do you think using acid would be better,going to do it this morning.didnt have time yesterday.or are you talking about rinsing it with acid?
thanks randy
thanks randy
Bleach vs Acid
- Thread starter bheron
- Start date
No acid in the bleach (that's dangerous). The acid is a separate step to remove any phosphate deposits on the live rock by dissolving away the outer layer of the rock.
no,no..im not mixing.i use acid at work to cut the grout haze.for me soaking my LR because of aiptasia outbrake do i need to acid soak or do you think bleaching it would work fine?
Bleaching will kill all of the aiptasia. 
im starting to take all the LR out now,do you think it would be easier to soak in acid then bleach?besides smell how will i know all the bleach is off the bleach after treatment?
after soaking in bleach,you mentioned rinsing with acid,what does that accomplish?
sorry about the crazy questions,i just want to get this right
after soaking in bleach,you mentioned rinsing with acid,what does that accomplish?
sorry about the crazy questions,i just want to get this right
bheron
Active member
hi all, wanted to give an update at least a week after I soaked my LOR in bleach.
- I soaked about 150lbs in 30 gallons of water and 3 gallons of clorox bleach (10:1 ratio).
- It seemed like after a few days it lost its power. this was confirmed by the experts in the above posts. So I decided to run it through the process one more time.
- So last night (over a week after first starting) I took all the LR out and emptied the tub. I was surprised to find the water was very murky/dirty and a ton of residue at the bottom. I think this was sand-like material. But the water was defintiely dirty.
- As I examined the rock some of it looked very white, some had pinkish dots on it. and then others still brownish. This surprised me too. I expected to see all white rock. It seemed like the LR on the bottom of the tub didn't get as clean as the LR at the top.
Anyway, last night I emptied it all out, filled it up with fresh RODI and 3 more gallons of bleach. I'm expecting to see a difference when I check it tonight.
Oh, and if I can find some muriatic acid, I think I'll run it thought that one time as well.
- I soaked about 150lbs in 30 gallons of water and 3 gallons of clorox bleach (10:1 ratio).
- It seemed like after a few days it lost its power. this was confirmed by the experts in the above posts. So I decided to run it through the process one more time.
- So last night (over a week after first starting) I took all the LR out and emptied the tub. I was surprised to find the water was very murky/dirty and a ton of residue at the bottom. I think this was sand-like material. But the water was defintiely dirty.
- As I examined the rock some of it looked very white, some had pinkish dots on it. and then others still brownish. This surprised me too. I expected to see all white rock. It seemed like the LR on the bottom of the tub didn't get as clean as the LR at the top.
Anyway, last night I emptied it all out, filled it up with fresh RODI and 3 more gallons of bleach. I'm expecting to see a difference when I check it tonight.
Oh, and if I can find some muriatic acid, I think I'll run it thought that one time as well.
i also soaked my LR for about 20hrs now,it nice and clean.
my qustion is how long do i soak it in acid and do i need to dechlorinate first before acid?
i am going to run freash bleach 1 more time,just thinking ahead
my qustion is how long do i soak it in acid and do i need to dechlorinate first before acid?
i am going to run freash bleach 1 more time,just thinking ahead
bryan,you can get acid at lowes/home depot in gardening where the pool stuff is....how that helps
bheron
Active member
doug - you sometimes can. i used to but cant find it anymore. i just went to my local swimming pool suppply store and found it there. it used to be called muriatic acid but i think its correctly called hydrochloric acid. they had it stored in the back b/c its pretty dangerous to handle.
i'm going to dose it in the next day or so. figure a 1:10 ratio with water? let it go for 24 hours?
i'm going to dose it in the next day or so. figure a 1:10 ratio with water? let it go for 24 hours?
do you still need to decholinate the rock,or will the acid do that too?
gwenvet
Premium Member
Hi guys, Im joining you in the bleaching party. I've had 100lbs of LR in a tub in my basement now for 8 weeks to try to get rid of the algae and it's just not going away, so I'm going to bleach it. Don't think I have enough bleach to do it tonight but I'll be heading to the grocery store tomorrow! Will go in search of Muriatic acid and Drayno too (to neutralize the bleach, or is it the acid, or both??).
Happy bleaching...
Happy bleaching...
HighlandReefer
Team RC
Muriatic acid is for removing items like phosphate built up in your rock. The bleach will kill many of the pests like that algae you have. It may take several bleaching and cleanings of your rock to completely rid it of the organics on it.
Perhaps using a chlorine remover found at your LFS can make sure the bleach is completely gone.
Perhaps using a chlorine remover found at your LFS can make sure the bleach is completely gone.
gwenvet
Premium Member
I decided to just get it started and added a gallon of bleach to the 20 gal or so of salt water the rock was in. Tomorrow I'll pump that out and add new bleach to tap water. Can't wait to be done with this.
After it's all rinsed, how long do you all think we should let the rock seed with bacteria so that we don't get a cycle when we put it in the DT? Please Randy, don't say 4-6 weeks!
After it's all rinsed, how long do you all think we should let the rock seed with bacteria so that we don't get a cycle when we put it in the DT? Please Randy, don't say 4-6 weeks!
therealfatman
In Memoriam
IMO Bleach is best used as a disinfectant not a cleaner as you need too much chlorine to break down all the organics with chlorine alone and then you have to get rid of the chlorine. The chlorine remover typically available at LFS is quite diluted and it would likely take a half dozen bottles or more to actually neutralize a full gallon of bleach. The sodium thiosulfate sold at an LFS is diluted to dilute chlorine concentrations of residual chlorine in tap water. Residual chlorine is down around 0.02 ppm. The concentration of chlorine typically needed before you can smell it is 3.5 ppm.
There is very little in the way of organics that can stand up to what is referred to as acid/base washs. Muriactic acid or bleach is the acid. Sodium Hydroxide (Draino) is the base. The problem with an acids is it dissolves live rock. A mild chlorine soak, followed by short dips in strong acid, followed by immediate dips or short soaks in the base will remove everything without the worries of large residual amounts of chlorine.
You definitely need gloves and eye protection when working with strong acids and strong bases though. 100 pounds of live rock should be an easy evening chore. Myself I would only use a half cup to a cup of chlorine and let the acid and base do the work. It is a simple matter of testing for a ph of 7 and adjusting with a base or acis to a pH of 7 for your final soak/rinse. A quart of Muriatic acid and a can of Draino is pretty cheap in comparison to a bunch of dilute bottles of sodium thiosulfate. Or you use lots of chlorine after many, many, many copious rinsings then air your coral in the sun for a week or so until quite a while after the smell of bleach is completely gone and not worry about acid and base washs.
There is very little in the way of organics that can stand up to what is referred to as acid/base washs. Muriactic acid or bleach is the acid. Sodium Hydroxide (Draino) is the base. The problem with an acids is it dissolves live rock. A mild chlorine soak, followed by short dips in strong acid, followed by immediate dips or short soaks in the base will remove everything without the worries of large residual amounts of chlorine.
You definitely need gloves and eye protection when working with strong acids and strong bases though. 100 pounds of live rock should be an easy evening chore. Myself I would only use a half cup to a cup of chlorine and let the acid and base do the work. It is a simple matter of testing for a ph of 7 and adjusting with a base or acis to a pH of 7 for your final soak/rinse. A quart of Muriatic acid and a can of Draino is pretty cheap in comparison to a bunch of dilute bottles of sodium thiosulfate. Or you use lots of chlorine after many, many, many copious rinsings then air your coral in the sun for a week or so until quite a while after the smell of bleach is completely gone and not worry about acid and base washs.
thanx so much for your help thrrealfatman,
as for dipping,how long would you say for acid and base?
im done with the bleach soak.
thank you again
as for dipping,how long would you say for acid and base?
im done with the bleach soak.
thank you again
hey gumby,testing ph is for acid base soak,is this how you got your 40 post in the last to years...
anyway,bheron how is it going?im doing acid dip today.i was able to get some realy good LR to seed this rock after treatment is done.
thanx to everyone that has helped through the process
:smokin:
anyway,bheron how is it going?im doing acid dip today.i was able to get some realy good LR to seed this rock after treatment is done.
thanx to everyone that has helped through the process
:smokin:
bheron
Active member
i was planning on doing my acid dip last night but couldnt get to it. another day in bleach!
- what ratio are you using to dip? 10:1 water to acid?
- are you going to rinse in water afterwards or let it dry first. I know water and acid dont go well together.
- are we assuming the acid will remove the chlorine left over from the bleach?
im going to use a decholinator first(i have tons of the stuff for our kio pond)then ill rinse really good with clean water.
not sure if im going to let it dry or do i a acid dip
not sure if im going to let it dry or do i a acid dip
