“Killing” live rock and prep for reintroduction

[fox0521]

I had some live rock from a 55 g that had some macro algae on it that I didn’t want in my 120g. I let the rock dry out for a couple months, now I want to add it to my 120 g.

what steps should I take to prepare this “dead” rock to be added my 120 g? (Rock is wet from scrubbing and cleaning)

 

[Snoopy 67]

Spray it down with straight peroxide & let it air dry then rinse.
Or bleach in a bucket, empty fill with fresh & dechlorinator let it sit for a day & use.

 

[fox0521]

Spray it down with straight peroxide & let it air dry then rinse.
Or bleach in a bucket, empty fill with fresh & dechlorinator let it sit for a day & use.

Is a 1:10 bleach solution okay?

 

[Snoopy 67]

Yes, can you air dry in the sun?

 

[Lost in the Sauce]

Yes, can you air dry in the sun?

Best way I can think of.

 

[fox0521]

Best way I can think of.

Air dry in the sun after the bleach and dechlorination? I can try, but Michigan is not particularly sunny this time of year!

 

[Lost in the Sauce]

Air dry in the sun after the bleach and dechlorination? I can try, but Michigan is not particularly sunny this time of year!

Having a fan on it constantly will help in the absence of heat.

 

[fox0521]

Having a fan on it constantly will help in the absence of heat.

Is it necessary to dry out after soaking in rodi & dechlorinator? I’m assuming allowing all to evaporate is the most sure fire way to be sure there is no residual?

 

[Lost in the Sauce]

You said you've had it dried out for months. After doing your bleach/ h2o2 dips, I do not think it is needed to totally try out again which can take weeks. I would probably soak in and out from a few clean rodi water buckets back to back.

 

[fox0521]

You said you've had it dried out for months. After doing your bleach/ h2o2 dips, I do not think it is needed to totally try out again which can take weeks. I would probably soak in and out from a few clean rodi water buckets back to back.

Yeah, I wanted to make sure I got all the dead off so no algae spores make their way in! I think I can get my hands on some low range chlorine test strips (used in food operations) as well, just for an added measure of safety!

 

[Lost in the Sauce]

Yeah, I wanted to make sure I got all the dead off so no algae spores make their way in! I think I can get my hands on some low range chlorine test strips (used in food operations) as well, just for an added measure of safety!

Warming up your cleaning water will help flash off any chlorine as well. A turkey baster to the rock should help clean all the gunk off and bring in clean rock.

Recently I had a rock dry for 3 weeks outside. When it went into the rock only bin, there was a few Gsp that showed up and opened .. super weird

 

[fox0521]

Warming up your cleaning water will help flash off any chlorine as well. A turkey baster to the rock should help clean all the gunk off and bring in clean rock.

Recently I had a rock dry for 3 weeks outside. When it went into the rock only bin, there was a few Gsp that showed up and opened .. super weird

This rock was dry before and I had some pale star polyps and two toadstools pop up! Unfortunately the invasive algae survived too otherwise it would have been cool to watch them grow!

 

[bblumberg]

Drying in the sun will work. I prefer to soak in sodium thiosulfate after bleach treatment to make sure that the bleach is gone. You can use the chart here to determine how much sodium thiosulfate you need. Don't waste your money on expensive dechlorinators...