Product Review: Nutrafin "Cycle"

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Jannika

MTS Survivor
Mar 17, 2010
1,498
0
36
N. California
Name: Nutrafin Cycle

Category: Biological aquarium supplement
Company: Hagan
Manufactured in: Canada

Star rating: 2 stars
Value: 2 stars


Model: 4 oz
Price: $9.95
Warranty: None

Several months ago a friend gave me some guppies and an old 10g tank she'd had in storage. Aware of the deadly nitrogen cycle, I ran out and bought a bottle of this pricey but reassuring elixir. After all, the label says "allows immediate introduction of fish" and "immediately establishes safe biological aquarium environment", and I'm a sucker for the word "immediate". Nevertheless, the guppies patiently lived in a bucket for 3 days while I dosed the tank.

Did it work? Well, I'm not a chemist, but if nitrites shooting up 2 weeks later like the space shuttle is considered a success, yeah. Large water exchanges several times a week helped to keep it within chartable toxic levels and slowed down the REAL cycle, but the guppies DID survive. My immediate reaction was "How?"
 

Slappy*McFish

Global Moderator
Staff member
Feb 18, 2002
7,835
48
75
Raleigh, NC
Cycle has a long standing reputation of not working.
 

Jannika

MTS Survivor
Mar 17, 2010
1,498
0
36
N. California
So it didn't work but you still gave it a 2?
Yeah, I know, but the reason I gave it a two was mainly because my fish lived through it, and actually didn't appear stressed at all, even though the nitrites tested extremely high. I didn't want to put that in the review and appear to be advocating its use, but on the other hand, I didn't want to unfairly slam the product in case it works in ways that I'm not not aware of. Does that make sense? For instance, I thought maybe it tests high, but blocks the toxicity to the fish? Like I said, I'm not chemist :grinno: but I do think it's snake oil. I'm just not 100% positive.
 
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