cooking class

tellycoleman · 06-14-2007, 07:59 AM

OK i have heard alot about cooking rocks.

What is this?
How u do it?
Why do it?

Does it taste good? (kidding)

Jahreefer · 06-14-2007, 08:08 AM

That is just a term for removing any phosphates and other bads out of your rock. Simply remove your rock and store in containers full of water and powerhead in a dark room for a month or two.

tellycoleman · 06-14-2007, 08:17 AM

cool thats easy thanks

VWD · 06-14-2007, 08:50 AM

Check out this Link , http://www.thereeftank.com/forums/sh...ad.php?t=66551

superwizbang · 06-14-2007, 10:04 AM

Make sure it is a *well ventilated* dark room.

The smell can get pretty wrong pretty quickly.

thekid55 · 06-14-2007, 11:11 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by superwizbang

Make sure it is a *well ventilated* dark room.

The smell can get pretty wrong pretty quickly.

jph · 06-14-2007, 12:38 PM

and do a water change ever week or two. you don't want them to sit in the same water that long.

J.

J_T · 06-14-2007, 01:04 PM

Ro water like to absorb anything it can. So, by doing frequent water changes (every few days) The Ro water will start to pull out all the nutrients/phosphates/etc the rock has soaked up.

Normally prepared in Rubbermaid totes/pails (make sure it is food grade, or the rock/water will absorb any impurities in the container, which is counter productive...) Use a couple power heads to keep the water moving, and in a couple months, you should be good.

hng · 06-14-2007, 02:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by J_T

Ro water like to absorb anything it can. So, by doing frequent water changes (every few days) The Ro water will start to pull out all the nutrients/phosphates/etc the rock has soaked up.

Actually, you should use freshly mixed salt water (made with ro/di water) while cooking rocks. I believe that the bacteria consuming all available phosphates and nutrients inside the rock and expelling the waste is what cleans out the rocks. I don't believe it to be through simple diffusion into the water.

leveldrummer · 06-14-2007, 03:35 PM

its a good idea to have 2 containers, fill one, put in rock, let it sit for a week with powerhead, then pull out the rock, swish it really good in the old water and place in new, keep doing that till the rock is clean and no more crud comes off when you swish it.

Orient Master · 06-14-2007, 05:30 PM

Now i have some old rock that has been in a rubber maid container. I have had them in the water for now a few months. did the changing of water as normal. i could have sworn that i heard once before that you should put a heater in the water and warm up the water. Personally i have like three big pumps in the rubber maid container. that serves me two purpuses. one it stirs up the water. two it keepes the pumps from drying out like the rubber O rings.

the water has stoped smelling. i had to take out the heater because the pumps heated the water very well on their own.

What is done for therocks after they are done cooking.

Do you set up a rock tank that is running and just put the new cooked rock in with some Live rock to seed the new rock. or just leave the rock in the rubber maid and just put the LR in with it and put a light over the rubber maid.

Either way you have to seed the rock right??

leveldrummer · 06-14-2007, 08:30 PM

if the rock has lots of life on it, you shouldnt have to seed it, pods and bacteria will both be fine through the cooking process. the only reason you would have to seed it is if your killed it somehow. (dried it out) if you cook your rock, it will come out white, all coraline will die out, but that will come back after time in a reef tank. no need for seeding after cooking.