question about base rock & cleaning an empty tank

[grendl]

I got some base rock months & months ago. I put it in a rubbermaid container with tapwater & have had it sitting in the dark with some powerheads for months.... Before I would put them in my tank, should I let the rocks air dry, or would they be ok to add directly?

Now my tank is not quite ready yet... I still need to run some plumbing, but I would like to start filling it, but the inside REALLY needs cleaned out first. Its got old tank residue in it, as well as just being dirty from sitting empty for so long. What would you all recommend for cleaning out the crap on the inside, as well as cleaning the glass in & out of grit & dirt? I figure I could just go at it with some paper towels, but wanted to get some tips from you guys on it, so I might be able to do it right once, instead of wrong several times.

 

[firefish2020]

If it's in SW I would think it would be fine as is. If you want to set it up dry sure let it dry out in the sun. I know when I get to setting up my 180 eventually I plan on setting it up with dry rock or damp and taking my time getting it to look right before I put any water in.

Yep scrape it down use some vinegar and water to loosen up and Ca deposits and rinse it out many many times.

Should be fine.

 

[mcox33]

when cleaning old tanks, I usually clean them with water and a razorblade for the hard to remove spots. Then just to make sure that I kill anything unwanted that might still be there I use straight bleach on a papertowel. Then rinse about a thousand times. Then fill it up and over declorinate. Let it sit for an hour or so and pump the water out. Then I set it up where I want it and fill it.

 

[grendl]

Thanks for the responses!

Ron, its not in SW, its in just plain tapwater.

 

[firefish2020]

yeh may as well let it dry good, thats the wrong kind of bacteria growing on it now. Either way it will cycle out your tank if you put it in wet SW would have just been a bit quicker IMO.

 

[WVfishguy]

I had tough time with rock which had been kept in high-phosphate water. This was "lace rock." It had adsorbed (absorbed?) so many nitrates it kept leaching them back into the water - even though I used RO water. I'd test the water you're soaking the base rock in for phosphates. A high phosphate reading can really screw up your inverts.
I've cleaned a bunch of old tanks these past 40 years.
For salt tanks, I use a sponge and bucket of warm tap water. Coraline algae comes off with a heavy-duty razorblade (BE CAREFUL!) and hard work. Sometimes I use vinegar. Rinse the tank out thoroughly with RO / distilled water, and you should be ok.
On two occasions, I did exactly what Mary said. There was so much algae on the glass of two 75 gallon tanks I could not scrape it all out. Had to fill them with a strong bleach solution, then rinse, over-dechlorinate, etc.

 

[grendl]

Thanks for the tips. I will have to get a phosphate test kit. This stuff has been soaking for several months now, only topped off one time. I put it in there originally just to get the loose detritus swept off. Its been in the dark the entire time, didnt really care about bacterial growth on it.

Living in Charleston, I imagine my nitrate levels in the water out of the tap are fine..... Phosphates though... I have no clue on what tapwater has in regards to those bad lads.

 

[WVfishguy]

I could not get inverts to thrive until I eliminated phosphates. Steven Pro told me (on a thread) that water treatment facilities put organophosphate in the water to prevent plumbing corrosion. I highly recommend Salifert kits.

 

[firefish2020]

I have seen new tanks go nuts after old rock was put into them, usually it was lace rock as well. I wonder if thats what happened in those cases?

 

[grendl]

Boy I sure hope that the rock isnt loaded down with phosphates!!!! ARGH!!! Its not lace rock, its white reef rock that was shipped up from florida (reeferrocks.com). So if its been tainted its by my own hand... stupid hand!

 

[phljess]

You can also dillute some muratic acid and use it to clean calcium deposits off of tanks. I have also read it can be dilluted and use in cooking old rock. It is suppose to bind with phosphates and copper. you could ask Randy in the chemistry forum and he would give you some ideas on how to get your rock straightened out.

Btw, I do not see any real reason to rinse out a tank tons of times if you have only used a strong bleach solution in it. I would think if you rinsed it a couple times and let it dry, it would be adequate. You also should not need to dechlorinate it as long as you wait a couple days before you use it. Chlorine will evaporate out of water in less than 48 hours.