Rock issues

[nkxyy]

Hey so.. im kinda new to this thing. Actually i havent even started but have planned about the equipment i will need. I am planning on buying a reefer 200 xl in a few weeks time and im pretty hyped about it. However in order to save a few bucks i plan on reusing the rocks my dad had as he used to keep a 5ft saltwater tank back when i was just a little boy. Half of the rocks have been left unbothered in my backyard and Algae/Moss have grown all over it and the other half has been left in a freshwater tank and algae has also grown all over it. Can i use a pressure washer to wash out the algae and moss and leave it to dry in the sun for awhile afterwards i will cure it in a bucket. Please help me and leave your suggestions on how i can remove algae and moss from the rocks Thank you!

 

[Arricefe]

Howdy @nkxyy I would recommend you take all the rock you plan to use and put them in a container, mix plain bleach in a ratio of 1 gallon of bleach to 10 gallons of water (You'll have to Googlize the metric conversion;)) and let them soak for about a week, discard the mixture safely, rinse the rocks as best as you can then soak them in water for another week. After the plain water soak set rock in the sun for another week and they'll be ready for you to start your reef with. There are other ways to do this but I have personally done this with my last 2 builds, well for my 2nd build I did it to more rock and used the rock I had from my previous build. Good luck!

 

[nkxyy]

Howdy @nkxyy I would recommend you take all the rock you plan to use and put them in a container, mix plain bleach in a ratio of 1 gallon of bleach to 10 gallons of water (You'll have to Googlize the metric conversion;)) and let them soak for about a week, discard the mixture safely, rinse the rocks as best as you can then soak them in water for another week. After the plain water soak set rock in the sun for another week and they'll be ready for you to start your reef with. There are other ways to do this but I have personally done this with my last 2 builds, well for my 2nd build I did it to more rock and used the rock I had from my previous build. Good luck!

Alright, thank you so much for your help i really appreciate it and i will do as you say. Thank you so much!! My dad will be happy to hear this too!

 

[rimlessreefer954]

Howdy @nkxyy I would recommend you take all the rock you plan to use and put them in a container, mix plain bleach in a ratio of 1 gallon of bleach to 10 gallons of water (You'll have to Googlize the metric conversion;)) and let them soak for about a week, discard the mixture safely, rinse the rocks as best as you can then soak them in water for another week. After the plain water soak set rock in the sun for another week and they'll be ready for you to start your reef with. There are other ways to do this but I have personally done this with my last 2 builds, well for my 2nd build I did it to more rock and used the rock I had from my previous build. Good luck!

Agree.

 

[NeonRabbit221B]

The three week wait is beyond what you need. Bleach solutions are ineffective after a few days anyways (just ask Chlorox). If you still have organics after 3 days then replace the bleach solution. Rinse off until you can no longer smell bleach and soak for about 24 hours with a ton of dechlorinator. Set outside in the sun until they are dry and give them a sniff to see if they have gassed off. You can do this in about a week.

 

[T-J]

Personally, there is no way I’d use any of that rock. First, the stuff in the freshwater tank, is there any chance he ever used copper treatments? If so, the copper can leech out of the rocks into the tank.

The stuff that’s buried in the yard? Another hard pass. Years of who knows what leaching into the rock. The organics aren’t the concern, it’s everything else.

Honestly, if you’re going to seriously get into this hobby, and the rock is probably one of the single largest bio filters in your system, that’s not the thing I would cheap out on. It’s also one of the hardest things to replace.

 

[NeonRabbit221B]

Personally, there is no way I’d use any of that rock. First, the stuff in the freshwater tank, is there any chance he ever used copper treatments? If so, the copper can leech out of the rocks into the tank.

The stuff that’s buried in the yard? Another hard pass. Years of who knows what leaching into the rock. The organ is aren’t the concern, it’s everything else.

Honestly, if you’re going to seriously get into this hobby, and the rock is probably one of the single largest bio filters in your system, that’s not the thing I would cheap out on. It’s also one of the hardest things to replace.

Honestly a very good point...

Do you think an acid wash would penetrate it enough?

 

[Nano_Tuners]

I never liked the acid approach to cleaning rocks, its needlessly dangerous IMO...

Is this calcium carbonite (limestone) like reefsaver? It sounds like its more work than its worth to clean up and reuse (unless were talking about hundreds of lbs)... Got a pic of the rockpile?

 

[T-J]

Honestly a very good point...

Do you think an acid wash would penetrate it enough?

Again, I really don't see the benefit of "hoping" all of the above rock cleaning methods will work. Oh, and won't leech something else into the tank as well.

Rock really isn't terribly expensive, especially since he's only doing a Reefer 200....it's a 42 gallon tank. So you need maybe 40lbs of rock, max? That means you're looking at about $120 total if you're using dry rock. Rock you don't have to wonder what might come out of it at some point down the road...

 

[nkxyy]

The three week wait is beyond what you need. Bleach solutions are ineffective after a few days anyways (just ask Chlorox). If you still have organics after 3 days then replace the bleach solution. Rinse off until you can no longer smell bleach and soak for about 24 hours with a ton of dechlorinator. Set outside in the sun until they are dry and give them a sniff to see if they have gassed off. You can do this in about a week.

Alright! Thank you!! Help much appreciated :)

 

[nkxyy]

Personally, there is no way I’d use any of that rock. First, the stuff in the freshwater tank, is there any chance he ever used copper treatments? If so, the copper can leech out of the rocks into the tank.

The stuff that’s buried in the yard? Another hard pass. Years of who knows what leaching into the rock. The organics aren’t the concern, it’s everything else.

Honestly, if you’re going to seriously get into this hobby, and the rock is probably one of the single largest bio filters in your system, that’s not the thing I would cheap out on. It’s also one of the hardest things to replace.

ahh alright i will keep that in mind and if things goes wrong i'll purchase new rocks

 

[nkxyy]

I never liked the acid approach to cleaning rocks, its needlessly dangerous IMO...

Is this calcium carbonite (limestone) like reefsaver? It sounds like its more work than its worth to clean up and reuse (unless were talking about hundreds of lbs)... Got a pic of the rockpile?

Yup ill post it tomorrow as in singapore its 1:21 am