If you buy “muck pellets” what you’re getting is bacteria. Bacteria digest “dead stuff.”
Some people believe muck pellets digest muck — that’s how they’re advertised. But, think about that for a moment. “Muck” is a mix of soil particles and organic, dead stuff. Soil has no nutritional value, so nothing eats it. If a single bacterium could even ingest a soil particle, it would be like you trying to swallow a boulder, — and hoping it passes through.
Nothing eats dirt… That’s why it’s call dirt!
Soil is clay, silt and sand particles. Muck averages 75% soil and 25% dead stuff. Let’s say some super anaerobic bacteria ate all the dead stuff in your muck. If you had four feet of muck and dead stuff was 25% of it —
Congratulations — you’d still have three feet of muck. Yuck!
Aerobic and Anaerobic bacteria
Aerobic means “with oxygen” — anaerobic means “without oxygen.” Aerobic bacteria work where there is oxygen. Anaerobic work where there’s little, or no oxygen.
Aerobic bacteria — you already have enough
In well-oxygenated lakes, there are one-trillion aerobic bacteria per cubic foot of water — they DO NOT digest muck —they digest whatever is on top of it.
Most “muck pellets” are aerobic bacteria. If you already have a trillion of them per cubic foot of water — why buy more?
Anaerobic bacteria — do all the dirty work.
Anaerobic bacteria work slowly down in your muck. They create hydrogen sulfide gas, it smells like rotten eggs. It’s very deadly. (The History Channel’s “Curse of Oak Island,” recounts that four men died in 1959 in a shaft that filled with hydrogen sulfide).
You can buy anaerobic bacteria if you look for it — it’s used in non-aerated septic tanks. If you get some, be patient, it’s going to take a while.
A Far Better Solution — MuckMat Pro®
MuckMat Pros give you a firm, weed-free bottom in 30 minutes. A MuckMat doesn’t eat muck. Instead, it creates a platform on top of it so you can walk over it, no matter how deep your muck is.
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