# How long for Bacteria to colonize?



## craziloki (Oct 22, 2010)

Hello all!
I have an established tank. I recently purchased a canister filter with ceramic rings in the bottom of it.. I was wondering................................ How long does it take for bacteria to colonize down there?


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## PfunMo (Jul 30, 2009)

Rather a loose guess because it can vary a lot--2-3 weeks.


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## DrTim's (Jun 8, 2010)

chances are that very few nitrifiers will colonize in the canister because 1) there is really no need to - since the tank is established there is no need to more nitrifiers and 2) the canister will collect a lot of particulate organics and will grow heterotrophic bacteria that will out compete the nitrifiers for space.

Of course, you can test this is you want.


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## Tantrix (Nov 16, 2010)

Do you have a second filter on the tank? If not then it could take a 3-5 weeks more or less and you will likely see an ammonia and nitrite spike in the near future .

If this is the case I would be doing 30% - 50% water changes every other day and using something like AmmoLock (by API) to keep the ammonia in it's less toxic form. The AmmoLock will not affect your cycling of the tank at all. It only binds to the ammonia (which is harmful to the fish) and turns it from ammonia to ammonium which is pretty much harmless to the fish but still acts as food for the nitrifying bacteria. When using the AmmonLock you will still get an ammonia readings when you test the water but it is detecting the ammonium and NOT ammonia.

One other point to using AmmoLock. It is only effective with ammonia levels up to 4ppm. If you test and it at or over 4ppm then you MUST do at least a 50% water change to (in essence) dilute the ammonia in the tank.

BTW during the cycling process I would be testing for ammonia and nitrite daily until cycled.

Hope this helps.


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## PfunMo (Jul 30, 2009)

Maybe some more questions were in order. Did you mean you have an established tank with filter and now you are replacing the filter? I assumed you meant you have a new filter with one of the media being the ceramic rings. Are you an experienced fish person wondering about the timing of bacteria or newer person needing info on filters? Makes a big difference on the answers you get. I don't think of the ceramic rings as much of a bacteria shelter as my Ehiem mentions them only as a way to get the water moving in a better way for it to go through the other media.


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## KaiserSousay (Nov 2, 2008)

*Did you mean you have an established tank with filter and now you are replacing the filter*

I think you nailed the problem in this post.
Established tank, could mean different things.
You and I probably think, a tank that has run for a year or more. All Ã¢â‚¬Å"newÃ¢â‚¬Â


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## zimmy (Aug 13, 2010)

DrTim's said:


> chances are that very few nitrifiers will colonize in the canister because 1) there is really no need to - since the tank is established there is no need to more nitrifiers and 2) the canister will collect a lot of particulate organics and will grow heterotrophic bacteria that will out compete the nitrifiers for space.


Since the OP has not clarified the question, I'd like to reask it to satisfy my curiosity. Assuming "established tank" is being used in the sense that the last poster has defined it (healthy fish in tank running for a year or more with no problems), how would one switch to a canister filter if the problem Dr. Tim has outlined above occurs? In other words, if the tank is established and has an HOB running on it, for argument's sake, how do you set up a canister filter on this tank and establish bacteria in it, perhaps with the intent of ultimately removing the HOB, without causing a spike?


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## KaiserSousay (Nov 2, 2008)

*established and has an HOB running on it, for argument's sake, how do you set up a canister filter on this tank and establish bacteria in it*

Usual, established(couldnÃ¢â‚¬â„¢t resist) way is to run both for a time period.
Big question is how long a time period, and that leads to another question.
Just how much bacteria are in the HOB media to start with?
My experience has been, not much.
Bio wheels, coarse sponge, even ceramics held in the HOB with the idea of a healthy biological home for the nitrite/ammonia munchers, actually house very little. With HOB the bulk of the nitrifying bacteria is in the tank. Am I saying there are NO colonies in the media, not at all.
I am saying, not as much as you might think, or are lead to believe.
With a HOB, having the bulk of your bacteria in the tank means you can change your filter media often, with no ill effect to your water quality. 
That`s a good thing, right?
That falls right in line with Dr. TimÃ¢â‚¬â„¢s response.


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## PfunMo (Jul 30, 2009)

I'm thinking that the bacteria will be in all the places where conditions are right. To me that means a place to hang on, and it does take much space for that, water has to be flowing to get the O2 they need and then some food. Different tanks will have different amounts in different places and the amounts in each place will move and change as conditions might change. If we remove a HOB, I think the rest will jump up in numbers so quickly that we may not notice any measurable change. I think the same is true if we were to remove some type of decor, etc. At different times, I've removed HOB or large decor and never seen any spike. What I have not done is removed either and added a large amount of fish at the same time. It seems risky to both remove some of the bacteria and at the same time add a large amount to the need for filtering. At some point it seems like it might cause a spike but I think a truly up and functioning tank will have a pretty good amount of flexibility in the amount of bacteria on hand.

I only gave my first answer because the question was getting so old without any response at all. They may decided this was not a good place to ask and simply never return. Too sad. I think this is diverse group so that one can get a broad range of ideas and choose which way to go.


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## craziloki (Oct 22, 2010)

I have returned.. Wow a whole lot has happened here since i left! I have a HOB and left the filters unchanged for almost a month with the new filter. I have since changed the HOB cartridges and still have it running. I haven't noticed any ill results.. Didn't suspect I would. Was just wondering how long it would take the little guys to acclimate.. Also, when I say "established" as well as,............EVERYBODY! we mean "mature" we use it interchangeably. :lol:

Thank you for all the input everybody!! it was most helpful!


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