Killing my Liverock

Fishfreak218 · #1 10/29/2007, 08:40 PM

I have a bunch of liverock and it has this disgusting red, macroalgea. The algea is red and wire-y and spreads over the rockwork and around the tank. I want to kill all of my rocks and make them into base rocks... should I just leave them in freshwater for 30-45 minutes? Will this kill the algea? I have seen other red algeas die after a few minutes in freshwater so i guess the 45 minutes would kill of everything. Then should I just take it out and let it sit and dry?
Any other ideas?
thanks alot
-Josh

cutegecko3 · #2 10/29/2007, 08:53 PM

algae is very hardy,you will likely kill everything on the rocks causing a large nutrient spike and causing the algae to grow even faster.i would look for a biological control or reducing nutrients to keep it in check.

BrokeColoReefer · #3 10/29/2007, 08:57 PM

try "cooking" your live rock..
try this:
http://archive.reefcentral.com/forum...hreadid=437342

yellowwatchmen · #4 10/29/2007, 09:02 PM

Have you tried a 3 day black out?

Fishfreak218 · #5 10/29/2007, 09:06 PM

3 day black out would NOT do anything..
I have tried running low bio-load with phosban reactor with ROWAphos and using protein skimmers w/ waterchanges..as well as competing macroalgea [such as caulerpa and cheato]
it wont go away.
I guess cooking is the way to go..
I just hope it will kill all the algea

yellowwatchmen · #6 10/29/2007, 09:08 PM

oops missed that it was macro i thought it was just cyano or somthing.

tkeracer619 · #7 10/29/2007, 09:13 PM

If you want to kill it, put it in 1 cup of bleach per 5 gallons of tap water. Leave it for a day or two, rinse very well, and let dry. There will be nothing biological left on the rock.

It's safe.

Fishfreak218 · #8 10/29/2007, 09:15 PM

ohhh.... I have heard of using bleach... but it sounds dangerous..
Wouldnt freshwater serve the same purpose and be safer?

Timinator · #9 10/29/2007, 09:34 PM

Use water and bleach and sun bake till completely dry. Never had a problem with this method. It will kill anything that ales you,lol!
I always use Ro but I think if its sunbaked it want matter if you use tap. I do rince good after taking the rock out of the can and then dry.

Timinator · #10 10/29/2007, 09:36 PM

That's RINSE not rince, sorry.

tkeracer619 · #11 10/29/2007, 09:37 PM

Bleach is fine, ive done it with a ton of rock and sand. Water doesn't break anything down. Bleach actually removes the dead material so it doesn't decay and spoil your tank for months.

cartman5579 · #12 10/29/2007, 09:47 PM

how do you make sure that there is no bleach saturated on the rock before you place it back in your display tank? I would think this would kill everything!

Timinator · #13 10/29/2007, 10:00 PM

Just make sure it is fully dry. leave it out in the sun for a few days if have to. once it is dry the bleach is history.

tkeracer619 · #14 10/29/2007, 11:12 PM

Chlorine bleach breaks down in around 24h. Even if you don't get it all the way dry you should be fine. But it's a good idea to let it dry all the way through. A box fan does wonders.

tylorarm · #15 10/30/2007, 12:12 PM

What about a muric acid bath? I think Randy recently recommended this to get rid of unwanted organics for Marcos Rocks.

tylorarm · #16 10/30/2007, 12:16 PM

i mean muriatic acid

rustybucket145 · #17 10/30/2007, 12:16 PM

If you're worried about the bleach simply soak the cleaned rocks in a vinegar and water bath. This acid bath will neutralize any bleach remaining. tkeraer619 is right that bleach doesn't have a very long life but I think that it's good to acid bath it for a few mins just to be sure.

Muratic acid is some pretty powerful stuff and if dosed too strong could actually turn your rock into a pile of powder. Basically it does the same thing as the vinegar you just don't have to use as much.

Fishfreak218 · #18 10/30/2007, 04:26 PM

So are we all on the same page that
1 cup of bleach to 5gallons of water is the right dosage?
Then just let it dry in the sun and then should I rinse it in FW or SW?

Timinator · #19 10/30/2007, 07:26 PM

T

Timinator · #20 10/30/2007, 07:35 PM

Sorry, somehow I hit the submit button. But yes I agree with your recipe Fish freak. And to the vinegar, if It's got any lasting effects you might as well put copper into your reef from what I understand. And I think we all Know what will happen then.

Frick-n-Frags · #21 10/30/2007, 08:08 PM

don't let bleach scare you, it is non-toxic once it is done oxidizing. IMO, great for cleaning stuff because no fear of toxic residues. Obviously fresh chlorox will raise hell as it oxidizes anything organic, but that's why you are using it in the first place.

Timinator · #22 10/30/2007, 09:18 PM

Please FreakFish this is sound advice I have already given you. Bleach is the way to go just let it dry good in the sun and it will not hurt your tank, I wouldn't do that to you. I know that there is alot of different opinions at RC but I have done this to clean up old equipment and rock that I have set up on tanks and have never had ill effects. It will be bright clean base rock for ya!

Fishfreak218 · #23 10/30/2007, 09:42 PM

bleach it is!
thanks timinator and everyone else!
ill update you once its done

tkeracer619 · #24 10/30/2007, 10:12 PM

here is a pic when I did it to about 350lbs of LR.

Timinator · #25 10/30/2007, 11:19 PM

Anytime FreakFish enjoy your tank my man, see ya.