Biomedia reactor or biopellate reactor to help store beneficial bacteria from established tank for potential use when starting up a new tank?

[Treehrtsme]

I've been thinking on this one for a bit as I have a couple of well-established tanks and I'm starting up some smaller new ones. Typically a decent bit of good live rock and care can jump start the tank pretty well but what if I had a larger media reactor hooked up to one of my larger well established systems for the sole purpose of storing bacteria to be used to potentially quick cycle a tank or at least temporarily keep certain parameters and check in case I need to suddenly set one up.

Has anyone ever done anything like this? I've been looking at recirculating biopellate reactors bio media reactors cryptic and kind of trying to put together in my head if this may be viable. Like I mentioned I typically go the live rock route and used to keep a tank solely for the purpose of having live rock but if I want to start up a frag tank or something of of the sort, could I potentially move the reactor to that tank or remove media from the reactor and put it into a smaller one and expect beneficial results? I've talked to people who have done things like this but I was hoping to see if anyone had any experience suggestions or input. Thanks.

 

[Danny McElroy]

Yes, I leave a handful of the plastic bio balls, marine pure balls, and a small bag of matrix media in the baffle of my sump all the time, and anytime I need to set up a QT system for a new fish or coral they are ready to go and I simply toss them in the hang on back filter of the QT tank and it's basically instantly cycled. Then when I am done I break down the clean the QT tank and let the bio balls and marine pure balls dry out in the sun for at least a week before returning them to the sump. I would not hassle with a reactor if I were you and just keep them in the sump and they will populate all the bacteria needed.

 

[Treehrtsme]

Yeah, I never really got a clear consensus from people on recirculating biomedia reactors or whether they're benefits are worth the cost. I have a lot of media reactors, including 2618s that were intended to be for in some use and I figured even if I don't necessarily need to run extra bio media it might be a good idea. Last time I set up going for an instant cycle using live rock it didn't turn out as well as it could have. The only reason I mentioned reactors is because my oldest tank right now which somehow just stays stable no matter what, isn't running a sump. It actually isn't even running biomedia there's just a lot of Rock in it I suppose. That's why I was considering trying to get some of the bacteria out of there and have a reactor ready to go in case I ever need to set up a tank quickly

 

[kados]

Hey there again! K1 media, bioballs, Marine Pure, Seachem Matrix... I've used all of them in the manner you mentioned. Ive swaped out full tank of rocks (Caribsea Liferock, Texas holey rock) in a heavy biolad FOWLR and other fish only tanks.

 

[Dan_P]

I've been thinking on this one for a bit as I have a couple of well-established tanks and I'm starting up some smaller new ones. Typically a decent bit of good live rock and care can jump start the tank pretty well but what if I had a larger media reactor hooked up to one of my larger well established systems for the sole purpose of storing bacteria to be used to potentially quick cycle a tank or at least temporarily keep certain parameters and check in case I need to suddenly set one up.

Has anyone ever done anything like this? I've been looking at recirculating biopellate reactors bio media reactors cryptic and kind of trying to put together in my head if this may be viable. Like I mentioned I typically go the live rock route and used to keep a tank solely for the purpose of having live rock but if I want to start up a frag tank or something of of the sort, could I potentially move the reactor to that tank or remove media from the reactor and put it into a smaller one and expect beneficial results? I've talked to people who have done things like this but I was hoping to see if anyone had any experience suggestions or input. Thanks.

Are looking to transfer nitrifying bacteria to a new system by growing them on something in contact with an established system and moving that something to the new system?

 

[Treehrtsme]

Are looking to transfer nitrifying bacteria to a new system by growing them on something in contact with an established system and moving that something to the new system?

More or less I'm trying to have that as a reserve option. The issue is there's not a lot of bacteria just floating through the water to my knowledge. Pretty much all of it is on live rock unless I'm already running a reactor with biomedia. Now my thing is pulling rocks out of one tank and putting them into say a bare bottom frag tank can bring pests and isn't exactly ideal in my situation. That's why I was considering starting to hook up reactors with some form of biomedia not necessarily because I need the extra bacteria for that tank but because it could be useful and other tanks. I would think growing nitrifying bacteria just by running tank water through reactor and be a slow process

 

[Treehrtsme]

Hey there again! K1 media, bioballs, Marine Pure, Seachem Matrix... I've used all of them in the manner you mentioned. Ive swaped out full tank of rocks (Caribsea Liferock, Texas holey rock) in a heavy biolad FOWLR and other fish only tanks.

Yep those are some sweet reactors. I'm considering loading one of them up with biomedia but after a couple of issues with receiving broken sumps I would have to rig something to fit those externally. But you're the one I got the idea from, I just want to figure out the best way to implement bacterial growth as pretty much all of it is concentrated in live rock in my tanks. I just happened to find an odd method of filtration that worked really well for me. Little but now mechanical with an oversized algae reactor and a good bit of live rock and sand.

 

[Spare time]

I just typically put a bag of seachem matrix biomedia in the filter/sump that can be used whenever.