question about curing uncured live rock

[Mish]

I have 30 lbs of live rock curing right now, and I have been doing 100% water changes every 24 hrs (ammonia is still 1ppm after one week.) My question is, am I speeding up the process by doing water changes like this, and am I saving living things from dying by keeping the ammonia down? Or does this not reallt help? I hate wasting salt.

[d4a2n0k]

You are slowing down the cycle process by doing water changes. It can help in keeping things alive but I would stop doing water changes until your Nitrites drop.

[Jocko]

Well you basically have two conflicting issues here, so you have to find the right balance for you.

The first thing is that you want to cycle the rock. Since this consists of getting the ammonia and trites eating bacteria populations up, you want ammonia and trites in the water. This gives them more food so the populations can increase faster.

But then on the other hand, if you are specifically trying to keep things alive on the rock, you don't want ammonia and trites in the water because it is toxic to them.

You can deal with the 2nd issue through water changes, but that works against the 1st issue. So my advice is to figure out how important issue #2 is to you and then adjust your water change regiment accordingly. How about ~25% a day? That's a nice happy compromise.

[WaterKeeper]

If the rock stinks then water changes are the answer to your distressed nostrils. :eek1:

The bacteria grow mainly on the surface of the rock as it cures. Bacteria removed during the water change are small in comparison so water changes do not appreciably slow things up. They are of benefit as they remove some of the dead material that flakes off and keep ammonia levels at lower levels. Having low ammonia allows more of the living things on rock to survive the cure. Lastly, they remove all those nasty nutrients that are entering the water. For uncured or partly cured rock, water changes are the way to go.

[drives300]

Only change 10-20 percent of water max

[WaterKeeper]

In a stocked tank you need to limit the volume of water changes. In a tank full of decaying plant and animal tissue the sky's the limit.

[Mish]

So it sounds like water changes are the way to go. I am trying to preseve the life on the rock as much as possible, but I also want to add it to my tank so that I can finish my aquascaping. Sooo if this process is not slowing things down too much, or causing trouble then I will continue with the water changes. I may slow down to 50% changes everyday, and save on the salt cost.

I started the water changes because of smell, and then when I tested ammoinia, I got scared that what I just paid for would be dead buy the end of the process.

Thanks all.

[WaterKeeper]

Should be fine. I've never gone to the extreme of doing 100% daily changes but I firmly believe they do more good than harm. Rock wholesalers use a series of curing vats and move the LR like on an assembly line to vats with lower ammonia concentrations.

[Jocko]

I would think with 100% daily water changes there is barely enough time for the ammonia and trite level to get up to the point where the bacteria will have anything to eat.

[WaterKeeper]

Jocko,

These bacteria are on the surface of the LR not in the water column for the most part. As stuff decays on the rock itself the bacteria gobble up the protein then convert it into ammonia, nitrite and nitrate in a matter of seconds. That is why one doesn't measure ammonia with a test kit on an established tank. Ammonia is constantly forming but it is processed in the wink of an eye. Believe me, the water changes have no impact on the curing period. It is the wonder of biofiltration that takes care of things.

[Mish]

To all that have been following. It has been about a week and a half, and the ammonia has dropped to .50ppm. I am now doing 50% water canges every day, and the smell was only bad for about two days. The Nitrites are way up and the Nitrates are not as bad but still in the danger zone. I want to add, that the Ammonia reading on the first day was 8ppm, I changed water every 24hrs, and by the third day the level had dropped to 4ppm. I am trying to keep as much alive as possible, so these levels concered me. From the numbers I would say that the curing process is happening, as it should. I know this seems extreme, but I've been very pleased with the progress. At this point I would advise anybody to do water changes as I have. The smell was livable (rock is in my bathroom) and the process appears to be faster than expected.

Thanks!

[WaterKeeper]

Mish,

Those parameters are normal for a week old tank with LR curing in it. Soon those nitrite levels will fall off too and nitrate start to predominate. At this point I'd start taking a look at your alkalinity levels and pH. Nitrification eats alk and lowers pH when it kicks in. It is not unusual for both to decline dramatically as the curing process draws to a close. Your water changes are still doing a service in supply more alkalinity and maintaining pH. If either is low then see Randy's series of articles on supplementing Tank Parameters (http://archive.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?threadid=102605).