sfin52
So many pedestrians so little time
Yes
Loads of detritus build up in the rocks.
Don't forget to blow off your rock work! How often do you do it, and what do you use?
- Thread starter Daniel@R2R
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World Citizen
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"What comes out " is not a reason for doing it. Sure... plenty will come out. But that does not mean it needs to be cleaned or it's beneficial.
The question of the topic is wrong in escense.
"Do you blow of your rock" is not a usefull question.
"What impact has blowing of you rock in your tank" is the right question.
Cleaning is not always "better".
I have a lot of rock that is not covered with corals yet. My tank has a heavy bioload and generates a lot of organic matter that gets trapped on the rocks and in the cracks and crevices. A turkey baster is my best friend. I use it on the rocks once a week, sometimes more. I guess I've always thought of this as a standard procedure and am surprised that many haven't at least heard of it.
It helps keep the rocks free of loose organic matter. I think that makes a better substrate for organisms we might want to grow like coralline and heterotrophic bacteria. I'll stipulate that the organic matter and biofilms this procedure removes are good for things like pods and such. I have a cryptic fuge for that purpose.
World Citizen
Active Member
I agree with the filosofie.
I just think we do not need to be at the point you can "blow off" detrius (organic matter).
Sure, if you have a layer of organic matter.. we all agree blowing it off is the least you can do, and you rather want to clean it and change the way you run your tanks. A "layer" of organic matter would be a problem in many ways.
But, a little bit of matter IN the rock... I don't know, but in my opinion... thats beneficial. I do not wan't to blow it "out".
I think no rock in the world is not filled with "matter". I think a lot of creatures live in the rock due to that organic matter.
But yea, I don't know if @revhtree really ment to ask "Blow off" and not "Blow out"....
If you need to blow OFF stuff from your rocks.. you need to stop doing whatever you are doing
I agree with the filosofie.
I just think we do not need to be at the point you can "blow off" detrius (organic matter).
Sure, if you have a layer of organic matter.. we all agree blowing it off is the least you can do, and you rather want to clean it and change the way you run your tanks. A "layer" of organic matter would be a problem in many ways.
But, a little bit of matter IN the rock... I don't know, but in my opinion... thats beneficial. I do not wan't to blow it "out".
I think no rock in the world is not filled with "matter". I think a lot of creatures live in the rock due to that organic matter.
But yea, I don't know if @revhtree really ment to ask "Blow off" and not "Blow out"....
If you need to blow OFF stuff from your rocks.. you need to stop doing whatever you are doing
Even when using way more aggressive techniques than a turkey baster, you will never remove enough of the organic matter to limit the organisms that live in or on the rocks. For me, it's not a have to thing... It's a want to thing.
I would not want to stop the things that I'm doing just so I could skip 10 minutes a week of maintenance. That is particularly true because I think the things I do ensure available food for the system's entire food web.
I try to use a powerhead and blow all the "extra" loose crap off my rocks. Why? Because even when I have 90x turnover in my display there is stuff that settles and doesn't get skimmed or filtered out running through my sump. The more I blow it off the rocks the more it gets suspended in the water column for my skimmer to process. I also feel like the less crap settling on my rocks the more likely coral seems to encrust and spread. I literally can see this happen as I blow off certain parts of rock and corals will always start to overtake that area.
There is a major difference when I get lazy with this above technique. The more my corals grow the less I tend to do this. Large grown/stable reefs have their own unique set of challenges that are much more difficult than trying to start a new tank IMO.
There is a major difference when I get lazy with this above technique. The more my corals grow the less I tend to do this. Large grown/stable reefs have their own unique set of challenges that are much more difficult than trying to start a new tank IMO.
I use an old maxijet once a week, getting into all the nooks and crannies and paying special attention to blasting off each coral. The wrasses will eat up anything that shouldn't be on the coral, once it's blasted free. I then dose the entire tank with coral snow (calcium carbonate powder), while all of that organic waste is suspended in the water column. Sometimes I will mix the CC with amino's, to give the coral a little extra good stuff. Works so well, I try to never miss a week.
Frankyfish
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I use a spot feeder to clean my rocks. I do it every day. My dragon loves to sand bomb my corals so im always blowing sand off them. Figure why not blow the rocks clean while I'm at it.
Mr. Mojo Rising
5000 Club Member
its very important to blow out the rocks once in a while. We use the rocks because all the tiny little holes and dents increase the surface area, but those little holes and dents can become filled with detritus, therefore reducing the surface area of the rocks and reducing their effectiveness.
UtahReefer
Active Member
I do it weekly, part of my regular maintenance. I use a turkey baster, does the job and get everything into the water column. It’s a high flow SPS tank so that’s all I need to do.
Once a week, before my Water change.
kevgib67
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I do it with a turkey baster prior to siphoning water out on my weekly water changes.
I now use a small bilge pump, connected to a DIY controller, so I can ramp the speed up and down, depending on where I am using it in the tank. SPS can take a good blast, but LPS hate it. The bilge pump is DC, so no worries about getting a jolt of AC through the heart, if the power cord wears out. This is something we should really discuss in this thread. Holding an AC pump in water, is a recipe for a potential personal disaster.
My tank is bare bottom and I have 4 MP 40's at the very bottom 2 on each end. I can't believe the crap that comes out of my rocks when I use a Turkey baster. But even with my return cranked up and filter sock media it seams that most of it just settles back down into the rocks.
dr_vinnie_boombatz
Active Member
How do you deal with all the snail poop!? I have it everywhere on the rocks
I use a turkey baster daily ideally (have bb)
I use a turkey baster like so many others right before a water change
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