Bleach curing?

[HenHouse]

Im setting up a new tank and I am going to bleach cure my pukani dry rock. Two questions since I have not done a bleach cure before.

1. Do I have to heat the water? Live in Wisconsin and want to do it in the attached garage which is approximately 45 degrees, no risk of freezing.

2. Do I have to circulate the water with a power head?

Want to bleach for a week and then rinse a few times the next week and aquascape the tank to cycle.

 

[Tallison]

Yes and yes to those questions though I'm sure you could get away with no heater. After they bleach for a week you need to the bleach evaporate in the sun for a week till it's totally dry and you don't get a bleach smell. After the 1 week bleach cure I threw it into a garbage can with a heater and power head to get some of the particles off

 

[Chris Wells]

I bleached 2 weeks with circulation. Then I did a quick mild acid bath with Muratic Acid in a big Brute tub and timed for 15 minutes.

Bleach gets rid of organics. I added Prime for a bit to bind the chlorine.

Acid bath strips a layer of rock off to limit phosphate leaching. I have heard of folks foregoing the acid bath. This is just what I did. Baking soda neutralizes the acid.

I am on my 11th week of cycle and my phosphates have been .03 solid the entire time.

Chris

 

[HenHouse]

I bleached 2 weeks with circulation. Then I did a quick mild acid bath with Muratic Acid in a big Brute tub and timed for 15 minutes.

Bleach gets rid of organics. I added Prime for a bit to bind the chlorine.

Acid bath strips a layer of rock off to limit phosphate leaching. I have heard of folks foregoing the acid bath. This is just what I did. Baking soda neutralizes the acid.

I am on my 11th week of cycle and my phosphates have been .03 solid the entire time.

Chris

After the acid how long did u wait or how may times did u rinse the rock?

 

[HenHouse]

Yes and yes to those questions though I'm sure you could get away with no heater. After they bleach for a week you need to the bleach evaporate in the sun for a week till it's totally dry and you don't get a bleach smell. After the 1 week bleach cure I threw it into a garbage can with a heater and power head to get some of the particles off

So u didn’t rinse in water after the bleach drying?

 

[Chris Wells]

After the acid how long did u wait or how may times did u rinse the rock?

Forgot, no heater in bleach, only circulation.

After you neutralize with baking soda, you don't have to wait. I rinsed and let dry a little, then aquascaped. Now, it took me a couple of weeks to add water and sand, so they were dry.

Here is a link when a bunch of us were discussing this.

https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/d...than-natural-cures-brstv-investigates.306360/

 

[Tallison]

So u didn’t rinse in water after the bleach drying?

Yeah I threw it in a trash can with some prime. I picked up some cheap chlorine strips to test it out after a week and it was fine. 100% water change then hust into RO. I used tap with bleach

 

[HenHouse]

Forgot, no heater in bleach, only circulation.

After you neutralize with baking soda, you don't have to wait. I rinsed and let dry a little, then aquascaped. Now, it took me a couple of weeks to add water and sand, so they were dry.

Here is a link when a bunch of us were discussing this.

https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/d...than-natural-cures-brstv-investigates.306360/

How long in the bleach? How long in the baking soda (what ratio for this also)?

 

[Chris Wells]

How long in the bleach? How long in the baking soda (what ratio for this also)?

I bleached 2 weeks in bins with powerheads that looked like below, drained. ( I think I used the 10:1 ratio)
Then, I added to Brute cans and refilled with tap, added half a bottle each of Prime for one night, drained. This is important because chlorinated water and acid will create a poisonous gas.
Then, I refilled with tap and did a 40:1 ratio of muratic acid bought at Lowes. Not the Green kind, it was blue labeled. I use the same stuff to lower ph in my hot tub...lol
I let it bubble like below for 15 minutes. Be sure to buy goggles, mask, and long gloves rated for this and skin covered. The vapors are bad for you....this is nasty stuff. Be safe.
Then, I added a whole box of baking soda and watched it stop bubbling.
Then, I added water hose and let it overflow a bit, then dumped.
Then, I let it dry a bit and added to sandless tank.

If the acid makes you nervous, stick with the bleach for at least 2 weeks.


Chris

 

[HenHouse]

Yeah I won’t do acid, but will bleach for two weeks then use prime. After prime I will let dry for a few days as I aquascape in display. Once I have the scale down I will fill the display with SW and start the tank cycle. Does that sound like a good plan?

How long with the prime and tap water?

 

[Tallison]

Yeah I won’t do acid, but will bleach for two weeks then use prime. After prime I will let dry for a few days as I aquascape in display. Once I have the scale down I will fill the display with SW and start the tank cycle. Does that sound like a good plan?

How long with the prime and tap water?

I would bleach for one, RO and Prime for one and then RO power head and heater for 1-2. Just depends on what kind of phosphate readings you're getting. I'd also remove any noticeable die off with a toothbrush and tweezers before hand

 

[HenHouse]

I would bleach for one, RO and Prime for one and then RO power head and heater for 1-2. Just depends on what kind of phosphate readings you're getting. I'd also remove any noticeable die off with a toothbrush and tweezers before hand

Ok thank u for all the advice!

 

[HenHouse]

I would bleach for one, RO and Prime for one and then RO power head and heater for 1-2. Just depends on what kind of phosphate readings you're getting. I'd also remove any noticeable die off with a toothbrush and tweezers before hand

Wait no power head with bleach or prime?

 

[Tallison]

No power head with bleach. I do it last so it can blast some of the particles off

 

[HenHouse]

Got the rock in bleach. Approx 40lbs of pukani and 2 large flat shelf pieces about 30lbs. 20 gallons of water and 2 gallons of bleach. You think a week or two?

 

[Tallison]

Only a week is necessary. If you feel it needs another bath then you can

 

[HenHouse]

Then prime with heater and pump for how long?

 

[Tallison]

Then prime with heater and pump for how long?

After a week of bleach cure, 100% water change and then into RO and prime for 1-2 with power head and heater. If you're getting a chlorine smell then dry it outside or under a heat lamp till it's no longer wet. After that I'd test phosphates then back into just RO with a power head and heater till you're ready or phosphates are low enough

 

[HenHouse]

After a week of bleach cure, 100% water change and then into RO and prime for 1-2 with power head and heater. If you're getting a chlorine smell then dry it outside or under a heat lamp till it's no longer wet. After that I'd test phosphates then back into just RO with a power head and heater till you're ready or phosphates are low enough

Awesome. I can keep it covered through this process right?

 

[Tallison]

I love my pukani by the way you made a great choice. If you plan on chiseling the rock id do that in between steps so the power head can do it's work on it in the container