How bad does curing LR really smell?

[sean_w_mcgrath]

I plan on getting 70 lbs of Tonga LR in a few weeks (shipped across the country) so there should be a good amount of die off.......and I plan on curing it in my tank which is right in my living room.

How bad is it gonna smell? Anything I can do to minimize the stench?

- Sean

 

[SeanT]

Depending on the life on the rock that is dead/dying (sponges etc.) it can get pretty rank.

 

[hyperfocal]

Great minds think alike.

 

[sean_w_mcgrath]

thanks hyperfocal!

 

[buzzer]

Like the bowels of hell

 

[danferd2002]

mime wasnt that bad, its in my house, and i can hardly smell it, just keep up with WC's

 

[NexDog]

I had quite alot of rock delivered a few weeks ago - maybe 100-150kg. Came in 3 big polystyrene boxes, rock was bagged in wet newspaper. Came from Okinawa so maybe was out the water 24-36 hours assuming it was shipped to the shop in water and kept in water there.

Stuck in a spare room in two big plastic tubs. I have to hold my breath when I go there. If it was in my living roon...hmm, forget it, just no way in hell. If I leave the windows open in there the wind blows the stench through the 2mm gap under the door and it stinks.

I've been adding a few pieces to my sump and tank every few days. It's an in-wall in my office. I've been careful but yesterday I seemed to hit a stink barrier and my office was smelling a bit just by the smell leaking through the tiny gap in the access doors.

All depends on how fresh the rock is but shipped across country, it's gonna stink. Do what I did and cure it in a few plastic boxes in a spare room if you have one. If not, find space in a porch or garage because you can't live with that stench. If it has to go in the living room, get containers with lids or something. Do anything to not live with the stink of rotting corpses.

 

[SaltyNovice]

I just put some LR in my new 120 from Int. Marine last Saturday the 5th. I thought mine smelled a bit, but nothing like these guys are saying. I'm not doubting their comments - just suprised mine is not that bad. Sure I can smell it - it's in my den. I notice it when I go into the Den from the Living Room, but it's not that bad in my estimation. It smells like something is rotting. Now if I smell the skimmer cup when I empty it - that will knock you to your knees nearly.

I don't want to hijack a thread, but does anyone know how long the ammonia will stay at 8+ppm? Mine is still pretty high and I was wondering if that would cause further "die off" and keep the cycle from completing?

Thanks for the insight.

SaltyNovice

 

[Blown 346]

You could do a small waterchange to help lower it. Yes a high level of ammonia can kill off good things.

 

[Boat Racer]

I cured around 50 lbs in my tank when I first set it up and it stunk up my house pretty bad for about two weeks.The detritus that fell after the die off for thre months was a nightmare.I had to baste every day and the sand bed got full of crap.You may want to heed this warning and cure out of the tank in a seperate tub or better yet cure them for a longer period (cooking if thats what you would rather call it) and get ridd of the detritus before going into the system.

 

[Beemo]

just curious but when does this smell start to develop?
i have mine for 5 days so far and the tank smells like nothing
when will the stink kick in? :rollface:

 

[NexDog]

I'm adding pieces to the skimmer section of my sump and skimming really wet too to hopefully skim out the crus at the source. Every two days I check the ammonia level in the main system and if it's still zero I add a bit more. Mainly because I want to keep as much life as possible and also minmise the die off the curing tubs. I've been doing 50% water changes there every two days and ammonia hasn't been too high but the stench is quite something.

I know the rock will be shedding in the main tank for a while but it's BB at the moment so I can siphon out easy and won't be adding sand for a while.

 

[NexDog]

pastina, probably won't then. I was getting a stench the day after I put it in water. If you get the LR from a shop then it's fully cured and you won't get any die-off. Only really applies to shipped rock or really fresh rock.

 

[Lyscer]

yeah I got my rock from int-marine as well and even though it was shipped overnight I had a ton of die-off and it smelt nasty. My wife almost made me get rid of the tank because she hated the smell so bad. I skimmed 24 hours and did water changes every other day. after a week or so it stopped stinking.... or I got use to it one of the two .

 

[Johnsteph10]

I was lucky this last time - I got about 400lbs from ReeferMadness and it never stank and a minimal cycle!

Other times, however,.....Carbon, Air Freshener.

Laurence is so right - cure it in a separate container and watch out for the smell.

 

[SaltyNovice]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6701171#post6701171 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Lyscer
yeah I got my rock from int-marine as well and even though it was shipped overnight I had a ton of die-off and it smelt nasty. My wife almost made me get rid of the tank because she hated the smell so bad. I skimmed 24 hours and did water changes every other day. after a week or so it stopped stinking.... or I got use to it one of the two .

Did you follow your ammonia readings? And how long and how high did they get?

Mine is running 8+ppm now since last Saturday and I'm beginning to wonder about more "die off". I'm doing the water changes every other day and I'm running my skimmer 24/7. I just thought the ammonia levels would start to drop some by now - :eek2: ? I'm a little concerned

SaltyNovice