A regular box from the supermarket or a Costco sized one? How many gallons of muriatic acid had you used?
Rock reincarnation... beyond "cooking"
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A regular box from the supermarket or a Costco sized one? How many gallons of muriatic acid had you used?
kegogut
Active member
Ive got about 100 lbs of rock being acid washed as we speak. I skipped the bleach as I dont think it was needed. I'll add the baking soda after a few hours and rinse with tap and prolly let it dry inside for a few days.
I'm pretty excited as this will put me over 500 lbs. of rock for my system.
I'm pretty excited as this will put me over 500 lbs. of rock for my system.
reefermike1
New member
I got 100-150lbs of rock from a guy who was breaking his tank down about a week ago. It was nice rock but covered in Majanos. I let the rock dry in the garage until yesterday when after reading this thread filled up a 32gallon brute with most of the rock, added a mag18 and about 1:10 or stronger bleach ratio.
I'm about to start with the vinegar treatment as muriatic acid seems hard to find. I'm not in much of a hurry, I'm not ready to use it for a month or so and I'm off work all week for the holidays. Would a 1:10 vinegar ratio be sufficient if I left it in there for a day or so?
Also my plan is after the treatment and a proper rinse to let the rock cure in asw for a few weeks. Sorry for the newbie question here just trying to be sure... Bacteria will colonize as long as there is flow and a heater correct? There doesn't need to be a light source? My plan was to let it cure in the 32 gal brute with a heater and a pump and a piece of healthy LR in the dark until ready for use. Thanks.
I'm about to start with the vinegar treatment as muriatic acid seems hard to find. I'm not in much of a hurry, I'm not ready to use it for a month or so and I'm off work all week for the holidays. Would a 1:10 vinegar ratio be sufficient if I left it in there for a day or so?
Also my plan is after the treatment and a proper rinse to let the rock cure in asw for a few weeks. Sorry for the newbie question here just trying to be sure... Bacteria will colonize as long as there is flow and a heater correct? There doesn't need to be a light source? My plan was to let it cure in the 32 gal brute with a heater and a pump and a piece of healthy LR in the dark until ready for use. Thanks.
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moondoggy4
Team RC
Thanks for this thread I just did three little rocks for my 8 gallon cube tank. The rock is drying right now.
hotelbravo
Active member
very good read
I could never get phosphate down to zero despite stripping quite a few millimeters from my rocks with acid. Did seem to help some, but I only left the rocks in DI water for 24 hrs after "cooking", so it's possible that more phosphate would have "leached out" into the water if I had waited longer. Still, no nuisance algae on the affected rocks in my new tank (after >6 months).
Two things I can tell you with certainty.
1. This method will get rid of everything on the rock. No organism of any kind survived in the deep pores of the rock. YRMV, but also be aware that more porous rock gets eaten up much faster than "smooth" dry rock.
2. All of my powerhead impeller blades got eaten up. FUBAR'd.
Two things I can tell you with certainty.
1. This method will get rid of everything on the rock. No organism of any kind survived in the deep pores of the rock. YRMV, but also be aware that more porous rock gets eaten up much faster than "smooth" dry rock.
2. All of my powerhead impeller blades got eaten up. FUBAR'd.
Dissolving the surface layer will remove any PO4 bound there.
However,as aragonite crystals dissolve they release and or expose sunk PO4 trapped in the crystal structure ; the amount will depend on the rock and when and where it was formed in terms of phosphate concentrations in the sea it came from at a particular time.
After the acid wash, curing the rock in clean slat water ,testing for PO4 after a couple of days can help determine if the treated rock will leach from the new surface.
If it does ,treating the water with lanthanum chloride or gfo will push equilibration along ending the leaching in a week or two in most cases.
However,as aragonite crystals dissolve they release and or expose sunk PO4 trapped in the crystal structure ; the amount will depend on the rock and when and where it was formed in terms of phosphate concentrations in the sea it came from at a particular time.
After the acid wash, curing the rock in clean slat water ,testing for PO4 after a couple of days can help determine if the treated rock will leach from the new surface.
If it does ,treating the water with lanthanum chloride or gfo will push equilibration along ending the leaching in a week or two in most cases.
kegogut
Active member
You'll be fine.
