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Unread 04/12/2010, 06:29 PM   #1260
massman
Marine Fish Wrangler
 
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Join Date: Dec 2001
Location: Australia mate!
Posts: 591
Quote:
Originally Posted by mr.wilson View Post
Here's the Reader's Digest version of rock curing...

TOOLS
Rubber gloves
Tweezers
Narrow screw driver
A coupe of schooners
PROCEDURE
Remove each rock one by one and shake them in a tub of water. This will remove the loose detritus. Treat all crabs as parasites, as very very few are friendly (commensal/symbiotic). Most of the worms you will encounter are harmless, but there will be no shortage of worms in the long run, so go ahead and remove any loose ones that may be injured. If they are healthy, they will be deep in the rock.

Throw any snails you see into a bucket of saltwater and use your new macro lens to get some free identification on here. Watch for mantis shrimp (google it). They are easy to identify once you know what you are looking for. Yes, kill them.

I would use the established saltwater the rock is in now for the rinsing process. Freshwater rinsing is more for corals that may have parasitic hitchhikers. Live rock is less likely to carry bad guys than live corals are. In the case of live corals, freshwater dips and a bath in an oxidizer such as Lugols iodine or potassium permanganate. The water at the bottom of your vats will be turbid/dirty, so make sure you set aside cleaner rinsing water as you work through the vats.

Any sponges, sea squirts, or other invertebrates that have made it this far are hardy and should be left alone. Only new rock should have the sponges and algae removed from it. It is a good idea to reverse the stacking order of the rock as you put it in a new container, so the rock that was at the bottom is now at the top.

Siphon or shopvac the junk off of the bottom of the vats. Remember to elevate the rock on milk crates to provide a buffer zone for crabs, worms and other questionable hitchhikers.

After the rock has been acclimated for two weeks and you have not experienced a significant die-off, you can proceed to introduce a 6 hour photoperiod with somewhat diffused light. If your lighting is greater than 250 watt MHL, then suspend it two feet above the rock. Otherwise, a 250 watt MHL a foot above the water surface should be fine with a 6 hour photoperiod (day). Slowly move the photoperiod up to 8 hours per day over the next two weeks. Watch for diatom algae (brown slime). It will come and go in about two weeks, then you will get green slime algae (cyanobacteria). This too will pass in another month, give or take.

Stare monitoring calcium, magnesium, and carbonate hardness levels. Maintaining these at optimum levels will foster the growth of coraline algae.

It's also a good idea to start sorting rock sizes and shapes so you can have a better handle on your building blocks when you commence with the aquascaping. You don't want to get down to the bottom of the last vat and find those show size rocks you ordered.

* The above information is based on my experience; however, my belief that you will follow these guidelines is based solely on speculation
Perfectly said.
All I'll add is don't be too stand off ish when handling it.
Plunge it up and down, and give a good twist in the water. You'll be amazed how much comes out. Especially from the rock at the bottom.
Spear/lever ALL crabs. Show no mercy.


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