Ammonia nitrate neutralizers?

[Pele]

Yesterday i was at my lfs and i saw a product that was suipposed to instantly cycle your tank and get rid of all amonia and nitrites (or nitrates, the one the ammonia bacteria make) has anybody used this product and, if so, does it work?

[Northernguy]

There are several but none work as well as they claim.
Water changes are the best nutralizers.

[Pele]

Thanks, i was hoping to use these to speed up my cycling prossess (or to not cycle at all) but now that i think about it, it wouldnt work anyways since id heve to add it every day

[Northernguy]

If you are cucling with fish it helps very little.
If you are fishless cycling it should not be used.
Many have tried and it took longer than it should have.

[Tetris]

If you neutralize the food source of the bacteria, then the bacteria has nothing to feed on. In which case it's counter-productive to your cycle.

However if you're having problems cycling with fish because of the ammonia, etc, then it may help ease their stress a little bit.

I think they're mostly just another product to mass market the hobby to people who don't think they should have to do any research and just want a 5 minute 3 step aquarium set up. Which never works out in the end...

[ILuvMyGoldBarb]

If you neutralize the food source of the bacteria, then the bacteria has nothing to feed on. In which case it's counter-productive to your cycle.

These products do not neutralize the food source for the bacteria. Ammonia "neutralizers" simply change ammonia (NH3) to ammonium (NH4) which is not harmful to your fish in the concentrations found in an aquarium. The bacteria in your biofilter can use NH4 just as well as it can use NH3 so you don't end up starving your bacteria bed.

[Pele]

Soo, do they work?

[clayton]

I think you may be talking about the "bacteria in a bottle" instead of a "neutralizer."

Straight from TLC's product desc:
One dose of SmartStart instantly cycles new or existing aquariums. This fast-paced cycle allows you to add fish without ammonia or nitrite toxicity; for new aquariums and for existing aquariums will drop nitrite and ammonia levels. Available in either Freshwater or Saltwater versions. No refridgeration necessary and is 100% super-concentrated formula with live nitrifying bacteria. *4oz treats 50 gallons.

The reason the levels drop is because the bottle contains the bacteria necessary to complete the nitrogen cycle. I have recently used this for a fish-in cycle I started a little over a week ago and it worked great. I am getting stable consistent readings from my 20g tank and best of all I didnt lose a single fish, nor did my ammonia levels ever top 1 with daily water changes for the first week.

I really like the stuff but from reading other posts, I think results vary depending on lot numbers and water supply.

[Pele]

I bought a bottle (Stress-zyme) and am starting to use it on my cycling aquarium. Thanks for the help!

[Taurus]

I think you may be talking about the "bacteria in a bottle" instead of a "neutralizer."


Absolutely correct. We're talking about two very different products here. A baterial booster supplies spore or active state bacteria to consume free ammonia. The spore state products like Seachem's Stability I've used and had good luck with. Stress-Zyme is bacteria in a bottle.

Ammonia neutralizers, like Prime, turn free ammonia into ammonium which is much less toxic than free ammonia. Ammonium still feeds the biofilter and plants promoting their growth, but is less toxic to fish. Prime also detoxes nitrite. But it does nothing to remove or detox nitrates.

I've used Stability and Prime together quite successfully to shorten a cycle with fish down to a week.

But, I have to agree with NG. Water changes are the great neutralizer that always works.

[MonkeyPox]

Ammonia neutralizers, like Prime, turn free ammonia into ammonium which is much less toxic than free ammonia. Ammonium still feeds the biofilter and plants promoting their growth, but is less toxic to fish. Prime also detoxes nitrite. But it does nothing to remove or detox nitrates.


Ammonium is non-toxic except at the most concentrated levels.
Prime does detoxify nitrate ([Only Registered Users Can See Links.]).

[Taurus]

Prime does detoxify nitrate ([Only Registered Users Can See Links.]).

Thank MP. I had not read that before. I thought Prime reduced nitrates because it neutralizes ammonia and nitrites, thus producing less nitrates. I did not know it had a direct effect on nitrates themselves. I don't think Seachem knows that for sure. Interesting...