• Preparation of dry reef rock before placing it in the aquarium.

  • Leah

Dear sailors, how do you process dry reef rock before placing it in the aquarium? I recently acquired 10 kg of dry reef rock for my future aquarium. The rock was quite dirty, so I rinsed it under the tap, scrubbed it with a brush, and did everything as it should be done. A subsequent inspection of the rocks revealed a lot of soggy sponges and other debris on them. Then, I foolishly decided to soak these wonderful stones in RO water for a day, so to speak, to soften everything that hadn’t dissolved in the first hour of washing. I took a basin (not to be confused with a vase, although the difference is small), filled it with RO water, and left it on the balcony to marinate for a day. The next day, I took out the rocks and was shocked by the smell, so I decided to rinse them again under running water and pour boiling water over them. In the end, the rocks still smell incredibly bad. Can anyone suggest how to get the rocks to a state where I can make a pile and how to get rid of the rotten smell? On various forums, I read several methods for processing dry reef rock: 1. Boil it. 2. Boil it with vinegar (not sure if that’s allowed). 3. Just rinse it under running water and not worry))) 4. Bake it in the oven. 5. Soak it in RO water (which I tried, and the result so far... is terrible...)

David3217

If the stone is already soaked, then rinse it thoroughly under running water with a brush, let it dry, and then put it in the oven. I simply rinsed my 10 kg and put it in the aquarium; now you can't tell it apart from live rocks.

Jeanne

Well, it was marinated for just a day, I don't know if that's too little or too much? Maybe it needs another day or two? The smell is just overwhelming)) I'm afraid the oven will stink after this))

Joseph1346

Try this: rinse very well under running water and then soak in osmosis for about 5-6 days, changing the water daily. If they don't smell, then put them in the oven.

James4757

Personally, I rinsed all the gaps with a strong stream and scrubbed everything with a brush, then rinsed all the gaps again from all sides with the same pressure. You can use a pressure washer, but with medium pressure; soaking won't really help much, at most it will just get wet, but the sponges themselves won't come off.

Catherine6534

Well, it's clear that they won't get off themselves, but everything that can get soaked will get soaked to the maximum, and then it's back to the brush in hand and fire...

Jeremy8404

We collect the stones and go to the wash. We wash everything with a pressure washer. We soak them in osmosis for at least a week, preferably changing the water daily. Or we do nothing and end up with a problem...

Raven7170

And my S.R.K. (dry reef stones) I would call - dry garden stones from Uncle Lao's garden. Black soil like compost is pouring out of all the cracks. I have vacuumed them, scrubbed them with a brush, heated them in the microwave, and boiled them. I've been soaking them in water with a pump for three weeks, and the water is getting cloudy. Naturally, there are no dead organisms in them since they have never been in the reef. The layers in them are brown like those of Crimean shell rock...