Bacteria in a bottle for a QT short term

[sobersteve323]

NOt sure if anyone suggested this or not, but take a small plastic container, fill it with gravel from your current tank, and run an airstone to the bottom of it. Make sure there is a hole in both the bottom and the top so water can flow through it. That way, the bacteria from your constant tank will have a good food supply, and you can keep things natural.

Good tip! Originally I actually was trying to avoid doing that because I usually keep the sponge in my display tank canister to seed with bacteria for when I need a QT. but it appears that I stocked too high in my QT and not enough surfaces for the BB to colonize. My 10 gallon sponge filter couldn't keep up!

I do like the second one I bought though. Foam seems much more dense than my original one which is pretty porous. I'm interested to see how long it takes to cycle (or technically mini cycle? Lol).

Thanks again!