Dry Rock and Ich

fernalfer · Mar 12, 2017

I had some Marco Dryrock in my QT tank that i want to break up into rubble for my pod condos i'll be making. Now can i just dry them out completely? And will doing that kill the ich on the rock if there is even any present?

The rock has been in Saltwater without fish for 15 days.

But if drying will speed up the process i'll take it out.

Brew12 · Mar 12, 2017

Yup, drying them out will definitely speed up the process. Once they have been dry for a day or two they will be good to go. Just remember that they need to be dry, not just out of the water drying.

fernalfer · Mar 12, 2017

Brew12 said:
Yup, drying them out will definitely speed up the process. Once they have been dry for a day or two they will be good to go. Just remember that they need to be dry, not just out of the water drying.

thanks i'll be breaking the rock into small pieces so it should dry quickly

Humblefish · Mar 12, 2017

Brew12 said:
Yup, drying them out will definitely speed up the process. Once they have been dry for a day or two they will be good to go. Just remember that they need to be dry, not just out of the water drying.

I would run a fan over them and allow to air dry thoroughly for at least a week or two. Rocks are porous, so you gotta make sure every little nook & cranny is completely dried out.

wkscott · Mar 12, 2017

Did you use ANY medication in the QT? Especially any copper product?

fernalfer · Mar 12, 2017

wkscott said:
Did you use ANY medication in the QT? Especially any copper product?

no medication i was QT'ing a Ruby Red dragonet and was using the rock because i dumped in some pods to make sure he was eating for a couple weeks then did tank transfer method in separate 5 gallon buckets.

wkscott · Mar 12, 2017

fernalfer said:
no medication i was QT'ing a Ruby Red dragonet and was using the rock because i dumped in some pods to make sure he was eating for a couple weeks then did tank transfer method in separate 5 gallon buckets.

Okay. No medication, no problem. Proceed as you were.

Humblefish · Mar 12, 2017

wkscott said:
Okay. No medication, no problem. Proceed as you were.

You raise an excellent point though. If copper had been used with the rock, this goes from a simple drying process to needing to use muriatic acid to dissolve the stored copper out of the rock.