Hi
Silence, Welcome to the thread!
For the most part, Rusty is correct.
Read this post, and it should answer most, if not all of your questions:
http://archive.reefcentral.com/forum...2#post11058572
Salt is difficult to remove from steamed rock, IME. Not impossible, but it usually takes a day or two at the least, and most times takes longer. Boiling does help remove it quicker.
I personally cast into damp sand blasting sand - it bonds to the surface in such a way that you can no longer see it - which is also the case with actual aragonite sand, but aragonite is expensive to fill boxes or totes with. Most other sands are visible and do not look nice.
I don't like casting into salt because I have a little voice in my head that screams "detritus trap", but many folks have cast their rock this way, and had great results. So far that is.
If you can wait for like two weeks, I should have the mini rock sauna up and under testing. The mini rock sauna will take into account the new stuff I've learned, and produce stable (or as stable as you are going to get when you mix porous concrete and saltwater that is) rock. I'm just trying to get my hands on a pressure cooker, and funds are tight this close to Xmas past.
Anyway, if you have questions, feel free to post - someone will get to you
Happy New Years to all!!!
