Prime and Bacterial Cycle

[capo larzo]

So ive been skimming through posts about prime use and nitrite spikes and blah blah blah.

My question is, in an established but new tank, you have a nitrite spike. So you use prime to detoxify the nitrite. Did you just interrupt the natural cycle of nitrite consuming bacteria? Or is the detoxified nitrite still consumed as "normal" nitrite would be? Should you expect another nitrite spike because of the interruption of whatever was causing the excess nitrite in the first place?

Basically is Prime just a temporary solution to a larger problem. Or is it really so great that in the case of an emergency, nitrite is detoxified and the cycle continues.

 

[Noto]

According to the manufacturer, the compound that Prime forms from nitrite is still usable by the bacteria. I don't know if there's any independent confirmation out there.

 

[tcarswell]

Ive spoken with seachem about this and they claim as stated above that the ammonia and nitrite that seachem locks up is still broken down by your bio filter. Having used prime for quite some time now ive never experienced a spike while using it either. Its important to remember it only locks up ammonia and nitrite for a maximum of 48 hours then it is unbound and will be processed by your bio filter normally.

 

[capo larzo]

So it is bound and remains unprocessed during this time.

Then it becomes unbound and gets processed by the bio filter????

So in effect, it just prolongs the whole ordeal???

Or better yet, it does absolutely nothing beneficial?

I was hoping it binds the nitrite to a non-toxic form, and then the bio-filter proceeds to break down the non-toxic form. But from what i just read, unless im misinterpreting, that is not the case.

 

[tcarswell]

No , according to seachem the nitrite and ammonia in its locked up phase is "easily" removed by the bio filter. I don't know how it would make it easier to be processed but I know it can be removed when its locked up by your BB bed. Its a great product.

 

[OnceLoyal]

Prime should not affect a cycle in any negative way. At least that I know of. I think this is one of the best products anyone could ask for in our hobby. I have 2 of the huge bottles on hand.. Very expensive though.

 

[Nemesis]

I have never experience any mini cycles when using prime. It's a great product, and when you think about it, it's one of the cheapest de-chlorinators out there. I used stress coat for a while before switching to prime, and I spent alot more on stress coat, because prime treats way more gallons per bottle.

 

[Toby_H]

In complete conjunction with what Tscarswell suggested…

Prime will “bind” ammonia and/or nitrite for 24~48 hours…

While “bound” ammonia or nitrite can be consumed by bacteria just as if it were not “bound”…

Prime will not interrupt the cycling process or inhibit a mature system…

Relying on Prime to “detoxify” a tank is dangerous as it’s “detoxifying” qualities are short lived… thus daily monitoring should be taken during “detoxification”…


All of the above is information I’ve read on Seachem’s site written by Seachem employees… and all of this has seemed consistent with several years of personal experience with the product (I’m not the type to believe it just because they say it ;-) )

 

[capo larzo]

Well that seems to answer my question. Thanks !!! I appreciate it.

Ive also always liked Prime over its competitors. Only reason i was curious was because of a recent nitrite spike i experienced. I was reluctant to use prime over the old fashioned method, of major water changes. But i did, and the fish seemed to almost instantly liven up when i added the prime.

 

[RegalAngel]

Here is an article about how Amquel works (same method as Prime):
http://www.novalek.com/kordon/articles/howamquelworks.htm

The ammonia is converted to an amine and bonds to a sulfur molecule, ie aminomethanesulfonate. It does NOT just get converted back to ammonia but goes through the normal biological nitrification.

Amquel+ compared to Amquel:
AmQuel+ - how it works, compared to regular AmQuel
the complexes in AmQuel+ detoxify any chloramines, chlorines, and nitrogen compounds present in the water. AmQuel+ splits apart the chloramines (composed of chlorine and ammonia), detoxifies the chlorines in seconds and the ammonia within five minutes. AmQuel+ breaks the toxic nitrogen compounds in the water apart, gassing out their oxygen and hydrogen components out of the water into the air, and preventing the nitrogen compounds from recombining in toxic form. These compounds include all the ammonia/ammonium, nitrites, nitrates, pheromones, and all other toxic organic compounds for which there are no common names -- yet are important to detoxify to be harmless to fishes and other aquatic life. The nitrogen components are mostly detoxified within five minutes and the slight remainder is detoxified over the next 24 hours. The compounds now broken apart are in the detritus and transparently soluble in the water. They are consumed over time by the sewage-consuming bacteria and algae.