Bacteria Question

[Jabba]

How long can the filter bacteria stand being dried out without dying?

Do they simply go dormant and wake up again when they get wet, or do they die off necessitating the whole cycling process be done again.

 

[Bignose]

If they are dry, just assume they are dead. If you do it right, bacteria can be freeze-dried and some of them come back to life (researchers in the labs do this often.) But, if you let your filter dry out, just assume that the bacteria are dead.

 

[ox5477]

Even if they stay wet, they can die because if the water isn't moving, fresh water isn't being moved over the bacteria and therefore they are not getting fed. So you need to always keep water moving over the filter media, not just keep them wet.