You might like to try SuperBac Freshwater Nitrifying Bacteria. This is the one that Big Al's uses. I got a gallon of it & seems to work just fine. It doesn't need to be refrigerated & have an expiration date of months not years. By the way, Biospera is now available in non-refrigerated version (not sure if they are the original people), but the guys at Big Al's still prefer to cycle their tanks with SuperBac. By the way, I do fishless cycling.