How to cook dry rock

[Hal 9000]

Hi all I've got some BRS Fiji to cook - smells awesome at this point but I have seen different advice given for cooking.

Should I cook in salt or fresh water?
Should I keep the temp at normal aquarium temp?
How often should I change out the water?

 

[Thomthom329]

Subscribed. I have a bunch of Marco rock that I'd like to cook to remove phosphates before entering the DT as well.

 

[underwaterdan]

I put my pukani in heated salt water, after cleaning and rinsing in plain tap water in two trash cans for about 6 months now. I changed the water a few times, I am sure it was ready about 3 months ago but baby steps to getting the tank up.

 

[Virtualbasil]

I don't think I could ever wait 6 months lol

 

[FL_Reefer]

I would never cook live rock... Or any rock at that. Here is what I would do. Give it a bleach bath for a couple of days, that will kill everything. Then give it a good scrubing. Repeat the bleach again if needed. If not needed, fill up with fresh water and put the rock in and let it soak. Change out water everyday for a couple of days. You can even add a powerhead in there if you want to move the water. Let sit out in the sun a dry for about a day and then your good to go. I start everyone of my tanks this way and cycle the rock in the aquarium for about a month or so.

 

[Hal 9000]

So after two days in a fresh water bath phosphates read 1

I might try to do the bleach method, I just get nervous adding chemicals to something going into my tank.

 

[twilliard]

I use a pressure washer.
Soak it in ro water then spray it thoroughly

 

[Thomthom329]

I've read bleach will not remove phosphates, only organics. You need an acid, phos remover (i.e. Lanthanum chloride) or lots and lots of water changes until the rock stops leaching. But that's about the extent of my knowledge.

 

[Hal 9000]

Been changing water every three days, still getting phosphates but the smell is gone. The water looks like a weak tea when I dump it out. Should I plan on keeping this up until phosphates read 0? I see 4 weeks as the norm but after 2 ish I've seen little to no change.

 

[Reefing Madness]

Yup, thats the only way to get the rock to totally leach the phosphates out.

 

[Ezeke1]

Yup, thats the only way to get the rock to totally leach the phosphates out.

Can you further explain how to completely remove phosphates? Are you referring to repeated water change or phos remover?

 

[Hal 9000]

Is there anything to do to speed it up? I've also read that ro/di will dissolve the rock over time prolonging the phosphate phase any truth to that?

 

[Reefing Madness]

Yea. Leaving it in the water, it leaches the phosphates out of the rock, doing the water changes to keep it out of the water column.
If your cooking the rock, you can remove 100% of the phosphates out of the water column in one day by adding SeaKlear Phosphate remover. But you will need a mechanical filter in there to remove it, it binds the phosphates up into a snotty ball of sorts.
Never heard of RO/DI water dissolving rock. If you put it in RO/DI with proper SG levels you will also be curing the rock. Thats what I'd be doing.

 

[Thomthom329]

Is there anything to do to speed it up? I've also read that ro/di will dissolve the rock over time prolonging the phosphate phase any truth to that?

Low pH can and will dissolve live rock over time, which can be found with rodi water. Saltwater would be a better option.

 

[Hal 9000]

So if I wanted to give the rock a vinegar bath to speed things up what ratio should I use and how long?

I already bleached it and it looked like I was making soup nasty stuff coming off the rock. I know I need to get rid of the bleach before I do the vinegar bath any recommendations for that? Right now I've washed it and let it dry but the bleach smell lingers.

 

[Virtualbasil]

make sure you use vinegar and not vegtable oil .... because I totally didn't make that mistake myself ...

 

[Hal 9000]

make sure you use vinegar and not vegtable oil .... because I totally didn't make that mistake myself ...

Wow how would you fix that one?

 

[Virtualbasil]

scrubbed and rinsed it many times

 

[Reefing Madness]

Wow how would you fix that one?

Acid bath

 

[West1]

Old thread but I've run into a question.

I plan on ordering 80lbs of reefsavers reef rock but I have no yard to let my rock dry (will likely put rock in the bed of my truck for a day, then flip them for another day).
Will there be any harm in soaking the rock inside a brute trash can in the house (after adding backing soda to the muriatic acid and rinsing off outside)?