Who Gives A Fish Forums

Re: Best gosh for cycling
Beneficial bacteria thrive in oxygen-rich water, like a well-maintained wet/dry system. That's what you need for a healthy tank. On the other hand, anaerobic bacteria - the ones that eat nitrates, the new 'it' thing - grow in dark, oxygen-depleted areas. Think a neglected canister filter. With the market buzzing about nitrate removal, it's no surprise this is big business. But does it actually work? If it makes you feel better, go for it.

Re: Best gosh for cycling











Lol yes beneficial bacteria grows in oxygen rich water like a wet/dry system. And is what’s needed to run a healthy tank. Now anaerobic bacteria which eats nitrates (the new great thing to remove) grow in oxygen depleted and dark areas. Like a never cleaned canister filter. So since the market is so hot on removing nitrates this is profitable advertising . Does it work???? If it makes you feel good why not .


Actually, anaerobic bacteria thrive in environments with zero oxygen. Not low oxygen, zero. It's unlikely you'll find such pockets in a typical aquarium setup. Maybe in a deep, stagnant area with no water flow, but then nitrates can't even get in to be converted.

I've seen numerous claims online about products promoting anaerobic bacteria, but they're not backed by science. If these products really work, it should be easy to measure the nitrate reduction. I've yet to see a single post that demonstrates this.

As someone who's taught General Microbiology to undergrads and grad students at a university, I can tell you that the science just isn't there.