Bio-spira

[earthbound mermaid]

I am a new fish hobbyist and, prior to even buying a tank, read four books on tropical fishkeeping and surfed the net looking for information. I purchased a 30 gallon tank, undergravel filter, power filter, etc. and set up my tank. I was planning on doing "fishless" cycling until I read of a new product called Bio-Spira by Marineland Labs. After you condition your tap water to remove chlorine, ammonia, etc., adjust for hardness/PH, the product allows you to add fish within 24 hours of your setting up your tank. You add a package (more or less depending on the size of your tank) of Bio-Spira and after a short wait (in my case, 8 hours), you can add fish. I added 6 tiger barbs. Over the next four days I water tested for ammonia and nitrite and got zero readings for both. This stuff is great! It has received endorsements from the New York Aquarium, Tulsa Aquarium as well as commercial fish hatcheries and on-line users say it is the only stuff that works. (Forget Cycle, Stresszyme et al.) The reason I wanted to post a message to fellow enthusiasts is this: I live in a large metropolitan area and had to drive 40 miles to find Bio-Spira. Not one store that carries fish supplies in the city in which I live carries it. Moreover, when I asked if it could be ordered, I was told that other products, like Cycle, would do as well, but there was no way to avoid waiting to add fish unless I wanted them to die. My basic question (after all the foregoing) is this: Are hardcore tropical fishkeepers resistant to anything new? I have to say, with the exception of the store where I bought the Bio-Spira, most stores were skeptical, if not downright hostile to the idea of speeding up cycling. I would love to hear from other Bio-Spira users as well as traditional "cyclists".

 

[Jamnog]

im allways banging on about doing things the slow way but if this stuff works and you tested your water and your happy with it then you should be able to use it. i would jump at the chance to test it out for free well actually i kinda like waiting for things. ive never like chems for anything i think people go overbored on them they have chemicals for killing alge and snails and changeing the water chem. chemicals for treating just about everything. even chemicals to calm the fish down and coat them. in the wild thease fish live without snail killer chems im not converted i would add a chem if i saw a problem with the water or one of the fish took terminally ill or something. i would like to point out that im not saying this is how other people should do it its just the way ive learned to keep fish involves equiptment, care, time and perhaps some luck tho i keep pretty tough fish. im shure this will get a good debate before the week is out as its a fave subject of many here and a contensiouse one 8)

 

[Chunandler]

I haven't seen it anywhere, where can I buy it?