Killing rock

Shallow Planet · Jun 8, 2018

So I'm preparing myself that I will need to kill all rock and start over due to Uronema. Alot of good info says to
bleach
sun dry
than soak in clean ro water with prime.

Is there a reason to bleach vs just letting the rock sun dry out?

I'm a little worried about phosphate control too.

nautical_nathaniel · Jun 8, 2018

Bleach will help sterilize the rock whereas even sitting the rock out in the sun first for weeks may still allow some pockets of microbes to survive in deep areas of the rocks. It's more or less a very effective safety measure taken at the beginning of the process.

Shallow Planet · Jun 8, 2018

Do you worry about leaching phosphates after or is this not really an issue? I figure there will be a ton of die off

nautical_nathaniel said:
Bleach will help sterilize the rock whereas even sitting the rock out in the sun first for weeks may still allow some pockets of microbes to survive in deep areas of the rocks. It's more or less a very effective safety measure taken at the beginning of the process.

nautical_nathaniel · Jun 8, 2018

Shallow Planet said:
Do you worry about leaching phosphates after or is this not really an issue? I figure there will be a ton of die off

I would clean the rocks very well after bleaching them. Use thick bristle brushes and maybe even a small pressure washer. Do this a couple of times before you add them back to an aquarium. You can also "cure" them by leaving them in a tub of water for a few weeks and replacing the water every so often. During this process you can also test for phosphates to see if they are leaching from the rock, if that is the case you may have to leave them in the tubs of water longer until they stop or the levels are manageable.

Oldsalt01 · Jun 8, 2018

Bleach will kill everything. It works by denaturing protein, essentially dissolving cell tissue. Exposure to sunlight will evaporate some if it, but what's left inside the rock will stay as chloride salts as it dries. Soaking it will disolve the salts back into suspension allowing them to evaporate. Exposing the bucket to sunlight will speed up the process somewhat. I'd also put a powerhead in there for better circulation, along with multiple water changes. How much rock and how old is it? Once the process is done, you'll essentially be starting over. Ain't reefing fun?

Flippers4pups · Jun 8, 2018

Are you cleaning the entire tank as well?

Shallow Planet · Jun 8, 2018

Yes I should add that this will be going back into a brand new tank so do I need to cure or just let it cycle?

deedubz · Jun 8, 2018

Metroplex also works for uronema. I wonder if overdosing the crap out of the tank would kill the parasites without also completely nuking the rock? I'm sure you'd still have a lot of die off but at least phosphates and chlorine wouldn't/shouldn't be a factor. I'm curious to know if anyone has done it

deedubz · Jun 8, 2018

dwwataz said:
Metroplex also works for uronema. I wonder if overdosing the crap out of the tank would kill the parasites without also completely nuking the rock? I'm sure you'd still have a lot of die off but at least phosphates and chlorine wouldn't/shouldn't be a factor. I'm curious to know if anyone has done it

There's always a possibility of a resistant strain though. I guess bleach really would be ideal. Sorry.. Just thinking out loud

Shallow Planet · Jun 8, 2018

dwwataz said:
There's always a possibility of a resistant strain though. I guess bleach really would be ideal. Sorry.. Just thinking out loud

I'm also concerned my coral QT may have been contaminated. Is there a way to treat Coral or Inverts for Uronema? Everything else I know it's 74 day rule.

deedubz · Jun 8, 2018

Shallow Planet said:
I'm also concerned my coral QT may have been contaminated. Is there a way to treat Coral or Inverts for Uronema? Everything else I know it's 74 day rule.

I honestly don't know the answer to that. I do know, however, that some people use metronidazole in reef tanks to clear dinos. I don't know which brand, what dosage, or what the regimen is though, or if that strength dosage would be enough to kill uronema.

#reefsquad
@Humblefish

redfishbluefish · Jun 8, 2018

So you're "killing" the rock.....and therefore it will need to be cured.

Bleaching the rock jump-starts the curing process by rapidly oxidizing some of the dead stuff and getting it out of the rock. Check out this video for BRS (Note, highly recommend skipping the acid bath).

I soaked my rock in about 50 gallons of water and two gallons of bleach for a week....do this outside or in a vented garage. Then rinse multiple times (with tap water) and let dry. You can now start the curing process in saltwater. All that is needed is a little flow (no heater or lights needed, assuming this isn't in your garage in Montana in the middle of winter.)

Dennis McGrath · Jun 8, 2018

Oldsalt01 said:
Bleach will kill everything. It works by denaturing protein, essentially dissolving cell tissue. Exposure to sunlight will evaporate some if it, but what's left inside the rock will stay as chloride salts as it dries. Soaking it will disolve the salts back into suspension allowing them to evaporate. Exposing the bucket to sunlight will speed up the process somewhat. I'd also put a powerhead in there for better circulation, along with multiple water changes. How much rock and how old is it? Once the process is done, you'll essentially be starting over. Ain't reefing fun?

+1 what he said. After that, I'd change out that water every few days for a couple of weeks.