Base Rock or Dead Rock - What to do before starting to cure???

[PrisonCityReef]

Checking what everyone out there thinks is the proper treatment for "once live" rock and base rock.

I have some base rock from Marco Rocks, I have some base rock from BRS, and I have some "currently live" rock from a club member that I plan to kill off. He was up front and said he had some Aipistasia (spelling?) and possibly some flat worms, so I'm going to let it cook in the driveway for a couple days in the hot sun to make sure that stuff is all DEAD.

For the 'once live' rock I planned to use water from the hose and scrub it / rinse it, then rinse it with RO. For the base rock I planned similar treatment.

What are your favorite methods?

-PCR

 

[meisen]

Hey Waupun,

I'd say just go ahead and cook that rock a little longer in the driveway or wherever and still be prepared for some pests. What kind of flatworms? Most tanks have em present, its just poor conditions that bring them out in plague proportions. Easy enough to get rid of them though IME, keep it cleaner! I have seen Aiptasia come out of rock that was left dry for over a week and then fresh water pressure washed afterwards. Not sure how but they seem to be one of the hardiest animals around. They also tend not to thrive in prime reef conditions but for those of us who keep it on the dirty side (ahem), lots of fish, lots of food, so so water they can be a real problem. Getting fresh ocean rock doesnt always solve the issue either, they are often present on that too.

What are you going to use to seed your rock once its in the tank?

 

[PrisonCityReef]

I've got some extra rock and sand in my biocube ready for seeding.


edit - Would a fresh water soak kill things off? I could throw it in a brute with just plain ol RO water for a week with a power head too. Or let it sit in the basement near a dehumidifier for a week or two after it cooks outside...

 

[ryunbaik]

boil the suckers in a huge pot!

 

[PolandSpring]

i sort of had the same problem with my rock, my rock has been sitting out in a bucket for about 2 months in my basement.. By now, everything should be dead, right?

 

[waxy]

Always good to go with dead baserock.
You know right away you won't have any hitchhikers!

 

[dakotasreef]

I would probably do a fresh water soak for a week or so. Then I would let it dry out for a few weeks. Some pests just need to stay damp to survive, so the longer you can dry it out the better. I know that everyone wants to set up their tank yesterday. I think it would be more beneficial, especially if you know that there are some pests.

 

[thewackyreefer]

I agree. Give it a freshwater soak and bake the hell out of it. Or if you really wanna get movin just get some more from Marco! Picked some up myself for my new setup.

 

[JR's Reef]

IMO the best way to clean and kill everything off is soak them in bleach water for 48hrs then soak them them in fresh RO/DI water and change it out about every 3 days or so. The bleach will start breaking down living(now dead) things down faster.

 

[waxy]

You can also soak it in vinegar, then fresh water. Then the saltwater you're using to seed it.