BioSpira (Hoerl.com)

I used BioSpira when setting up a new 12 gallon Freshwater Eclipse tank in my work office. The results were amazing! This web page will give you the details and the summary of my experience with BioSpira.

Please note...this page does not sell anything.
nor is it in anyway affiliated with MarineLand Labs or BioSpira.
This is purely a personal web site passing on information that others in the aquarium hobby might find useful.

No noticeable "NEW TANK SYNDROME!!! NO FISHLESS CYCLE!!! ADD FISH IMMEDIATELY!!
The use of BioSpira completely negated the usual problems associated with establishing a new fish tank. Despite loading the tank early with fish...the dreaded (and often written about) "New Tank Syndrome" only briefly reared it's ugly head. I added "1/2 packet" of BioSpira to the 12 gallon tank, 8 hours prior to adding the fish. I measured the water quality daily, performed minimal basic fish and tank care, and fed the fish. The details below should provide you with enough details to answer most questions, but if they don't....please feel free to E-mail me at website1402@yahoo.com

Setup Information:

- Eclipse 12 gallon tank...(with power filter & bio-wheel)
- Aquarium "safe" gravel...
- Plastic plants and "safe" tank decorations...(no live plants...no live rock...nothing to alter water chemistry)
- Aquarium Pharmaceuticals "test tube" test kits...(pH, Ammonia, Nitrite, Nitrate)
- TetraTest "test tube" water hardness test kit...(kH and gH)
- TetraTest Chlorine strip test kit
NOTE: I prefer "tube" kits to the more convenient (but for me...harder to read) "test strip" kits.
Kits using "test tubes" give very distinctive easy to read color changes

Daily Aquarium Diary:

- Initial Setup: Put conditioned tap water into the tank. Allowed tank filter to run for 48 hours.
Re-verified all water chemistry values.
Water clear...filter clean...bio wheel turning smoothly and very fast.
Temperature kept at constant 76 degrees
Water tested EVERY day for gH, kH, pH...(NOTE: these values remained constant from Day 1 through Day 25)
Water tested EVERY day for Ammonia, Nitrite, Nitrate.

- Pre-Fish: Added 1/2 packet of BioSpira...(resealed & refrigerated the rest)
- Day 1: Added two Tiger Barbs
** Added MarineLand Labs "Stress Coat" to the water after handling fish

- Day 2: Fed fish...checked water chemistry...(no change)
** Water slightly cloudy..(milky)...must be BioSpira bacteria.
** Bio Wheel turning gray...spins more slowly...bacteria building up

- Day 3: Fed fish...checked water chemistry (no change)
- Day 4: Fed fish...checked water chemistry (no change)
** Water cloudiness disappeared...water clear
** Bio Wheel VERY gray in color...spins much more slowly

- Day 5: Fed fish...checked water chemistry (no change)
- Day 6: Fed fish...checked water chemistry (no change)
** Added 3 more Tiger Barbs & 2 Cory Cats
** Added the 2nd 1/2 packet of BioSpira
** Added MarineLand Labs "Stress Coat" to water after handling fish

- Day 7: Fed fish...checked water chemistry (no change)
** Water slightly cloudy again...(milky)...assumed to be new BioSpira bacteria

- Day 8: Fed fish...checked water chemistry (small Ammonia jump)
- Day 9: Fed fish...checked water chemistry (2nd small jump in Ammonia..small jump in Nitrite)

- Day 10: Fed fish...checked water chemistry (no change in Ammonia or Nitrite)
- Day 11: Fed fish...checked water chemistry (decrease in ammonia... small spike in Nitrite)
- Day 12: Fed fish...checked water chemistry (decrease in ammonia to "0"...drop in Nitrite)
** Water very clear...(milkiness gone).
** First noticeable amounts of Nitrate

- Day 13: Fed fish...checked water chemistry (Ammonia goes to "0"...Nitrite goes to "0")
** Nitrate goes up

- Day 14: Fed fish...checked water chemistry (Ammonia stays at "0"...Nitrite stays at "0")
** Nitrate Same

- Day 15: Fed fish...checked water chemistry (Ammonia stays at "0"...Nitrite stays at "0")
** Nitrate Same

- Day 16: Fed fish...checked water chemistry (no change)
** Vacuumed gravel...3 gallon water change

- Day 17-20: Fed fish...checked water chemistry (Ammonia "0"..Nitrite "0"...very slight increase in Nitrate)
- - The chart ends with Day 20...but subsequent periodic testing over the next 2 weeks indicated no changes in Ammonia or Nitrite. Nitrate increased slowly (as it should).

SUMMARY:

I violated most of the known rules for new tanks by not doing a "Fishless Cycle", nor going through an adequate fish prompted Nitrogen Cycle. Making matters worse, I actually added more fish to the tank on Day 6. Although I had not seen ANY noticeable amounts of ammonia or nitrate by Day 6, adding fish this early is generally NOT a good idea. However, as you can see from the daily water readings, increasing the fish load in the tank by 300% (from 2 to 6 fish) resulted in a minor and short-lived Ammonia / Nitrite spike of less than 1ppm. This small spike went away and never reoccurred. This Eclipse tank is still in my office and is still going well. I continued to check pH, Ammonia, Nitrite, and Nitrate daily for the next 3 weeks. No problems.

I have since assisted a friend in setting up a new 50 gallon saltwater tank. After doing the usual setup and pre-work, we let the tank run for 48 hours, re-checked the water, and then added 10 fish... and one full packet of BioSpira. Regular monitoring of the new tank revealed similarly great results. He reported a small (less than 1ppm) spike in Ammonia and a similarly small spike in Nitrite...both short lived.
NOTE: I did not add the daily chart detail for his tank because he was not interested in performing rigorous daily testing for ALL chemicals, and he performed his tests at different times each day...(sometimes skipping a day). His experience however, parallels mine closely enough that I believe there is no difference in the efficacy of BioSpira in salt or fresh water.

For more information about BioSpira...go to -->

Last updated on 01/10/2008