Storing Eco Complete

[saram521]

I'm starting to get materials together for a 2.5 gallon planted aquarium I'm wanting to start. I went ahead and bought a bag of eco complete from drs. foster & smith, and it's a 15 or 20 lb. bag. I would only need about 4 or 5 lbs. of the eco complete substrate for my 2.5 gallon tank, and have no other tanks I can put the rest of the eco complete in for right now, so how can I store the rest of the bag to where not too much of the beneficial bacteria is killed off? Is this an impossible feat?

[NeonFlux]

I would just store it off somewhere dark and seal it up good.

[Ozymandias]

ya same really the water in the bags i feel does nothing for your tank so even if it drys out it should be fine

[DAVIDFBT]

There is no bio bacteria in the water, even if there was, it would have died in shipping. The actual fertilizers are in the gravel, not the water. As Ozymandias said, even if it dries out, the eco would still be good.

[saram521]

There is live bacteria in the liquid part of the bag, but you're probably right in that the bacteria culture dies during shipment. Thanks for the responses.

[nh5]

I've yet to read on the bag that there is live bacteria in the bags. I've used it many times before and even so your supposed to drain all the water out of the bag before you put the gravel in the tank.

[jmhart]

Yep, no nitrogen cycle bacteria in the bag, only nutrients. Letting it dry out won't be a problem.

[saram521]

Eco complete claims it has live heterotrophic bacteria in the liquid; says so right on the bag. Whether it's enough to make a difference in the cycling process for a new aquarium is a different story.