filter bacteria - how long does it survive?

[keone]

Ola,

I was wondering how long bacteria will survive after the pump/filter is not running anymore.
I mean If I disconnect the filter, drain most of the water and keep the in and outlets open to keep it all oxygenated (is that a word?.

I'm asking because I'm thinking about doing a dry start after a dark start.
Is that possible - at all?

 

[Bradders]

I was wondering how long bacteria will survive after the pump/filter is not running anymore.

Bacteria are very slow to die off if exposed to the air and kept wet - ideally at the temperature they are used to. There is no answer, but longevity can be months to years.

 

[Maf 2500]

If it was mulmy most of it would be dead after a day or so due to deoxygenation. The mulmier it was, the quicker it would go bad.

You could keep a bucket of the tank water and dunk the media in a couple of times a day to keep it moist, the rest of the time leaving it exposed to air as per @Bradders post above. Probably the easiest fix would be to set the filter up running on a bucket/container of tank water. You might need to turn the flow down depending on size of filter. Other than topping up water you would be able to forget about it for the duration of the dry start.

 

[Little]

Plus one for getting a big Tupperware / bucket / water barrel etc… and running your filter in it while you dry start a tank. Can throw in some muck from another aquarium owner filter too if possible.

 

[Andy Pierce]

It's more important to keep it wet than to keep it oxygenated. The bacteria won't die at all if it's kept wet. What happens is the population of bacteria will evolve in the direction the new conditions support (lower oxygen etc.). Once connected back up again the reverse will happen. Even if you let it mostly dry out you're probably still fine. Bacteria has evolved to handle these types of changing conditions. There are lot of things to worry about with a planted aquarium but the health of the bacteria (and/or archaea etc) populating the filter isn't one of them.

 

[keone]

yay - thanks for the answers and tips guys. Much appreciated.

 

[keone]

If it was mulmy most of it would be dead after a day or so due to deoxygenation. The mulmier it was, the quicker it would go bad.

Sorry to ask further. I'm Dutch - (in my defense - not even google translate understood that word😀) - what does mulmy mean?

 

[Maf 2500]

Sorry to ask further. I'm Dutch - (in my defense - not even google translate understood that word😀) - what does mulmy mean?

Sorry, mulm is a noun and I have used it as an adjective which is probably why it is not showing up in translation.
Mulm = "organic sediment that accumulates in an aquarium" (from Definition of MULM)
So, in the sense I used it I described the filter media as mulmy as a shorthand for covered in mulm or similar. I could have just said dirty instead!

 

[keone]

makes sence now - Thanks for the explanation to an outlander 🙂