Dry rock curing process

fernalfer · Jan 17, 2019

So I have about 65 pounds of Pukani rock that I will be curing inside of brute containers. It will be inside of the container with a heater, power head, and Rodi salt water. I will be doing water changes around every 2 weeks. I will also be adding a bacteria source to start the cycling process in the Brute containers. Can I also start adding Copepods as well to get that colonizing? If so how will I keep them fed and thriving? And when should I start adding them?

My plan is to have these curious g for about 3-4 months.

EmdeReef · Jan 17, 2019

fernalfer said:
So I have about 65 pounds of Pukani rock that I will be curing inside of brute containers. It will be inside of the container with a heater, power head, and Rodi salt water. I will be doing water changes around every 2 weeks. I will also be adding a bacteria source to start the cycling process in the Brute containers. Can I also start adding Copepods as well to get that colonizing? If so how will I keep them fed and thriving? And when should I start adding them?

My plan is to have these curious g for about 3-4 months.

IME Biggest issue with pukani is phosphate leaching which can take a very long time to resolve. I would cure in RODI only and add lanthanum chloride until phosphates are low or undetectable. Water changes are not that effective in this case and you may have to use a lot of water. With LaCl it usually takes about 2-3 weeks to get rid of most phosphates and you wouldn’t have to change water.

After phosphates drop you can change water and go on with your plan. I wouldn’t add pods, but if you do wait until the cycle is complete. At some level an ammonia spike will kill pods.