Maintaining Live Rock Outside the Display Tank (How to?)

[Alexander1312]

I have seen a several posts around this topic but could not find one that answers the question I had related to reuse of live rock.

I have a piece of live rock from my DT that I had to take out because an anemone was attached to it and I had to rehome it as she got too large, and I could not get her off the rock.

The anemone is now off the rock and the rock was kept at all times submerged and stored in a bucket (no airflow, no heater).

I do not want to put the rock back into my DT for now but would like to maintain it until further reuse.

How should I go about this? Does the rock need to be ‘cooked’? If yes, what is the best way to go about this? I have listed below what BARD spit out when asking the question but not sure if this is all that accurate. Thank you.

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Cooking live rock is a process of placing it in a saltwater environment with limited light and circulation, which allows the beneficial bacteria to thrive while killing off any unwanted pests or algae. This is a common practice for aquarists who are setting up a new saltwater tank or who are trying to clean up existing live rock.
To cook live rock, you will need:

• A large container, such as a plastic tub or barrel
• Saltwater
• A powerhead or air pump
• A lid for the container (optional)

Instructions:

1. Fill the container with saltwater.
2. Add the live rock to the container.
3. Add a powerhead or air pump to the container to circulate the water.
4. If desired, cover the container with a lid.
5. Place the container in a dark location.
6. Leave the live rock to cook for at least 2 weeks, or up to 4 weeks for heavily infested rock.
7. During the cooking process, you may need to change the saltwater every few days, depending on how much waste is produced by the dying organisms in the rock.
8. Once the live rock is cooked, you can add it to your saltwater aquarium.

Here are some additional tips for cooking live rock:

• Use a large container to allow for good water circulation.
• Do not overcrowd the container with live rock.
• Keep the container in a dark location.
• Monitor the water quality and change it as needed.
• Be patient. Cooking live rock can take several weeks.

Once the live rock is cooked, it is important to acclimate it to the conditions in your saltwater aquarium before adding it. This can be done by placing the rock in a quarantine tank for several days or weeks. During this time, you can monitor the rock for any signs of pests or algae, and you can also gradually adjust the water temperature and salinity to match the conditions in your display tank.
Once the live rock is acclimated, you can add it to your saltwater aquarium. It is important to place the rock in a location where it will receive good water circulation. The live rock will then begin to colonize with beneficial bacteria and other organisms, and it will help to filter the water and create a healthy environment for your fish and corals.

 

[KrisReef]

Put it in a bucket of water, put a lid on it. If you want you can put a pump in the bucket to keep it from getting stagnant but that’s not necessary imo.

About “cooking”, if the rock is covered in green fleshy algae or mushrooms or other “life” then that’s going to die off in the bucket and make a huge mess in a bucket, then yes you need to cook it.

 

[EeyoreIsMySpiritAnimal]

IMO, bleach it, dry it out, and put it back in your tank whenever you want.

 

[brandon429]

keep air circulation while in holding, these are aerobes you're preserving (the filter bacteria that convert ammonia) and there's no reason to kill off any pods that may ride over in the holding with air sealing, it can rot the setup. vent air, topoff as needed, simply keep in relatively stable saltwater with a light circulation. it will never uncycle if those conditions are kept, it's filter bacteria cannot be starved but they can be asphyxiated.

 

[ChrisfromBrick]

keep air circulation while in holding, these are aerobes you're preserving (the filter bacteria that convert ammonia) and there's no reason to kill off any pods that may ride over in the holding with air sealing, it can rot the setup. vent air, topoff as needed, simply keep in relatively stable saltwater with a light circulation. it will never uncycle if those conditions are kept, it's filter bacteria cannot be starved but they can be asphyxiated.

that’s interesting and makes sense. I’m doing this now. So in other words don’t seal that lid tight. keep it dark but let it breathe?

 

[brandon429]

Yes


And what happens to one rock really doesn’t matter, these considerations for rock preservation are meant for tank bio systems/ all the live rock. One rock is incidental. It doesn’t matter if you keep it’s filter bacteria alive or not