DEAD live Rock

somethingfishy · 10-26-2004, 02:42 PM

I may be able to get a good deal on some Fiji Live Rock but it hasn't been in a tank for a year. Is this even worth buying? Are there any risks to putting this in a un-cycled tank? This guy says that he has a ton (literally) I guess he had some vats in his garage and he grew corals.

dtippetts · 10-26-2004, 02:55 PM

What you would be getting is base rock it will eventually become live rock and some would actually suggest using some base rock in your tank anyway. The proper way to do it would be to cure your rock in some sort of container w/ good water flow, but i have been told by LR dealers that you can put uncured live rock/base rock in a newly started tank which will eventually cure inside the tank but this takes a good bit of time and alot of water changes. Also you could add some LR to this figi rock that your talking about which will help in the seeding process of your rock. Lastly I could be incorrect about some of this information so have some others put some input on this subject along w/ doing some more research. Good luck w/ your rock

JohnO · 10-26-2004, 02:57 PM

SF,

In my new tank the majority of rock was old LR from a previous tank that had been left outside in the elements for a while. *All I did was soak the rocks in a strong bleach solution for 24 hours, rinsed thoroughly and then in a strong solution of Baking Soda for another 24 hours. *Rinsed thouroughly again and left it to dry for a week.

The rock came up nice and white and clean. *Put it in the tank with just a small bit of LR and have not had a problem

John

somethingfishy · 10-26-2004, 03:44 PM

John

What is the baking soda for? Does baking soda neutralize the bleach?

How is your new tank anyway?

JohnO · 10-26-2004, 03:54 PM

Well the formula was given to me by someone that I trust a lot. The bleach certainly will kill anything organic in or on the rocks and I think the Soda is just to combat any other acids that might still be there. It was quite an experience because my rock was outside for quite a long time and after the beach treatment small clams opened up and there was still some dead flesh inside. The bleach and BS soon loosened that and they flushd out easily.

My new tank is going OK, I have to admit that I have been slack and not posted any pics for a while, but will do so tonight ( my time )

It's gone through the usual hair algae and cyano stages. The coral seems healthy and so do the two fish. I'll write more when I post the pics

John

m_lacom99 · 10-27-2004, 03:52 AM

Did the same thing for my tank.

Had about 50 or 60 pounds of DEAD LR, did the bleach thing to clean it up, didn't do the baking soda treatment though. But now its been about 5 or 6 months since i had my tank and stuff is starting to grow on it, feather dusters, coralline algae, and all kinds of other little "things". Mind you i didn't start my tank from scratch, it already contained a little bit of rock and i kept about 60% of water when i mooved it to my place.

I think its a good way to go. Allot cheaper anyways. Where I'm from we pay from 5 to 15 $ a pound for LR depending on quality and where its from.

Marc.

somethingfishy · 10-27-2004, 09:23 AM

$15/lb You about gave me a heart attack untill I reliezed you were Canadian. a

SO thats like $1 - $5/lb in US Dollars [smiley=laughingsmiley2.gif] Oh wait you may not find it that funny. I retract my last statment.

m_lacom99 · 10-28-2004, 08:13 AM

hey somethingfishy.

[quote author=somethingfishy link=board=General;num=1098837779;start=0#6 date=10/27/04 at 12:23:13]$15/lb You about gave me a heart attack untill I reliezed you were Canadian. a
[/quote]

I'm french canadian so the "a" at the end doesnt apply here... i dont talk like that.

and i did think what you said was funny.... cause its true.

Marc...

rayjay · 11-02-2004, 03:27 AM

Well, the Bank of Canda exchange rate is 1.2230 which means our dollar is only worth 81.77 cents US.
At least that is about the highest it's been in a decade.