Api Stress Zyme

[sjolliff]

Iv got a bottle but not used it,
has anyone used it and had a good cycle time?

 

[mickspark81]

tbh. Most of the reviews ive read about introducing bacteria into a tank via bottles such as stress zyme are quite negative.
Some as follows:

"Bacteria cant survive in the bottles you purchase them in as they need to be kept cold"

"they claim to have beneficial bacteria and claim that it helps speed up a new tanks beneficial bacteria production. IE:
API STRESS ZYME: speeds development of the biological filter. It also claims to be a water conditioner."

"Id never add this to my tank as ive used it in the past on one tank whilst my other tank was "untreated" My cycling speed was exactly the same.....And whats more... The ingredients on the packaging are vague to say the least so i dont want to add any chems to my tank without 1st a. Knowing whats in it and b, Believing it works..."

"IMO ITS A TOTAL WASTE OF MONEY..DONT BUY..."

The above comments are from a few different reviews and imo generally common responses. However...Also imo it wouldnt hurt to use it in your tank but cant guarantee any results


Wait for more responses from some of our more experienced members..

Good luck

 

[drobbyb]

It's rubbish designed to seperate you from your money.

 

[drain_bamaged]

im fed up of reading 'dont bother with bacteria in a bottle'...the truth is, while it is unlikely it will work, bacteria can live anywhere, and in some cases under some extreme conditions. The advice should be 'you will not do any harm to your fish, and it may help speed up your cycle, but just be aware that it MAY not work'...the fact is people have had success with these products.

 

[jmkgreen]

im fed up of reading 'dont bother with bacteria in a bottle'...the truth is, while it is unlikely it will work, bacteria can live anywhere, and in some cases under some extreme conditions. The advice should be 'you will not do any harm to your fish, and it may help speed up your cycle, but just be aware that it MAY not work'...the fact is people have had success with these products.

The problem being there's no way of knowing what the effect of the bottle was.

 

[drain_bamaged]

Well, that’s not true. Imagine you have just thrown the water in to your brand new tank, and you have this bottle of magic stuff (lets assume for arguments sake it is a dechlorinator as well)

If, after adding the bottle, you’re able to process 5ppm of Ammonia in 12 hours or less (or indeed any shortened amount of time), the bottle has worked. If the filter doesn’t process 5ppm of Ammonia in less then 12/24 hours, then it hasn’t.

My point is this: its not going to hurt the fish or slow down your cycle and it will only cost a few pounds, if you are willing to take a gamble. If it works, it will shorten the often agonising weight most people will have to go through when cycling and if it doesn’t they will just have to do it the old fashioned way! Just be aware, if you are going to purchase it, there is a chance it may not work!

 

[jmkgreen]

I actually said "was", not "is" (past tense as opposed to current/future).

Vast majority of people who report "success" with these bottles don't get cycled in a timescale completely unheard of for a "natural" fish-less cycle. A few days to two weeks is indeed very quick but these reports aren't exactly statistically high.

I do agree that if you've bought a bottle then there's little if any harm in using it. The worst that might happen could be a skewing of test results but providing the administrator understands the possible repercussions and doesn't mind risking the cash then fine.

You get a couple of dozen identical tanks, and do some scientifically controlled testing, and I'm sure this board and many others will listen. But that's still scientifically a very small sample size (smaller than the ridiculous cosmetics ads on TV).

Naturally if on a new tank you're processing ammonia & nitrites down to 0 from 5ppm inside 12 hrs having only used water and a bottle then you're either looking at a product which has indeed worked very effectively or you're seeing the effect of an unknown quantity. Proving one way or another won't be easy.

 

[drobbyb]

im fed up of reading 'dont bother with bacteria in a bottle'...the truth is, while it is unlikely it will work, bacteria can live anywhere, and in some cases under some extreme conditions. The advice should be 'you will not do any harm to your fish, and it may help speed up your cycle, but just be aware that it MAY not work'...the fact is people have had success with these products.

Test it for yourself then.

 

[mickspark81]

The above comments are from a few different reviews and imo generally common responses. However...Also imo it wouldnt hurt to use it in your tank but cant guarantee any results


Wait for more responses from some of our more experienced members..

Good luck

If u noticed the bottom comment i wrote it clearly states it wouldnt do any harm...Perhaps you shouldnt really reply to ppls posts with terms like "Im fed up of reading..." The end of the day, these are members comments and if you dont agree im sure u can voice your oppinion without using such phrases.


ty

 

[rabbut]

Well, most products have the "incorrect" bacteria in them to start with, but they will work for cycling. The only issue is that the tank cycled with those bactera will be less stable than one in which the "correct" bacteria species has established, until the "correct" species becomes dominant Also, most bacteria will have died, not quite all considering the numbers in there to start, i.e. a few Billion, but most none the less, as it is without Oxygen, so an hour or two after packaging you get a 90% an hour die off rate (assuming the "incorrect" bacteria die back at a similar rate to the "correct" ones, when the die-off would likely be quicker considering they can grow faster...). So basically, most "bacteria in the bottle" products are full of mostly dead bacteira of the the incorrect species. That goes a long way to giving a reason for "scetchy" user results with them...

This said, Timothy Hovenec, the reaserch scientist that discovered the deminant strains of bacteria in aquariums, has shown that the dead bacteria of the incorrect species can act like a "fertiliser" for the correct species and give a small growth boost. This multiplication speed-up is almost neglegable though, something like 2-3 days for an average cycle without mature media...

So, the Bacteria in the bottle products will likely not instantly cycle the tank. There effect will likely be barely noticeable. They are not damaging and can safely be used. However, I would not waste cash on something that gives such few benefits. If you have it, you may as well use it, but don't rush to the shop to get some if you don't

HTH
Rabbut

 

[shaolin95]

Well, most products have the "incorrect" bacteria in them to start with, but they will work for cycling. The only issue is that the tank cycled with those bactera will be less stable than one in which the "correct" bacteria species has established, until the "correct" species becomes dominant Also, most bacteria will have died, not quite all considering the numbers in there to start, i.e. a few Billion, but most none the less, as it is without Oxygen, so an hour or two after packaging you get a 90% an hour die off rate (assuming the "incorrect" bacteria die back at a similar rate to the "correct" ones, when the die-off would likely be quicker considering they can grow faster...). So basically, most "bacteria in the bottle" products are full of mostly dead bacteira of the the incorrect species. That goes a long way to giving a reason for "scetchy" user results with them...

This said, Timothy Hovenec, the reaserch scientist that discovered the deminant strains of bacteria in aquariums, has shown that the dead bacteria of the incorrect species can act like a "fertiliser" for the correct species and give a small growth boost. This multiplication speed-up is almost neglegable though, something like 2-3 days for an average cycle without mature media...

So, the Bacteria in the bottle products will likely not instantly cycle the tank. There effect will likely be barely noticeable. They are not damaging and can safely be used. However, I would not waste cash on something that gives such few benefits. If you have it, you may as well use it, but don't rush to the shop to get some if you don't

HTH
Rabbut

Bring back this thread.
I was getting a slightly greenish read from the API kit.
It was not .25 but not completely yellow.
So I added the API Zyme on the 7th day as recommended on the bottle and it is now back to full yellow.
After reading this I am wondering if this is a good fix at all or if I am better off using Prime.

 

[fatheadminnow]

Bring back this thread.
I was getting a slightly greenish read from the API kit.
It was not .25 but not completely yellow.
So I added the API Zyme on the 7th day as recommended on the bottle and it is now back to full yellow.
After reading this I am wondering if this is a good fix at all or if I am better off using Prime.

The only thing is, you never know that the ammonia might have gone to yellow, even if you did not put the stress zyme in there. I am not saying it had no effect, I just never read anywhere about this product that was test having any positive effects on the cycling process.

You have to have a controlled experiment between two tanks cycling, with EVERYTHING the same, except one tank has stress zyme added to it. Then monitor the results until the cycling has finished.

One day I will maybe do this?

-FHM

 

[shaolin95]

Bring back this thread.
I was getting a slightly greenish read from the API kit.
It was not .25 but not completely yellow.
So I added the API Zyme on the 7th day as recommended on the bottle and it is now back to full yellow.
After reading this I am wondering if this is a good fix at all or if I am better off using Prime.

The only thing is, you never know that the ammonia might have gone to yellow, even if you did not put the stress zyme in there. I am not saying it had no effect, I just never read anywhere about this product that was test having any positive effects on the cycling process.

You have to have a controlled experiment between two tanks cycling, with EVERYTHING the same, except one tank has stress zyme added to it. Then monitor the results until the cycling has finished.

One day I will maybe do this?

-FHM

Well, to me it was pretty clear that it did change it.
I mean two days in a row the same greenish tint.
I tested it and got the greenish tint so I added the Zyme and tested again in about 1 hour and it was yellow...I think it is pretty clear BUT my doubt is if this is just a short term solution.
I did read that this bacteria also seems to die soon but becomes food for the other or something lol
So many things to learn

 

[fatheadminnow]

Yeah, it could of/probably did have some effect.

-FHM

 

[JenCliBee]

I'm sure this product has some sort of ammonia remover anyways (maybe another I'm thinking of) so basically if you only had a trace reading of ammonia the product itself has probably removed it rather than the claimed 'live' bacteria.

have a read of the bottle im sure ive read it on there at some point