Live Rock right for the 3rd time

[CSS Reef]

I've done this 3 seperate times and trying to cleaner each time.

1st time (1998): Bought Live Rock with the most growth and lifeforms I could find. Along with DSB, lead to nuisance algae, diatom blooms, aiptasia, flatworms etc, even with regular water changes.

2nd time (2002). Purchase "cured" rock, let it sit in my tank 2 months with DSB, siphoned as much detritus as possible on regular basis until diatom blooms were gone. Aiptasia eventually followed, along with, majano anemones.


3rd time (current) I want to cure my live rock in the most controlled way on my newest setup possible to avoid nuisance algae, aiptasia, bristle worms, mantis shrimp, majano anemones etc....

I want an almost sterile environment as possible. Basically just want the bacteria for filtration and will be running BB for SPS tank. I am over all of the "critters" since I am no longer running a DSB

So what method would some suggest. I am thnking of "cooking" my live rock as shown on earlier threads for a few weeks until detritus hardly falls off. Then dipping each section of live rock in cold saltwater to displace any remaing critters. Anthonny Calfo spoke at a local even stating that anemones including aiptasia, majano will jump right off the rock if submerged in cold water (few degrees cooler than ambient). Next would be to aquascape and cure in tank for another month siphoning remaing detrittus with short light period and supplement with alk/calcium to stimulate coralling growth. If tank is too sterile to even fuel coralline then I can add some sodium nitrate to give a little nutrient "kick"?? Thoughts?

Then livestock.....

 

[LBCBJ]

Why not try the new man-made "aquacultured" live rock. Live rock has always been the only cause of heart-ache in my tanks, so doubt I will ever try it again. With all the bad macroalgae, aiptaisa, crabs, shrimps that come with the rock, I could honestly care less how much "good life" is on the rock anymore.

 

[CSS Reef]

Totally agree Brent. BUt isnt the aquacultured rock "seeded" in the ocean as well? Same critter problems right?

 

[Frankysreef]

aiptasia will die, or just not grow if your tank becomes nutrient free. But you need to create an ecosystem....

Leave the rock without any animals for 4-5 mos, just live rock, and lights.

It sounds like you have husbandry problems.

I started this hobby with fresh live rock off a plane 7 yrs ago.. and never had to cook my rock, and never had a serious algae problem...

Strain your food of all juices before u add to the tank, and hook up a good skimmer ( or 2 ) and run activated carbon 24 7..

then slowly add fishes

 

[LBCBJ]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7992131#post7992131 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by 481824
Totally agree Brent. BUt isnt the aquacultured rock "seeded" in the ocean as well? Same critter problems right?

That's true, but I still feel it's a much safer choice. The amount of life that can colonize it in 18 months has to be far less than would be on the naturally occuring rock

 

[LBCBJ]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7992220#post7992220 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Frankysreef
aiptasia will die, or just not grow if your tank becomes nutrient free. But you need to create an ecosystem....

Leave the rock without any animals for 4-5 mos, just live rock, and lights.

It sounds like you have husbandry problems.

I started this hobby with fresh live rock off a plane 7 yrs ago.. and never had to cook my rock, and never had a serious algae problem...

Strain your food of all juices before u add to the tank, and hook up a good skimmer ( or 2 ) and run activated carbon 24 7..

then slowly add fishes

My 18g nano is only 3 months old and is already suffering from a horrendus macroalgae outbreak (over 7 types of macroalgaes), yet I have a $500 Deltec MCE600 skimmer rated for 200g and a TLF Phosban reactor running 3 times the recommended amount of Rowaphos and carbon 24/7 along with 25% weekly water changes with RO/DI and TM salt. No nitrates, no phosphates. I spend more than 10 hours a week doing maintainance...I don't think I have husbandry problems, just bad *** luck

 

[Bebo77]

i left my rock in straight rodi water for 2 weeks to kill everything off... then i put it in my tank and let it cycle for 3 months before adding anything.. i never had to worry about any unwanted creatures....

 

[Letmegrow]

If you do cook it you have to get out of the habit of calling it live rock

Never in my 6+ years of SW experience have I seen majano anemones come from live rock.

They have always come from newly imported corals and mainly from spreading them via used live rock passed around by hobbyist.

I like extended curing but not cooking it. You have a hard time getting bacteria to start in new tanks.

 

[VCoo71]

"If you do cook it you have to get out of the habit of calling it live rock "

who told you this?

charlie

 

[trottman]

cooking it would mean that you kill basically everything in it doesnt it?

if there is nothing living in the rock then you cant call it live rock. but you can call it dead rock.

 

[VCoo71]

no...it doesnt require an an oven......

cooking doesnt kill pods,sponges,bacteria......it didnt even kill all my star polyps or mushrooms ....and i cooked mine for 3 months!!

charlie

 

[Ben]

If you are so worried just start with plain argonite rock like reef rocks from caribsea. Nothing wrong there and no problems getting bacteria to grow in saltwater!?

Add a piece of cocktail shrimp and saltwater with the reef rock and youll be fine. If you want you can add some coraline algea scrappings but it wouldnt be needed.....

 

[Acronana06]

I would just buy dead rock as i call it I did some research and picked out a beautiful desert stone that Ive used for over 6 years in my tank its now covered in coraline and still has the orange color showing through in some places make sure if u decide to go this route that you research the rocks first so you can make sure they won't leach anything into your water like phosphates or metals

 

[trottman]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7993942#post7993942 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by VCoo71
no...it doesnt require an an oven......

cooking doesnt kill pods,sponges,bacteria......it didnt even kill all my star polyps or mushrooms ....and i cooked mine for 3 months!!

charlie

i usually just boil it in a large pot over an open fire. never heard of a oven being used....???

you must have had a big open fire to cook for 3 months straight! you much be an experianced cooker also.

 

[CSS Reef]

The problem I see in the past is that all live rock is not the same. Some have tremendous luck with live rock they have received on particular shipments that are generally clean and nuisance free. You can use RO/DI, slowly stock, skim wet, water change and bring nutrients down it can starve any nuisance macroalgae to the point where macroalgae in your refugium does not even grow. I have done this in the past and when i used to run a refugium with caulerpa. Just withered away due to low nutrients. Still had flatworms and aiptasia. That just laughed at Joe's juice...

I want to take any of these unknowns out of the equation for long term success. This is the only reason for my questioning methods of curing live rock.

"Cooking" is just term coined in reef forums for curing live rock in bins with no light any doing regular dunking and swishing to rid rock of detritus and unwanted macro. No oven involved. Rock is still live because of the bacteria still living on the rock.

 

[kkenn]

Hi

After I cook my rocks three months, I use a very powerful water jet clean the rock surface with salt water,u cannot imagine how many muds loose from them,after that I start my tank the other day and add corals and fish,until now is six months my rock is very clean and theres no aglae and apltasia problem occur

Ken

 

[Letmegrow]

It depends on who is using the term,
Some people use RO water and turn the heat up and then throw it into saltwater with no lights for a month or two.

Others simply cure it longer the old fashion way.

 

[CSS Reef]

kken- thanks for the response your tank looks great. I see no accumulation of detritus on your sandbed. How long did it take for the coralline algae to come back?

 

[Wiskey]

Cooking does not require any heat!!!! Cooking is a term for leaving rock in the dark curing with 100% water changes at a minimum weekly while dunking and swishing the rocks in a series of buckets every week.

I would not get aquacultured rock, it is nowhere near as pourus and it is land based rock. I would get very good quality real live rock and cook it. In a BB tank the quality of the LR is more important, not quantity (I like very little rock accually) but quality.

Whiskey

 

[kkenn]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7996794#post7996794 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by 481824
kken- thanks for the response your tank looks great. I see no accumulation of detritus on your sandbed. How long did it take for the coralline algae to come back?

They come back after two months,