Storing Live Rock Question

Hey everyone. I'm (Temporarily?) taking down my 150G Reef.
I gave away all my fish, and sold off all the coral, so all I'm left with is LR.

Thing is, I don't want to sell it for 10% of what I bought it for, and might want to get another tank down the road.

So, if I want to keep it, can I simply take it out, dry it out, and put it in a rubbermaid?
I understand it'll "Die", but let's say in 2 years I want to use it as dry-rock, there wouldn't be any issues would there?
It just would have to be re-seeded and become "live", right?

Thanks

 

I would bleach and scrub it to kill and remove organics before drying, but afterward, yes, it can be stored indefinitely and reused later.

 

Agreed. I have about 500 lbs. of nice fiji and tonga branch in storage I won't be letting go anytime soon Clean, dry, drop it in containers. I covered mine to keep out bugs and the like, but I don't know that it was necessary.

Don

 

And what if I didn't bleach it?
Would it just smell...?

 

No. The smell is not just an odor, it's the sign of decaying organic matter which will pollute the rock and cause nutrient and algae issues when you decide to reuse it.

 

I rinsed mine and dried it several times. There was no smell. It is what is currently have in my DT and is doing fine.

 

Yep, always more than one way to skin a cat.

I've placed rocks in a spare tank with just a powerhead and light. Without food, the algae and bacteria will feed on their own die-off until there's nothing left. Can take a while though, depending on how much organic matter is on/in the rocks. Without knowing that, I recommend bleaching, but it's just a faster method of sterilization.