# Update on Bio Spira



## nycvr6 (Apr 30, 2003)

For anyone who didnt read my bio spira thread, i just setup a 125 less than a week ago. When i was changing tanks, my old 55 gal fell over and i lost all my cycled water, i used the gravel from the 55 and i put the bio balls from my old smaller wet dry into my new bigger sump. Anyway after setting the tank up, i tested the water 2 days after and it seemed the tank was recycling itself completely as if it was never cycled. Yesterday afternoon i put in bio spira. Here are the results:

Keep in mind the bio spira was added 25 hours before this afternoon's tests.

---------- 2 Days Ago / This afternoon
1. Ph ------- 7.0 / 7.0
2. Ammonia ------ .50 ppm / .25ppm
3. Nitrite ------- 0 / 0
4. Nitrate ------- 0 / 10ppm (very little)

So what do you guys think? Does it seem to be working? Any suggestions or comments are welcome. 
Thanks


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## Grosse Gurke (Jan 3, 2003)

Do you have the test results before you added the bio spira? To even guess what has happened since you added the product, I would need to know what conditions were before you added it.


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## InSinUAsian (Jan 3, 2003)

I dont think this type of test will tell us much about the product at all. In order to get a real good idea, one would have to have 2 tanks set up at the same time. One would have to be the control, and the other should be the one with bio-spira. Then measurements would be taken at the same time on both tanks. That would be the best way to tell. All that said, it looks like your tank is doing okay.

~Dj


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## nycvr6 (Apr 30, 2003)

grosse gurke said:


> Do you have the test results before you added the bio spira? To even guess what has happened since you added the product, I would need to know what conditions were before you added it.


The results before i added the bio spira are the first # then after the slash is the results 24 hrs after the bio spira was added. Like it says: 2 Days ago test results/this afternoons test results.


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## nycvr6 (Apr 30, 2003)

InSinUAsian said:


> I dont think this type of test will tell us much about the product at all. In order to get a real good idea, one would have to have 2 tanks set up at the same time. One would have to be the control, and the other should be the one with bio-spira. Then measurements would be taken at the same time on both tanks. That would be the best way to tell. All that said, it looks like your tank is doing okay.
> 
> ~Dj


 I agree, but i am not doing an experiment, i am trying to get my tank cycled. It seems as if the bio spira worked a bit as the ammonia came down a bit, the nitrates went up a bit, and there is no nitrie present. Im not sure though.


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## DonH (Jan 25, 2003)

I don't want to sound like a skeptic, but the drop in ammonia may be due to your existing nitrifiers "kicking in" after an initial re-establishing period.


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## Raptor (Jan 3, 2003)

I have ben monitoring the levels in my new 190. It has new gravel with a net full of old gravel. 1 new filter and 1 old filter. 
1st day after 12-14 hrs of running with just 150 golds.

Trace is barely showing any color
Ammonia 0 to trace nitrites 0 Ph 7.0
-
Added 10 piranhas large pleco and rafhael catfish
And added biospira
Next day 24hrs later Ammonia .25ppm nitrates 0 to trace Ph7.0
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2 days later Ammonia .25 ppm Nitrates Still trace Ph 6.8
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3 days (today) Ammonia .25 Nitrates Still just trace amounts. Ph 6.8
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I will keep this thread updated on further levels. I think it is still early on the results. Even that i have 10 piranhas 2 bottom dwellers And a dwindling amount of feeders. 
-
There is a decent amount of bioload on the tank for it being a 190.
What is your thoughts Don? Do you think the ammonia is Staying at bay?
Or is that to be expected with the size of the tank? I will try to give as accurate readings to use as a refferance vs the normal cycle. I won't fudge my readings, because i have no reason to defend marineland.


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## DonH (Jan 25, 2003)

How many Bio-Spira packets are you using? For a 190 gallon tank, you should be using 2 of the larger packets (good for 90 gallons each) right?

If you did indeed added 2, then the readings are not consistent with Marineland's claims of cycling a tank within 24 hours. That would mean that your ammonia and nitrites should be consistently reading 0 after 24 hours of adding it. Your ammonia at .25 ppm is good, but you won't know until about a week into the cycle because that's when ammonia starts to spike under normal conditions.

Unfortunately, if you were planning on testing the validity of Marineland's claims for Bio-Spira, you are already starting the experiment wrong. Using the old filter and gravel will already have populated your tank with the necessary nitrifiers to seed your tank. So, any positive test results might be due to the Bio-spira but most likely due to your old filter. You would need to conduct this experiment on a "virgin" tank and add only a water conditioner, Bio-spira, and fish... nothing else.

Nonetheless, your experiment is an important one because it charts the difference in cycling a virgin tank versus a tank that has been initially seeded. That data will be important to show how significant seeding a tank is for speeding up the cycling process.


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## Raptor (Jan 3, 2003)

Well i had to get rid of my other tanks. I don't like to take as big as risk with these fish. too much money involved. I still have around 100 large to small feeders in there also. So i will keep an very close observation on them.
Yes i did use two packets in there. Thanks for your advise don.


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## Raptor (Jan 3, 2003)

3rd day i added 4 more piranhas. to have a toital of 14 piranhas, and over 100 large to small feeders.

4th day Ammonia 0 ppm. nitrites 0 ppm nitrates 20 ppm and ph of 6.8
I had takin another reading last night to see if i was getting a spike. And the readings were the same as erlier.

Now i realize i seeded the tank with a old filter, and about 2 lbs of old rocks. 
But i believe there would have been a harsher spike than .25 ppm in ammonia if i did not use biospira. You have to admitt there was a huge bioload on the tank.
I have not fudged numbers whatsoever. I have nothing to gain if people buy biospira. But for a market product. It is worth the 15 bucks.
Now i am trying biospira with my new feeder tank it's totaly virgin. Ill post results in 4 days.


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## nycvr6 (Apr 30, 2003)

I used some old rocks and some old bio balls too. My ammonia only reached .25 so far after the bio spira. I also expected a bigger ammonia spike. My last tank was a similar situation, i went from a 30 to a 55 and used some old rocks and some old bio balls, and i didnt use bio spira. That time the ammonia went all the way up into dangerous levels requiring me to do small water changes to keep the water safe. I have nothing to gain from praising bio spira as well, just telling the facts. Yesterdays test results showed the ammonia the same at .25 ppm, nitrates up a bit to 20ppm, and no nitrites.


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## nycvr6 (Apr 30, 2003)

Update. My tank is FULLY cycled now. No nitrite, med nitrates, almost no ammo, and solid 7 ph. I am going to have to say it was the bio spira that cycled the tank so quickly. Last time i used no bio spira, just old gravel, some old water and some old bio balls, and the cycle took 2 weeks, the ammonia and nitrite still spiked into dangerous levels. This time, with the bio spira, the tank fully cycled in under a week, the ammonia never went anywhere near dangerous levels, and i never saw any nitrites. 
Bottom Line: Bio spira gets a big







from me, i am always going to use it on new tanks, and ill never have to wait and waste a ton of testing materials going thru a month cycling.


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