curing the rock

[tech1]

sorry, I know everyone reads these posts alot....but I was wondering what would be the best method to cure about 90 lbs. of live rock...how many weeks should I leave it in a plastic bucket? change out water? Do I need to keep a light on them? etc...

thanks for any info. I appreciate it...

[golfish]

I wouldn't worry too much about changing water but if the ammonia level gets to hight it might be a good idea. You will need a heater and some good powerheads to move water around. A skimmer is also a good idea. I use lights when I cure my live rock and I suggest you do to......

Mark

[djskott]

I plan on getting a new tank, 65gal, im gonna prob get 75-100lb of LR.
I also plan on curring it in the tank,
how long of a proccess is curing?
thanks

[tech1]

I've heard if you cure rock in the tank it may cause an awful smell....so I don't know which route to go...

[thezookeeper]

Hi there. I have just finished curing 90 lbs. of Vanisi LR in my 75 gallon tank. Let me tell you. It smelled putrid for the first few days. Whatever you do, make sure you have all of your filtration setup when you put it into your tank. I.E. the sump running if you go that route. I did not have a problem. It took me about 5 or 6 weeks. And even now I'm waiting longer to make sure that everything is okay. I recommend cleaning the die off in a separate bucket after a few days to reduce odor and ammonia in the main tank. I also used carbon and a polyfilter for the first few days. Short of that, I did not have any problems curing it in my main tank. The sand was in place and everything. There wasn't a whole lot of stuff to clean off of it. BTW, the Vanisi was not cured at all when I got it. HTH


Joanne

P.S. And when I say the smell was bad, I DO mean HORRIBLE. Have fun!

[ranaman]

Smell, I think it depends on how long the rock has been out of water an LFS owner told me she has seen live rock sit in the same boxes they came in at wholesalers untill they were shipped out. In other words they were not tanked before shipment. When I bought hand picked figii the uncured rock had little smell. When I bought a box of uncured Hapaii rock the smell was terrible as in a relationship killing stench. If Iwas not single I could forsee I would have a bit of trouble.
The main advantage of curing in the tank is your sand bed will be "live" after the cure is complete. You should see all kinds of worm burrows, I don't know if these small worms would be lost in a curing container.

[Strangelove]

I'm smack-dab in the middle of curing 95# of Fiji in a 90 gal tank. I'm using lights, skimmer, extra powerhead.

I had to get one of those plug-in air fresheners due to the stench the first 2 days.

At 10 days out nitrites appearing to be decreasing and nitrates are on the rise so I think I'll be cycled soon. Best of all, I realized that the air freshener is what stinks now, 'cause the tank smells like the ocean I'm hoping to add sand this weekend and a detrivore kit next week.

[tech1]

how about curing for about a week in a container, then moving it to the aquarium...would that really be necessary?

[Strangelove]

IMO it's not necissary unless the smell is too bad. Most folks on this BB seen to favor skimmer and lights so curing it in the tank seem to be the best.