'll do some more research on the diversity of aquatic bacteria.

Lots of information about our reef aquarium microbiomes at:

AquaBiomics Articles

 

[Spare time]

Fritz Zyme 9 - Live Nitrifying Bacteria

Ah yeah no there isn't a need. I typically dump the whole bottle in when cycling. You could use the remaining amount in the display (remove filter socks/pads and carbon + turn off skimmer pr UV if you have one), or use the rest to set up a QT tank for new additions.