# Bio Filter with No Bioload, Will it survive?



## rynox77 (Aug 11, 2009)

I set up a bare-bottom quarantine tank and used old water from my main display so I'd have a fully cycled tank. I also took a piece of filter media out of my cannister filter and set it on the bottom of the tank.

The question is this: I don't have any critter in the tank right now, will the biological filter (specifically the ammonia oxidizing bacteria and nitrite oxidizing bacteria) survive if there is no bio load on the tank or will the ammonia oxidizing bacteria die off with no ammonia source?


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## trouble93 (Nov 8, 2008)

rynox77 said:


> I set up a bare-bottom quarantine tank and used old water from my main display so I'd have a fully cycled tank. I also took a piece of filter media out of my cannister filter and set it on the bottom of the tank.
> 
> The question is this: I don't have any critter in the tank right now, will the biological filter (specifically the ammonia oxidizing bacteria and nitrite oxidizing bacteria) survive if there is no bio load on the tank or will the ammonia oxidizing bacteria die off with no ammonia source?


You can always ghost feed the tank maybe once a week.


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## WhiteGloveAquatics (Sep 3, 2009)

No it will not survive, no food no life.


Feed it a pinch of flake every week,that should be sufficient enough to keep it going. if not two pinches a week.

I do this on my empty QT tank, hasnt crashed yet and it has been unused in the sense for a good 2 months. I am testing the waters as I type this and so far so good.


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