curing fresh live rock/cooking

[swissgaurd]

ive cured live rock before by putting rock in a barrel leaving it in for 2 months and by doing 100% water changes every 2 weeks.
always worked with no issues.

times have changed and people are cooking the rocks,but i still read people having issues with algaes after adding to main display.
besides saving money on salt is it really benificial to cook.

i can see if you cook the rock to rid of criters but i like the natural bacterias that come from the wild.

vic

 

[Murfman]

What you did for curing is "cooking". I did water changes on it every few days, using water from my DT to change out the water. This gets rid of the waste faster and doesn't let it permeate the rock.

 

[_Alex_]

the only time i ahve actually "cooked" live rock, i was worried about pests. i simply putting it in boiling hot water on a propane broiler outside. boiled it for 30 min and took it out and rinsed it in fresh water. let set it fresh water for a week or 2 doign water changes and then added. or if its a new system you could add straight after boil. careful the rock gets hot.

 

[swissgaurd]

What you did for curing is "cooking". I did water changes on it every few days, using water from my DT to change out the water. This gets rid of the waste faster and doesn't let it permeate the rock.

ive also setup tanks where i put sand and liverock with no lights and let it sit for 6 weeks and done 100% waterchange at 3 week mark,
is this not the same method as doing it in barrel just without the sand,am i cooking the rock?

 

[Tabasco1]

I don't really get the whole cooking thing. I want as much diveristy and "live" little critters as possible. I thought that was the whole purpose for "live" rock? I know cooking is to get rid of critters, but I think the longer cure time is worth it.

 

[Murfman]

If the tank is totally dark, yes you are "cooking it". If light is getting in then no, the algae is getting a chance to grow.

 

[Murfman]

If the tank is totally dark, yes you are "cooking it". If light is getting in then no, the algae is getting a chance to grow.

If you "Cook" by placing in a tub and in total darkness, the critters still live. You are killing off the algae. Now if you actually cook it, like Harry stated, then all bets are off and you are killing everything in the rock.

BTW, Aptasia will survive the total darkness cooking. :squigglemouth:

 

[thewackyreefer]

If you want EVERYTHING off the rock you're going to have to physically cook is using boiling water as suggested. Putting it in a bin of saltwater for a couple weeks will starve everything of light but it won't actually kill everything.

 

[Sasquatch]

old school cooking was meant for phosphate loaded rock or rock that was so sealed off with coraline as to be just about bricks instead of rock, I find it works to a limited amount but purging phosphates is very hard to do and an algae outbreak seems to happen as soon as it hits the display with lights, Ive always considered the outbreak to be a final cleansing?