"instant" Live Sand?

[jrjuiliano]

I saw a bag of this at one of the LFS's. I don't quite believe in the "instant" aspect of this, but just wondering if anyone has tried it, what they think about it, etc.

http://www.livesand.com/

• Every grain of sand in the ocean is covered with a biofilm. Nature’s Ocean® Bio-Activ Live™ Aragoniteis naturally from the ocean. The bacteria on the sand are in a biofilm, therefore the bacteria are in their natural state, immediately removing toxic waste.

• Artificially adding bacteria (or cultured bacteria) does not make the same biofilm. It is not as efficient as the biofilm found on sand in the ocean which have been naturally selected through millions of years of evolution.

• All bacteria on Nature’s Ocean® Bio-Activ Live™Aragonite are preserved in their natural live state using a patented process and a patented saltwater enrichment solution QX-23™.

• Nature’s Ocean® Bio-Activ Live™ Aragonite is guaranteed to contain more than 200 million live bacteria per pound of sand in a natural biofilm, ready to instantly start the cycling process and stabilize your tank.

• Contains live marine autotrophic bacteria to provide proper inorganic chemical balance.

• Contains live chemolithotropic bacteria.

• Prevents biofouling.

• Immediately removes nitrogenous waste (Ammonia, Nitrite and helps remove Nitrate).

• Instant Cycling guaranteed.

[davocean]

There's usually lots of dieoff in shipping.
Actually fastest cycle IMO is dry sand, w/ a handful of sand from established tank, and it's also cheaper.

[j1gregor]

There's usually lots of dieoff in shipping.
Actually fastest cycle IMO is dry sand, w/ a handful of sand from established tank, and it's also cheaper.

+1

this was recommended to me when I started up my tank and it worked beautifully.

[Techknowledgy]

....and when you do start that, it seems to help if you get handfuls from many different tanks. Someone also suggested using ready to discard water from a fully cycled established reef. I did this with my Lion Fish tank, and it never did cycle. Started out spot on and stayed there.