How Long Does Beneficial Bacteria Last?

[lee420]

if i have a cycled tank and remove all the fish, how long will the good bacteria last without amonia to feed on?

 

[phantomlink]

It varies, some people will say a day or two, the last 2 used filters I bought weren't plugged in for a few days after I got them and they ate 5ppm of bacteria in the needed 12 hours

 

[xXKratosXx]

I hear that its about 12% die off every 24 hours.

 

[DrSlackBladder]

only a couple of days in my limited experience.........

 

[Mikey1]

it depends on how big the colony is to begin with, i would say anywhere from 1-7 days,

you can "feed" the filter to help the bacteria survive a bit longer, grab some flake food and basically shove it up the intake tube of the filter