Need help with breaking down reef and restarting.

nark54321 · Nov 10, 2017

Hey guys. Over the last year or so I have neglected my reef tank due to some pesky Caulerpa I can NOT get rid of. After saying screw it and letting it go it has completely overrun my tank and I want to start fresh.

This weekend I'm planning on breaking everything down and cleaning and restarting. Most coral is dead anything that is not is infected. I have 1 mandarin goby a brittle star and a sea slug that have been chilling, im planning on bringing them to my LFS he will hold onto them for me.

I'm wondering how to go about cleaning the tank spotless. I need the pumps, glass, protein skimmer, and media chamber to have zero trace of this stuff. What do I use to clean everything?

It's a small 30g tank so I just plan on buying new rocks. I can get a good deal at my LFS.reef aqu

reeferfoxx · Nov 10, 2017

I would get everything out, fill with tap water, pour bleach in and let the pumps and run for 24 hours.

Mikedawg · Nov 10, 2017

And then let everything dry for a few days just to make sure it is all dead - you'll sleep better

nark54321 · Nov 10, 2017

reeferfoxx said:
I would get everything out, fill with tap water, pour bleach in and let the pumps and run for 24 hours.

I thought bleach soaks into plastic?

reeferfoxx · Nov 10, 2017

nark54321 said:
I thought bleach soaks into plastic?

Plastic isn't that spongy. I used to soak driftwood in bleach for freshwater tanks. Then soak the wood in Prime. If you let the tank air dry it should evaporate. You could fill it back up with water and dump prime in to be safe.

nark54321 · Nov 10, 2017

Ok so the plan is:
Remove fish and inverts and bring them to LFS.

Drain all the water and rock and sand and pests.

Fill tank with tap water and bleach (does anyone have a ratio? Should I use pool chlorine or house hold bleach?) and run that thru all the pumps and tank and skimmers for about a day or so.

Dump that water and then cycle through some fresh tap water for a little while to ensure all the bleach is out of the system.

Fill with rock and salt water and begin the initial cycle.

How does that sound? Am I missing any key things?

reeferfoxx · Nov 10, 2017

nark54321 said:
Fill tank with tap water and bleach (does anyone have a ratio? Should I use pool chlorine or house hold bleach?) and run that thru all the pumps and tank and skimmers for about a day or so.

Not sure how much bleach you have. I have a 2 quart bottle. I would pour 1 quart in. 1 gallon = 4 qt if that gives you an idea. I would also remove the skimmer and let it soak on its own. Remove any rubber pieces.
After that scrub pumps and any misc. parts and let everything air dry.

Everything else sounds good.

vertigo01 · Nov 10, 2017

reeferfoxx said:
I would get everything out, fill with tap water, pour bleach in and let the pumps and run for 24 hours.

Will the bleach not deteriorate the silicone?

reeferfoxx · Nov 10, 2017

vertigo01 said:
Will the bleach not deteriorate the silicone?

Only if you use 100% bleach solution without dilution.

LJLKRL05 · Nov 10, 2017

I have used white vinegar with good success. It will clean everything.

don_chuwish · Nov 10, 2017

+1 on the vinegar - even diluted down quite a bit it'll be effective - just let it circulate through your normal filtration loop for a good 24 hours or more.

ThunderGoose · Nov 11, 2017

+2 on vinegar but if you want to go bleach don't go higher than a 10% solution. That's what I've used in microbiology labs to kill, well, everything.

reeferfoxx · Nov 11, 2017

Bleach is a guarantee. My suggestion was to dilute it. Being is its a 30 gallon and only 1 qt worth of bleach. That would make it 1/120 solution. Doesn't seem effective, but after soaking for 24 hours, its enough. And yes the OP would be safe with using a full gallon as that is still 1/30 ratio.