Live rock question

[dctpevrythng]

I bought a 28g jbj hqi tank off of someone and I'm rebuilding the whole tank. The guy gave me his live rock in a 5g Home Depot bucket that is sitting in water. The rock has been in the water for a few weeks now; so by now has the whole rock died off? Could I still use the rock? Any info you all can give me will be greatly appreciated.




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[JessiNoel21]

You can still use it but your cycle will take longer.


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[mr_X]

My questions would be:
Why did he break the tank down?
What's on the rock now? Any pests, and if so, how many?
Did he ever treat the tank with copper based medications?

There's no way in telling if a cycle will take longer, or if you will have a cycle at all. If the rock was treated properly, it may be full of beneficial bacteria and starting the tank with it would skip a cycle. If the rock was not treated properly, then you may have a cycle. Why it would be longer is a mystery to me, as a cycle needs an ammonia source to start it, and the latter happened, there's your ammonia.

 

[Fatboyfish]

Like X said if the buckets were kept inside and taken care of the rock should be fine to use. Instant cycle.

 

[dctpevrythng]

My questions would be:
Why did he break the tank down?
What's on the rock now? Any pests, and if so, how many?
Did he ever treat the tank with copper based medications?

There's no way in telling if a cycle will take longer, or if you will have a cycle at all. If the rock was treated properly, it may be full of beneficial bacteria and starting the tank with it would skip a cycle. If the rock was not treated properly, then you may have a cycle. Why it would be longer is a mystery to me, as a cycle needs an ammonia source to start it, and the latter happened, there's your ammonia.

The guy originally bought the tank to be entertainment for his kids, but after a few weeks he said his kids lost interest; the guy had a beautiful 180g saltwater tank that he was more into so he broke down the 28g jbj.

Not much is on the rock now, it's been in a enclosed 5g bucket with water from he tank in my cold garage. Not a clue what theta k could've been treated with.

Even if the rock has died off I should be able to still use it as decor in he tank right? Or is best to just buy new rock?

Never thought I would ask so many questions about rocks...


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[mr_X]

Oh...it sounds like another cycle will have to happen. No, No, that rock is fine to use and will eventually become live again. You'll just have to cycle it for a few weeks in the tank.

 

[Fatboyfish]

cold and sealed = mostly dead and not trustworthy for a cycle. proceed with caution. like x said can be reused. find sum1 that will give you some live rock rubble to seed(add new bacteria and life once in tank and setup) it. Or buy about 5-8lbs of live rock to seed it.

 

[dctpevrythng]

I actually have 5lbs of live rock from my old tank that I wanted to add to this 28g, so I'll add all of it together and bring it back to life.

I appreciate all the feedback.


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[mr_X]

Actually, seeding the rock doesn't mean adding bacteria to it. Bacteria will colonize that rock whether or not you ever add other rock. All you need is an ammonia source.
Seeding would be adding pods, algae, and whatever hitch hikers you may or may not want.
I would not add the 5 pounds of rock if there is anything alive on it that you want. I would use the dead rock and add a substantial ammonia source, then wait till it's cycled....THEN add the rest of the rock. This way you won't kill off what you want that's on the rock you have now, because it won't have to go through a highly poisonous ammonia spike.

 

[BigRedsReefs10]

Anaerobic bacteria can't be introduced on things like frags as they only develop in low oxygen areas (DSB or deep in side rock) and would die once exposed to oxygen any way. They also don't need to be "introduced" as they occur naturally, just like all bb, over time.


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[Sniperhank]

Hi guys. Obviously, this thread has been cleaned up. We need to keep things on point and civil. The OP's question on if the rock he had has been answered. Because of this, the thread has been closed.
To sum things up to ensure the message hasn't been lost:
Be it macro, base, or live rock can be used in your aquarium. No matter the source, sometimes this rock has been sitting around for awhile or was in another tank setup and might need a hearty scrub down to make sure you aren't bringing in parameter issues.
You don't need to seed your tank to build up your beneficial bacteria base. This will build up on its own when you present an ammonia source. There are products on the market that claim to speed up this cycle, but the jury is still out on this and have not seen any proven research stating that this stuff actually works.
You can use live rock from an already cycled tank to bring in beneficial bacteria. To do this, you want to make sure that the rock stays wet. Though this can help things along or add more filtration to a system that has already been established, it won't bring in any anaerobic bacteria. These guys don't use oxygen, in fact the presence of oxygen will most likely kill all of it...gotta get it from one tank into the other somehow right? Either way, these guys will build their base back up anyway through the life of the tank or the cycle.
A cycle will be complete when ammonia can not be detected. If a source such as pure ammonia is being used, aiming for 24 hours after dosing the tank should be aimed for to ensure the beneficial bacteria base is built up enough to prevent any unnecessary toxic fish deaths. I personally think this is too much work and prefer the 'shrimp in' method, but that is simply personal preference.