View Full Version : how long can the Bacteria survive without fish
derek681
02-09-2006, 6:12 PM
My question is how long can the nitrifying bacteria survive if the tank is left running but without any fish?
Cheers Derek.
sumthin fishy
02-09-2006, 6:55 PM
Well they dont need fish, they need amonia. If there is nothing to produce that, I think they can go a day or 3, depending on the temperature. But if you put something in to produce amonia, like a few pinches of food (you may already have this rotting away on the bottom if you havent gravel vaced recently) they can live forever.
Agree w/sumthin fishy. Feed as you did when fish were present, but only alternate days, and your tank will stay cycled indefinitely. You can do water changes on the usual schedule as well.
ChileRelleno
02-10-2006, 2:17 AM
I'll concur with that too. ;)