Vinger bath and aqua aquascaping

[rennne39]

I was wanting to know how to do a vinegar bath so I can reuse my rock from my tank which has been just sitting in a container for almost a year, when I shut it down I also want to know if it is ok to sit the rock straight on the live sand when I put it back in the tank

[Oldreeferman]

If that rock is dead old "used" live rock that is used but was not cleaned id do a HCL (Muratic acid) bath with it first to clean it up like new in box dry rock. You would want to dilute the HCL with water, sit a few days then rinse it with clean water and making the final rinse with RO or distilled water. Then when your certain its squeaky clean & rinsed then place it in the tank. This way no die off to pollute tank & grow bacteria & algae blooms out of control minimizing your cycle time.

Far as placement before or after depends on the live stock you plan to keep, if anything that is burrowing is planned like a Goby or Pistol shrimp etc.. then its best to glue the rocks down or place them on a small grate sitting on the glass then place them finally placing substrate in after so no chance of the rocks getting tunneled under causing rocks to shift or worse drop or fall causing damage.

Vinegar is best used for cleaning off calcium & encrusting coralline algae on used equipment when doing matinance. The HCL would clean a rock like new again much better then vinegar, just work with it outside & use safety glasses & rubber gloves.

[Oldreeferman]

Originally Posted by Oldreeferman

If that rock is dead old "used" live rock but was not cleaned id do a HCL (Muratic acid) bath with it first to clean it up like new in box dry rock. You would want to dilute the HCL with water, sit a few days then rinse it with clean water and making the final rinse with RO or distilled water. Then when your certain its squeaky clean & rinsed then place it in the tank. This way no die off to pollute tank & grow bacteria & algae blooms out of control minimizing your cycle time.

Far as placement before or after depends on the live stock you plan to keep, if anything that is burrowing is planned like a Goby or Pistol shrimp etc.. then its best to glue the rocks down or place them on a small grate sitting on the glass then place them, finally placing substrate in after so no chance of the rocks getting tunneled under causing rocks to shift or worse drop or fall causing damage.

Vinegar is best used for cleaning off calcium & encrusting coralline algae on used equipment when doing matinance. The HCL would clean a rock like new again much better then vinegar, just work with it outside & use safety glasses & rubber gloves.

[Reef_rookies]

Hello
I was just wondering where would i purchase that solution to clean live rock?
Thanks

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[mcgyvr]

Originally Posted by Reef_rookies

Hello
I was just wondering where would i purchase that solution to clean live rock?
Thanks

By "that solution" do you mean Muriatic Acid?
If so its available at any Hardware Store near the concrete or pool cleaning supplies.
Make sure you are very aware of the cautions/procedures that should be followed when working with it.

I have always just given old/stored rock a simple rinse with a power washer in the driveway and into the tank it goes..

Muriatic acid is useful if you know the rocks have phosphate bound up in them.

[rennne39]

Originally Posted by Oldreeferman

If that rock is dead old "used" live rock that is used but was not cleaned id do a HCL (Muratic acid) bath with it first to clean it up like new in box dry rock. You would want to dilute the HCL with water, sit a few days then rinse it with clean water and making the final rinse with RO or distilled water. Then when your certain its squeaky clean & rinsed then place it in the tank. This way no die off to pollute tank & grow bacteria & algae blooms out of control minimizing your cycle time.

Far as placement before or after depends on the live stock you plan to keep, if anything that is burrowing is planned like a Goby or Pistol shrimp etc.. then its best to glue the rocks down or place them on a small grate sitting on the glass then place them finally placing substrate in after so no chance of the rocks getting tunneled under causing rocks to shift or worse drop or fall causing damage.

Vinegar is best used for cleaning off calcium & encrusting coralline algae on used equipment when doing matinance. The HCL would clean a rock like new again much better then vinegar, just work with it outside & use safety glasses & rubber gloves.

Do I need a power head in the water while I am using the acid or heater

[lolgranny]

Originally Posted by Oldreeferman

If that rock is dead old "used" live rock that is used but was not cleaned id do a HCL (Muratic acid) bath with it first to clean it up like new in box dry rock. You would want to dilute the HCL with water, sit a few days then rinse it with clean water and making the final rinse with RO or distilled water. Then when your certain its squeaky clean & rinsed then place it in the tank. This way no die off to pollute tank & grow bacteria & algae blooms out of control minimizing your cycle time.

Far as placement before or after depends on the live stock you plan to keep, if anything that is burrowing is planned like a Goby or Pistol shrimp etc.. then its best to glue the rocks down or place them on a small grate sitting on the glass then place them finally placing substrate in after so no chance of the rocks getting tunneled under causing rocks to shift or worse drop or fall causing damage.

Vinegar is best used for cleaning off calcium & encrusting coralline algae on used equipment when doing matinance. The HCL would clean a rock like new again much better then vinegar, just work with it outside & use safety glasses & rubber gloves.

You don’t need to let it sit for a few days in the acid bath. You’re just etching the outside of the roch and getting all of the organic off the outer layer. A 20min bath and you’ll be fine. Neutralize with baking soda.

Rinse well , over and over. I let them sit in rodi for a while. Then I did a bleach bath to kill anything else still on the rock. A couple more rinses and let it air dry and you’re good to go. Brand new rock


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[rennne39]

Here is what the rock looks like