How to clean & reuse sand

[Keith P]

I'm in the process of NUKING my live rock that is riddled with hydroids.

I would like to clean the sand. It's pretty new, but I fear it may contain some pests.

Any recommendations? I'd like to be able to leave the sand in the tank, but not a necessity.

 

[elegance coral]

Cleaning sand can be a pain, so you may want to simply buy new sand.

I have cleaned sand before by spreading it out on an old bed sheet to dry for several days. When it was completely dry, I put it in a pillow case, tied the end and rotated it. This causes the grains to grind together, breaking off detritus that's stuck to it. The detritus turns into a fine powder that's easily rinsed away.

 

[Keith P]

There is no detritus. It's a new tank (only a few weeks old). 120 lbs (UGH).

I'm between bleach, vinegar, or boiling water...

 

[darkdruid]

There's alot easier way. Freshwater. Drain the tank and refill it a couple of times with freshwater to make sure all the salt is flushed out, none of the saltwater pests can live in fresh. Let it run for a day or two to make sure everything is toast, then just add your salt and you're ready to go.

 

[Keith P]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=14763222#post14763222 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by darkdruid none of the saltwater pests can live in fresh.[/B]

Can any one confirm this? I believe I read in the archive that hydroids can survive a week in RO.