Bleaching rocks

00accordvtec · 12/12/2010, 05:44 PM

can someone tell me how to bleach live rock. Bought a nice size piece of rock and when i took it out of bag it was loaded with bristle worms trying to get to water.

Dustin1300 · 12/12/2010, 05:49 PM

I don't like the idea of using acid/bleach. Get some RO/DI water and boil

00accordvtec · 12/12/2010, 05:50 PM

thats all i have to do is boil RO/DI? will the bristle worms die ?

Toddrtrex · 12/12/2010, 05:56 PM

Why do you want to get rid of the bristleworms? They are great to have in the tank.

00accordvtec · 12/12/2010, 05:57 PM

dont they kill things in the tank?

Toddrtrex · 12/12/2010, 06:12 PM

No, they are great part of a clean up crew.

billdogg · 12/12/2010, 06:15 PM

Bristle worms are your friends. Why would you pay a premium for live rock and then kill it? If you are that worried, start with dry rock - it will slowly become live. In the end, you will still end up with bristle worms and a whole bunch of other neat stuff. Yes, there will be the occasional bad guy, but that is easy to deal with when it happens.

Misled · 12/12/2010, 06:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Toddrtrex

No, they are great part of a clean up crew.

Yep, put them in. They may be ugly, but they will help keep things clean.

Sk8r · 12/12/2010, 06:20 PM

I concur. Live rock is just that---full of stuff! 99.999% of it is good, and bristleworms are some of the best.

bertoni · 12/12/2010, 06:56 PM

I wouldn't boil live rock under any circumstances. That sounds messy and smelly, and could send chemicals into the air. If you want dead rock, just let it dry out.

Preston7 · 12/12/2010, 07:33 PM

I had a lapse in judgment and let some aiptaisia into my tank once. I broke down everything, bleached the rock, replaced the sand, replaced ALL the plumbing and started over. I didn't want to chance it with aiptasia and bleach was my only (And quick) guarantee!

I just filled some trashcans with rock and tap water. I then added bleach (1/2 gallon bleach to each 40G trashcan). I used A LOT more bleach than you'd need, but it was worth it for me. THey ended up staying in there for a week..only intended for them to be in the for a day.

I then rinsed them off with a hose and let them dry. Repeated that and they were good to go into a curing tank. I filled the tank with the rock and fresh saltwater. I then added a gallon of ammonia and let nature handle the rest. I started skimming after a week and it was pulling out some nastiness. When everything was clear, I added some live sand from a trusted source and, again, let nature do it's thing. I ended up with live rock that was pest free.

It was a lot of work and a major expense, but well worth it, imo.

Oh, and bristle worms are your friends.

E36328i · 12/13/2010, 01:41 AM

Bristleworms are great, keep them! Glad to see the majority of the hobby is getting rid of the old philosophy about keeping your saltwater tank devoid of life just because it isn't aesthetically pleasing..

zigzag1 · 12/13/2010, 08:53 AM

Why do folks so quickly want to bleach, acid dip, boil or just plain kill thier rock until dead in the face?!? I bought my live rock because it was just that.. LIVE! And, I am trying like crazy to keep it that way. You'll never get anywhere if you 'start over' everytime some problem comes up or something pokes it's little head out of the rocks.. Sometimes I just sigh and shake my head..

leeit2me · 12/13/2010, 09:36 AM

Hey, some people like to start out clean from the get-go.. I would do the same too, I nuke many live rocks with bleach,propane torch,boiling water,power pressure washer and then some. I don't want anything that aren't suppose to be in the rocks now and later have sleepless nights and busying asking forums and googling on how to get rid of this and that...pest..

Just NUKE it and you be a happy person and no sleepless nights.

zigzag1 · 12/13/2010, 10:30 AM

<----- happy person that sleeps well - and didn't nuke, boil, fry, bleach, implode my rock.

I think that part of the fun and 'magic' of live rock, and the reef, is what lives inside.

Sk8r · 12/13/2010, 10:34 AM

The ocean is a messy place. We call it 'life'.

I had 52 distinct species of hitchhikers on my live rock, including aiptasia, and the only one that ever caused any problem was caulerpa macroalgae.

12/12/2010, 05:44 PM	#1
00accordvtec Registered Member. Join Date: May 2010 Posts: 56	Bleaching rocks can someone tell me how to bleach live rock. Bought a nice size piece of rock and when i took it out of bag it was loaded with bristle worms trying to get to water.

12/12/2010, 05:49 PM	#2
Dustin1300 Reefaholic Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: Carmel, IN Posts: 5,135	I don't like the idea of using acid/bleach. Get some RO/DI water and boil __________________ INDMAS President Check out my tank in the Large Tank Forums, "A Reefaholic's 1000+ Gallon Mixed Reef System Build"! Current Tank Info: 600 Gallon DT, 140 Gallon Grow Out Tank, 125 Gallon Sump, 90 Gallon Fuge, 200 Gallon Fish QT, 15 Gallon Frag QT

12/12/2010, 05:56 PM	#4
Toddrtrex Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Carol Stream, IL Posts: 23,162	Why do you want to get rid of the bristleworms? They are great to have in the tank. __________________ Click my name and then "visit toddrtrex's homepage" for tank pictures Current Tank Info: 210g reef and 65g reef

12/12/2010, 06:12 PM	#6
Toddrtrex Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Carol Stream, IL Posts: 23,162	No, they are great part of a clean up crew. __________________ Click my name and then "visit toddrtrex's homepage" for tank pictures Current Tank Info: 210g reef and 65g reef

12/12/2010, 06:15 PM	#7
billdogg Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: Grove City, Ohio Posts: 10,806	Bristle worms are your friends. Why would you pay a premium for live rock and then kill it? If you are that worried, start with dry rock - it will slowly become live. In the end, you will still end up with bristle worms and a whole bunch of other neat stuff. Yes, there will be the occasional bad guy, but that is easy to deal with when it happens. __________________ I'll try to be nice if you try to be smarter! I can't help that I grow older, but you can't make me grow up! Current Tank Info: 120 mixed reef with 40b sump, RO 150 skimmer, AI Sol Blue x 2, and a 60g Frag Tank with 100g rubbermaid sump. 2 x Kessil A360w lights, BM curve 5 skimmer

12/12/2010, 05:50 PM	#3
00accordvtec Registered Member. Join Date: May 2010 Posts: 56	thats all i have to do is boil RO/DI? will the bristle worms die ?

12/12/2010, 05:57 PM	#5
00accordvtec Registered Member. Join Date: May 2010 Posts: 56	dont they kill things in the tank?

12/12/2010, 06:20 PM	#9
Sk8r RC Mod Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Spokane WA Posts: 34,628 Blog Entries: 55	I concur. Live rock is just that---full of stuff! 99.999% of it is good, and bristleworms are some of the best. __________________ Sk8r Salinity 1.024-6; alkalinity 8.3-9.3 on KH scale; calcium 420; magnesium 1300, temp 78-80, nitrate .2. Ammonia 0. No filters: lps tank. Alk and cal won't rise if mg is low. Current Tank Info: 105g AquaVim wedge, yellow tang, sailfin blenny,royal gramma, ocellaris clown pair, yellow watchman, 100 microceriths, 25 tiny hermits, a 4" conch, 1" nassarius, recovering from 2 year hiatus with daily water change of 10%.

12/12/2010, 06:56 PM	#10
bertoni RC Mod Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Mountain View, CA, USA Posts: 88,616	I wouldn't boil live rock under any circumstances. That sounds messy and smelly, and could send chemicals into the air. If you want dead rock, just let it dry out. __________________ Jonathan Bertoni

12/12/2010, 07:33 PM	#11
Preston7 Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2010 Posts: 73	I had a lapse in judgment and let some aiptaisia into my tank once. I broke down everything, bleached the rock, replaced the sand, replaced ALL the plumbing and started over. I didn't want to chance it with aiptasia and bleach was my only (And quick) guarantee! I just filled some trashcans with rock and tap water. I then added bleach (1/2 gallon bleach to each 40G trashcan). I used A LOT more bleach than you'd need, but it was worth it for me. THey ended up staying in there for a week..only intended for them to be in the for a day. I then rinsed them off with a hose and let them dry. Repeated that and they were good to go into a curing tank. I filled the tank with the rock and fresh saltwater. I then added a gallon of ammonia and let nature handle the rest. I started skimming after a week and it was pulling out some nastiness. When everything was clear, I added some live sand from a trusted source and, again, let nature do it's thing. I ended up with live rock that was pest free. It was a lot of work and a major expense, but well worth it, imo. Oh, and bristle worms are your friends.

12/13/2010, 01:41 AM	#12
E36328i Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Atascadero, California Posts: 241	Bristleworms are great, keep them! Glad to see the majority of the hobby is getting rid of the old philosophy about keeping your saltwater tank devoid of life just because it isn't aesthetically pleasing..

12/13/2010, 08:53 AM	#13
zigzag1 Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: Anderson, Indiana Posts: 1,276	Why do folks so quickly want to bleach, acid dip, boil or just plain kill thier rock until dead in the face?!? I bought my live rock because it was just that.. LIVE! And, I am trying like crazy to keep it that way. You'll never get anywhere if you 'start over' everytime some problem comes up or something pokes it's little head out of the rocks.. Sometimes I just sigh and shake my head.. __________________ :beer: Mixed Reef, started 10/2004: 6' BB 125g DT, 100lbs LR, 40g sump, Dual Ehiem 1000 returns, Eshopps dual overflow, JBJ ATO, Vertex IN-180, PM Ca reactor, 250w MH w/VHO Actinic, AC3 w/Aquasurf, Tunze 6105 pair & 40B frag tank 8 Fish, 20+ corals, shrimp, snails, worms, bugs, etc.

12/13/2010, 09:36 AM	#14
leeit2me Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: bklyn,ny Posts: 241	Hey, some people like to start out clean from the get-go.. I would do the same too, I nuke many live rocks with bleach,propane torch,boiling water,power pressure washer and then some. I don't want anything that aren't suppose to be in the rocks now and later have sleepless nights and busying asking forums and googling on how to get rid of this and that...pest.. Just NUKE it and you be a happy person and no sleepless nights.

12/13/2010, 10:30 AM	#15
zigzag1 Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: Anderson, Indiana Posts: 1,276	<----- happy person that sleeps well - and didn't nuke, boil, fry, bleach, implode my rock. I think that part of the fun and 'magic' of live rock, and the reef, is what lives inside. __________________ :beer: Mixed Reef, started 10/2004: 6' BB 125g DT, 100lbs LR, 40g sump, Dual Ehiem 1000 returns, Eshopps dual overflow, JBJ ATO, Vertex IN-180, PM Ca reactor, 250w MH w/VHO Actinic, AC3 w/Aquasurf, Tunze 6105 pair & 40B frag tank 8 Fish, 20+ corals, shrimp, snails, worms, bugs, etc.

12/13/2010, 10:34 AM	#16
Sk8r RC Mod Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Spokane WA Posts: 34,628 Blog Entries: 55	The ocean is a messy place. We call it 'life'. I had 52 distinct species of hitchhikers on my live rock, including aiptasia, and the only one that ever caused any problem was caulerpa macroalgae. __________________ Sk8r Salinity 1.024-6; alkalinity 8.3-9.3 on KH scale; calcium 420; magnesium 1300, temp 78-80, nitrate .2. Ammonia 0. No filters: lps tank. Alk and cal won't rise if mg is low. Current Tank Info: 105g AquaVim wedge, yellow tang, sailfin blenny,royal gramma, ocellaris clown pair, yellow watchman, 100 microceriths, 25 tiny hermits, a 4" conch, 1" nassarius, recovering from 2 year hiatus with daily water change of 10%.

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