Cleaning Aragonite after velvet

[Jay Williams]

Hey everyone I had a recent velvet outbreak killed all my fish etc. I’ve decided to restart I’ve thoroughly cleaned the rock and it’s now outside drying. However the aragonite substrate, I put it all into buckets and left it to dry outside for 48. I then put it back into my tank a few hours ago but my dummy forgot to rinse it. Can parasites like ich and velvet survive in completely dry substrate? Or will I need to rinse the aragonite with bleach or freshwater? Super irritated

 

[Jay Hemdal Verified Community Expert]

Hey everyone I had a recent velvet outbreak killed all my fish etc. I’ve decided to restart I’ve thoroughly cleaned the rock and it’s now outside drying. However the aragonite substrate, I put it all into buckets and left it to dry outside for 48. I then put it back into my tank a few hours ago but my dummy forgot to rinse it. Can parasites like ich and velvet survive in completely dry substrate? Or will I need to rinse the aragonite with bleach or freshwater? Super irritated

If you didn't rinse the rock with FW first, it probably didn't dry enough (salt is very hydroscopic, so it doesn't dry fully).

I would rinse it well and then soak it in tap water for 24 hours.

Jay

 

[Jay Williams]

If you didn't rinse the rock with FW first, it probably didn't dry enough (salt is very hydroscopic, so it doesn't dry fully).

I would rinse it well and then soak it in tap water for 24 hours.

Jay

No no the rock is done rinsed with FW and bleach, it’s the aragonite that hasn’t been rinsed with FW I just left it to dry outside after taking it out of the tank

 

[Lost in the Sauce]

Is the velvet outbreak the reason you dried your rock or were you having other issues you couldn't solve?

 

[Jay Williams]

Is the velvet outbreak the reason you dried your rock or were you having other issues you couldn't solve?

No it was simply just the velvet outbreak that got me to start over

 

[Jay Hemdal Verified Community Expert]

No no the rock is done rinsed with FW and bleach, it’s the aragonite that hasn’t been rinsed with FW I just left it to dry outside after taking it out of the tank

Sorry - I meant the gravel....same issue applies.

Jay

 

[Jay Williams]

Sorry - I meant the gravel....same issue applies.

Jay

Yeah that’s what I thought, oh well at least it’s dry now all I have to do it’s rinse it and let it dry again lol, any suggestions on cleaning the filters? Maybe run the two canister filters through a bleach bath? Not sure what to do with those

 

[Lost in the Sauce]

No it was simply just the velvet outbreak that got me to start over

Oh boy. That was an unnecessary step homie. Leaving the tank fishless for a period of time. Eradicates all trace of the parasite in the tank. You are now essentially restarting your tank by losing the efficacy of your live rock through the bacterial biome. Drying the rock is a nuclear option.

 

[Jay Williams]

Oh boy. That was an unnecessary step homie. Leaving the tank fishless for a period of time. Eradicates all trace of the parasite in the tank. You are now essentially restarting your tank by losing the efficacy of your live rock through the bacterial biome. Drying the rock is a nuclear option.

I know I just didn’t feel like waiting the fallow period, and I suppose I did have a few algae issues but that could’ve been resolved, I don’t mind restarting and letting the tank cycle again

 

[Jay Hemdal Verified Community Expert]

Yeah that’s what I thought, oh well at least it’s dry now all I have to do it’s rinse it and let it dry again lol, any suggestions on cleaning the filters? Maybe run the two canister filters through a bleach bath? Not sure what to do with those

Bleach works very well, but it is tricky. Finding bleach now days that doesn't have surfactants or other additives is difficult. then, you don't want to dose too high or too low.

Jay

 

[Jay Williams]

Bleach works very well, but it is tricky. Finding bleach now days that doesn't have surfactants or other additives is difficult. then, you don't want to dose too high or too low.

Jay

Should I just buy new gravel? Or is there a way to clean the substrate Lol I mean I don’t know where to buy bleach from

 

[Jay Hemdal Verified Community Expert]

Should I just buy new gravel? Or is there a way to clean the substrate Lol I mean I don’t know where to buy bleach from

Basic bleach from GFS works in my area, I can't tell what other brands work, Back 30 years ago, you could buy basic clorox, but no more....

Washing the gravel really well in hot tap water will also work (let it soak overnight).

Jay

 

[Jay Williams]

Basic bleach from GFS works in my area, I can't tell what other brands work, Back 30 years ago, you could buy basic clorox, but no more....

Washing the gravel really well in hot tap water will also work (let it soak overnight).

Jay

thanks, I didn’t mention I also have a coralife UV sterilizer I just bought so once the tank is cycled, do you think I’d be able today start using it to slow down the life cycle of velvet?

 

[Jay Hemdal Verified Community Expert]

thanks, I didn’t mention I also have a coralife UV sterilizer I just bought so once the tank is cycled, do you think I’d be able today start using it to slow down the life cycle of velvet?

No, that won’t really help - the resting stage of parasites are on surfaces and never enter the water column and thus never get exposed to the UV light,
Jay

 

[Jay Williams]

No, that won’t really help - the resting stage of parasites are on surfaces and never enter the water column and thus never get exposed to the UV light,
Jay

Right, my guess is UV light is only effective on free swimmers?

 

[Sharkbait19]

Not sure why you’re going with this route…
You’d be better off being patient enough for the 45-day fallow period instead of nuking your tank and it’s entire bacteria population. Restarting from scratch will take months to properly cycle, and you’ll have to be even more patient than you would otherwise be…

 

[Jay Williams]

Not sure why you’re going with this route…
You’d be better off being patient enough for the 45-day fallow period instead of nuking your tank and it’s entire bacteria population. Restarting from scratch will take months to properly cycle, and you’ll have to be even more patient than you would otherwise be…

I mean yeah, I had a few algae issues and I was planning on starting over from scratch but I’m not going to have any fish in here for a while anyway. I’ll just cycle the tank again once everything’s clean

 

[Sharkbait19]

I mean yeah, I had a few algae issues and I was planning on starting over from scratch but I’m not going to have any fish in here for a while anyway. I’ll just cycle the tank again once everything’s clean

If you won’t have fish in there for a while, why restart the tank??
Algae, as long as it’s not dinoflagellates, are usually a strong sign that your tank is maturing and becoming better. No matter how many times you restart your tank, you’ll see the exact same stages of algae growth.
Bleaching your rocks is going to lead to a lot of die-off and endless ammonia and parameter issues. You may not realize it, but there are probably a ton of small invertebrates living in your rocks, from worms to mysis shrimp, and tons of amphipods.
I don’t mean to dissuade you, as I totally respect your decision—I’d just hate to see you make a decision you’ll soon regret. Instead of restarting for the sake of getting fish as soon as possible, get some inverts for the time being—there are a lot that can be equally, if not more, entertaining as fish.

 

[Jay Williams]

If you won’t have fish in there for a while, why restart the tank??
Algae, as long as it’s not dinoflagellates, are usually a strong sign that your tank is maturing and becoming better.
Bleaching your rocks is going to lead to a lot of die-off and endless ammonia and parameter issues. You may not realize it, but there are probably a ton of small invertebrates living in your rocks, from worms to mysis shrimp, and tons of amphipods.
I don’t mean to dissuade you, as I totally respect your decision—I’d just hate to see you make a decision you’ll soon regret. Instead of restarting for the sake of getting fish as soon as possible, get some inverts for the time being—there are a lot that can be equally, if not more, entertaining as fish.

I’ve already taken everything out and bleached the rock and cleaned the gravel. I don’t really mind how long it takes to restart my tank completely from scratch, I’ll most likely buy some hermit crabs or snails for the first little while and then when the tank is cycles and the parameters are stable (amomia, salinity, PH, nitrates nitrites etc) I’m not in a rush to buy fish

 

[Sharkbait19]

I’ve already taken everything out and bleached the rock and cleaned the gravel. I don’t really mind how long it takes to restart my tank completely from scratch, I’ll most likely buy some hermit crabs or snails for the first little while and then when the tank is cycles and the parameters are stable (amomia, salinity, PH, nitrates nitrites etc) I’m not in a rush to buy fish

That plan sounds okay—but I thought you didn’t want to wait out the fallow period?