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150 gal Custom. Born 5/7/07. 50gal, 29gal, 20gal Sumps. 30gal Frag Tank. ETSS 800 Skimmer, Deltec APF600 Skimmer. PFO Solaris Lighting on Display and Frag Tank
I prefer to cure LR outside of the tank you will be using it in. A large, round, rubbermaid trash can works well. Be sure to cure the container first. All you need in it is a heater and a powerhead or two.
Fill the trash can with SW, add the heater, powerheads, and LR. Then wait until the ammonia and nitrite have spiked and gone back to 0.
Now it's safe to add the LR to the tank, and you'll be leaving all the nitrates behind. Discard the water used to cure the LR.
I agree but if you are going the way Dave mentions then here is a little more information which might be a helpful. Simple and easy instructions for your use.
Place the live rock in a new 30-gallon plastic garbage can. Consider adding bottom drains to the container to speed draining and water changes.
Completely cover the rock with freshly mixed saltwater, with a specific gravity of 1.021 - 1.025.
Use a heater and keep the water temperature near 80 degrees to speed die off.
Provide constant water movement with a power head or air stone.
Keep the area dimly lit to prevent algae blooms.
Perform 100% water changes twice weekly.
Gently scrub the rock with a new nylon bristle brush or toothbrush between water changes to remove any white film or dead material.
When the water conditions stabilize and ammonia and nitrite tests are zero, the rock is ready to be placed into the display aquarium.
Gently scrub the rock with a new nylon bristle brush or toothbrush between water changes to remove any white film or dead material.
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I agree with the post Gecko made, except for the two above items.
While curing live rock in a large plastic trash can, I do not recommend you change water, this will only lengthen the process. You want that large ammonia spike and nitrite spike to get get things going. You will discard this water later anyway.
If you do cure the live rock in the main tank, you should make a 100% water change after the rock is cured. This is done to remove the nitrates created as part of the curing process.
If there is a huge amount of die off, you may wish to make a partial water change to get the smell down. Yes, during the curing process it can smell rather bad.
I don't recommend scrubbing live rock. You will scrub off a lot of what you want, including the bacteria film. Just take the rock and swish it around in the water, getting the loose stuff off. If there is a lot of loose material, like the rock looks like it's covered in cotton, you can do this in a small bucket, so you don't have all the unwanted "glop" in the main curing container.
Since I'll be curing some live rock in the next month, I figured I'd ask now before I got to that point. I'm starting a new 90g tank off with sand, rocks, etc. My idea is to use 80 pounds of aragonite and mix in 10 lbs of live sand with it. I'm going to get 100 lbs. of "cured" live rock from my LFS.
The thing I don't know is this. Should I cure the live rock in the tank or in a new trash can? If I do cure the rock in the tank should I set it on top of the sand or should I leave the tank bare bottom? The LFS guy says it's a good idea to cure the rock with the sand in the tank as the sand will pick up some beneficial bacteria from the rock. I'm afraid the sand will get too "dirty" and will lead to problems later on.
Truthfully I'd rather cure it in the trashcan in the garage because I'm afraid my house will smell like a morgue if it's cured in the tank, but I'm also concerned about the plastics leaching into the water with the rock. My guess is it's just better to do it in the tank.
One last question. Is 80lbs. of sand too much? I've been reading at numerous sites that a 3/4" layer of sand is better than a thicker layer. I know that a bare bottom is supposedly better still but there's NO way I want a bare bottom tank!
Since you are getting cured live rock from your LFS, and it's a new tank setup, it's fine to let it cure in the tank. If you maintain circulation, it shouldn't smell bad.
Note that this only applies to cured live rock purchased locally. It's a bit different if you are using uncured rock, or have it shipped in. Even so it should never smell that bad once you get it in the tank. It could smell when you open the box.
As for the sand, you don't have the right amount. Either use just enough sand to cover the bottom, about 1/2 to 3/4 an inch, or got with a 4" deep sand bed. If you go with the later you'll need a total of about 200-250 lbs of sand. IOW, you want a lot less sand or a lot more sand.
curing new live rock??
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