Picked up free 30 gal BioCube - can it be saved?

[degrey]

Hi all,
I appollogize for the post but I need some immediate advice. A friend of mine just gave me a BioCube that has been sitting full of water for about 2 months. No water cycling, lights, etc. It was full of alagae and totally out of control. We emptied it out so I could get it home.

Question: Is there anything biological I can salvage from a tank that has sat neglected so long?

It is sitting in the garage right now with just enough water to cover the sand. Should I try to get the sand, algea covered "live" rocks, and bio balls into a bucket of properly mixed salt water? Should I just clean it all up and start from scratch?

I thought I would post here in the hopes some one could advise me before anything dries out

Thanks!

 

[carey]

If the live rock was covered by water this whole time then it should be salvageable. I would use a toothbrush and scrub as much algae off as you can, clean it up a bit. Once the tank is clean and ready to go I would add a bag of new sand though, just to be sure you don't run into any issues with the old gunky sand.

Once thats in then I would add the live rock to the tank and turn the circulation on, powerhead if you have one and filter pump. Throw a new filter cartridge in as well. Then you are ready to either cycle the tank or stock depending on your parameters.

Hope that helps!

Good luck and welcome to the forum.

I have a 29g buiocube too and love it!

 

[degrey]

Thanks for the info!

Can I just store the live rock and bioballs in some buckets of RO/DI water until I have time to get the tank cleaned up and re-established with new sand and water?

I don't have any salt water. I guess I can go to the LFS and get some to mix up. This will be my first SW tank so it's going to be trial by fire here. I feel ill-prepared but I didn't want to pass up a free tank

RO/DI water is no problem. I got a system 2 years ago when I originally started prepping for a SW setup. Not sure about mixing my own salt water but there's no time like the present to learn right?

Toothbrushes are in hand. Time to get to work getting the green sludge off the rocks. Fun, fun.

 

[carey]

You can store the live rock in a rubbermaid container but you'll need to drop a heater and some sort of powerhead in there too.

 

[degrey]

Ok. I have a spare heater and pump. If this tank sat totally stagnate for 2 months with no water circulation/heat, is there going to be anything to salvage in the first place? It was covered by water but the filters and heater were off. It's really quite sad to see a tank in such a state of disrepair. I felt obligated to save it from it's life of sadness.

 

[Schism]

Thanks for the info!

Can I just store the live rock and bioballs in some buckets of RO/DI water until I have time to get the tank cleaned up and re-established with new sand and water?

I don't have any salt water. I guess I can go to the LFS and get some to mix up. This will be my first SW tank so it's going to be trial by fire here. I feel ill-prepared but I didn't want to pass up a free tank

RO/DI water is no problem. I got a system 2 years ago when I originally started prepping for a SW setup. Not sure about mixing my own salt water but there's no time like the present to learn right?

Toothbrushes are in hand. Time to get to work getting the green sludge off the rocks. Fun, fun.

NO

Saltwater, not ro/di.

Also i would keep the lights off and cycle the tank after the scrubbing. This will ensure the bacteria are alive, colonized and doing what they are supposed to.

Also during this time excess nutrients will begin being expelled/leached from the rock allowing you to remove through water changes. If you skip this step expect the algae to stay a problem.

And as suggested, definitely replace the sand. Wish i could find a free biocube lol. Lucky!!

 

[degrey]

I've decided NOT to save the live rock. I would rather start fresh knowing full well what is going into the tank. I have no idea what could be lurking (if anything is even alive) in this nasty ses pool of stench.

So time to get scrubbing! This tank needs some major TLC. Once I get it all cleaned up, I'll take a step back and figure out the best game plan for getting it re-established.

Thanks for the advice in my mini emergency

 

[Rutrag]

Given the cost of rock, I'd at least dry it out and make it base rock to save some cash myself.

 

[Rndy]

I would keep the live rock because if you buy new live you have no idea what you could get even then. LR can be expensive so I would just cure the rock

 

[Rndy]

And you can also dip it in coral dip.

 

[degrey]

Yes, I'm saving the rock itself. Cleaning it up and letting it dry out. I can get new live rock from a healthy, well established tank for about $4/lb locally.

Figured rather than rushing into this, I'll take my time and set the tank up properly from the get go. It's is purely stock setup now so I'll be upgrading filtration before anything.

Oh, and I need to find a stand for it I don't want to get a tank full of water without a place to park it.

 

[Holygral]

Yes, I'm saving the rock itself. Cleaning it up and letting it dry out. I can get new live rock from a healthy, well established tank for about $4/lb locally.

Figured rather than rushing into this, I'll take my time and set the tank up properly from the get go. It's is purely stock setup now so I'll be upgrading filtration before anything.

Oh, and I need to find a stand for it I don't want to get a tank full of water without a place to park it.

Taking your time in this hobby is the ONLY way to be successful. Rushing will only lead to failure and expense. Remember it may take 6-8 weeks for you tank to cycle once it is started, also do not add very many fish at a time. Good luck and remember the only dumb question is the one you ask after the fact.