Just read through the thread & these folks are giving you sound advice. Your friend at the fish store is just old fashioned, most fish store salesman think that way. The beneficial bacteria lives on the filter foam, sponge walls, etc. There's only a very small amount in the actual water itself.
I've been there myself & nothing worked better than adding mature media from another tank. Just thought I'd throw that in.........you might want to ask your friend to get you some of the fish store's used filter foam in a bag with some of their tank water. You take the foam and cut it into pieces you can lkoad into your filter. Some people even recommend putting some in an old stocking and hanging it near the filter intake or outlet.
I'm very impatient by nature & the donated media trick worked perfectly for me. In fact I instantly cycled a few tanks that way, including a 20 gallon & my father's 29 gallon. I used the most nasty stuff I could find from my 36 gallon & another 20 gallon.
/www.surreypetsupplies.co.uk/seachem-prime-f-sw-500ml.html
(Not hard)
