[Samper]

Every since I got my aquarium I have been on the prowl for a certain rock as far as shape and size goes.....Today I found my rock . This rocks price was good at 2 bucks a pound, the shape was perfect and was exactly what I was looking for with the exception of it being in a tank that 2 weeks prior had ich, This tank also had a serious hair algae problem combined with cyano of all things. Basically the rock is gonna have to be killed off and started anew. Any suggestions on what I should do with it? Don't wanna put it in another tank cause I don't want any of the stuff growing on it to spread. Should I just scrub it real good under fresh water and let it dry out for a few days or what? It was never treated with any meds for the ich the fish were just taken out.

[scubadude]

I would just bleach it, just be sure to rinse it real well afterwards

[mojoreef]

Another way to do it is to just boil it in hot water. that should take care of any life form problems to.



Mike

[hcp28]

yeah It hink I would go with the boiling solution rather than the bleach. I would be afraid bleach would get into the tank or something. I'd say a 10 minute boil followed by a few days on a shelf in the sun to dry it out completely would be the best bet.

Before you boil I would let it dry out first. You don't want there to be any hidden water pockets that would burst under the heat and break your rock.

Henry

[Xena47r]

Originally Posted by hcp28

yeah It hink I would go with the boiling solution rather than the bleach. I would be afraid bleach would get into the tank or something. I'd say a 10 minute boil followed by a few days on a shelf in the sun to dry it out completely would be the best bet.

Before you boil I would let it dry out first. You don't want there to be any hidden water pockets that would burst under the heat and break your rock.

Henry

If you do this, will things grow back on it or do you have to do something to get them back? Sorry, another newb question, I know! lol

[Samper]

There are bacterias and such that can live through boiling temperatures but for my situation I'm just gonna use an old tooth brush under hot tap water and get most everything off, then gonna let it dry out for two weeks and I should be ok. It's not the most beautiful rock, no corraline, no real life other than bacteria, stuff I don't want and a few feather duster worms. The shape is what interested me. Thanks for the advice though guys.

[Sueet]

Originally Posted by Xena47r

If you do this, will things grow back on it or do you have to do something to get them back? Sorry, another newb question, I know! lol

No, things will not just grow back on dead rock, unless there is a source for critters etc. in the tank... bacteria will re-colonize eventually, but it takes time.

[hcp28]

Originally Posted by Xena47r

If you do this, will things grow back on it or do you have to do something to get them back? Sorry, another newb question, I know! lol

Like Sueet said, if there is LR already in the tank and seeded, then your new rock will take seed as well. The time it takes for this to happen will depend on the maturity of your tank and the proliferation of bacteria and critters. I would say for the rock to become full of bacteria and coraline, in a healthy tank, would take about 3-4 months.

Samper,
If your worried about ich I would also suggest soaking the rock in a bucket of plain old tap water before cleaning it. This should make most parasites and the such flee the rock. The problem with a toothbrush is that it can't get inside the rock. By soaking it you will help get more things out of the rock, that you wouldn't through just brushing and drying.