Breakdown of 72 gallon tank?

[bronx889]

I have a 72 gallon bowfront tank. I am in the process of breaking it down for cleaning.

It was saltwater and it has been out of comission for about a year.
I did have live sand and rock in it.

I want to start a smaller tank I have up again. I'm waiting until I can afford to get the right lighting for my 72 gallon before I start it up again.

Question . . .

How can I get my rock and sand to be live again.

 

[Thumper]

The sand will become live once the tank has cycled again and as for as the rock goes you should be able to add new live rock to the tank and it will reseed the old rock. I could stand to be corrected and probably will but from what I know this is the case.

 

[afilter]

I would agree with Thumper. The rock will take several months though depending how much new LR you add. This is the route I took. Much less expensive if you are patient.

 

[bronx889]

Thanks for the info. My issue is that right now I don't have the finances to set up my 72 gallon again. Especially not until I have the correct lighting for it.

I will be setting up a smaller 15 gallon just to get my feet wet again. I'll be able to use some the sand for the new tank but how should I store the rest of the sand and old live rock.

Should I clean the reamining sand and rock and let it dry-out until I'm ready to set up the bigger system?

I have about forty-five pound of the rock. And maybe thirty pound of the sand.

 

[afilter]

Depending on how long it will be before you use it I do not think you need to dry it out. 5gal pails or rubber maid tubs always worked for me. You will find that it will not dry out even if stored for several months. Another thought might be to place it all in one larger tub with water and a power head for circulation. If you can throw a light over it all the better. I would think it then might maintain its characteristics of being live sand and rock. when you get ready to use it again.

This is just my theory though, others might have an opinion on this technique.

 

[bronx889]

afilter, thanks for your input.

One last question.

If I put the excess sand and old live rock in a plastic tub with a power head will I need to do any water changes?

And if so, how often?

 

[afilter]

As for water changes I do not think you would have to do much other than occassionally top off the system. Again, I am not sure this idea would work and I am hoping someone else can chime in.

I think it would also depend on how long you would need to do this before you were going to use it. If we are talking weeks I think it is very viable, months might be questionable. After a while I would think feeding the sand and live rock might be an issue to keep the cycle going? I would defer to someone more experienced than I.

It just seems like a waste to let all that established material go die off. Another option might be selling it via a local posting in your area if you think it would be a long time before you need it.

 

[afilter]

bronx889,

I conferred with another AA member via PM (Thanks Lando) and he thinks it can work as well. I forgot to mention a heater. Make sure your container is shallow enough that the light will penetrate and keep the growth on the LR going. Basically you would maintain it similar to a tank with out the fish.

Let us know what you decide to do. I would be curious to hear if it works if you decide to do it.

Good luck,