Hello Everyone:
DrTim here. Yes, THAT DrTim. I thought I would jump in here to try and answer the question of how bacteria can 'live' in a bottle for 6 months to a year. I have written an article on my blog that covers this which you can access here http://www.drtimsaquatics.com/Blog_twitter/files/51b49660af3d5e3f63eceae8c27a461b-4.html
Basically - bacteria are not human. They don't have to eat everyday to survive. Note I said survive. We are not talking about growing just surviving. You can think of the bacteria as a rechargeable battery. The bacteria don't get any better in the bottle so they have to be in top condition when they are put into the bottle (also you have to start with the right bacteria but that's another story). For nitrifiers, this means their ribosomes (the energy factory) have to be fully charged when you bottle them. After that you do not want to freeze them or get them too hot. There is no evidence that any magic solution extends their shelf-life and we don't put anything other than water and nitrifiers in One and Only. Once in the bottle since there is no food (ammonia) they do not have to expend much energy but they are using up the energy they have slowly. This is why after a time they are not as 'good' as when they were bottled but that does not mean they are dead. To kill a bacterium you have to break its cell wall or poison it. So even after their energy is gone they are still intact and can respond to a better environment condition (ammonia will get them going again) but they are slow because they energy center is weak. Think about it - if the above wasn't true how would nitrifiers have ever survived? Ammonia/nitrite is not always around. Bacteria, even non-spore formers like nitrifiers, have evolved ways to survive in poor conditions that's why they have been able to survive for millions of years.
Hope this helps.
DrTim here. Yes, THAT DrTim. I thought I would jump in here to try and answer the question of how bacteria can 'live' in a bottle for 6 months to a year. I have written an article on my blog that covers this which you can access here http://www.drtimsaquatics.com/Blog_twitter/files/51b49660af3d5e3f63eceae8c27a461b-4.html
Basically - bacteria are not human. They don't have to eat everyday to survive. Note I said survive. We are not talking about growing just surviving. You can think of the bacteria as a rechargeable battery. The bacteria don't get any better in the bottle so they have to be in top condition when they are put into the bottle (also you have to start with the right bacteria but that's another story). For nitrifiers, this means their ribosomes (the energy factory) have to be fully charged when you bottle them. After that you do not want to freeze them or get them too hot. There is no evidence that any magic solution extends their shelf-life and we don't put anything other than water and nitrifiers in One and Only. Once in the bottle since there is no food (ammonia) they do not have to expend much energy but they are using up the energy they have slowly. This is why after a time they are not as 'good' as when they were bottled but that does not mean they are dead. To kill a bacterium you have to break its cell wall or poison it. So even after their energy is gone they are still intact and can respond to a better environment condition (ammonia will get them going again) but they are slow because they energy center is weak. Think about it - if the above wasn't true how would nitrifiers have ever survived? Ammonia/nitrite is not always around. Bacteria, even non-spore formers like nitrifiers, have evolved ways to survive in poor conditions that's why they have been able to survive for millions of years.
Hope this helps.
