Speedy Rock CooK??

coralcat · 10-06-2006, 10:24 AM

I don't have algi promlems, but concidering cooking rock to reduce phosphates, Would like feed back as to temp. My tank runs a lot at 79 to 84. Thinking of cooking at 83. I don't want to waite 3 months. Help, and experiance, Please

Wiskey · 10-06-2006, 10:48 AM

I am afraid there is no speedy rock cook. See ShawnT's directions in the BB fourm (sticky at the top) for the proper way to cook rock. 83 deg sounds fine too me, it will speed things up a bit having it a little higher like that.

Whiskey

Fly Guy · 10-06-2006, 10:50 AM

5 weeks it can be done(or at least real close to daone) if you run it hot....like 85-90, scrub and swish/water change twice a week, as well as scrub the rock with a plastic grout brush when you swish/water change. Also put a 600 gph+ powerhead in each of the hoels in every rock every time you swish. Keep in mind doing it this way is going to create much more carnage of life on the live rock. But if you are in it for the bacteria and clean rock and cont care about that....it can be done, or at least all but done.
Personally, i dont recommend rushing it...i dont think you should put it in your tank until the water in your weekly water change bucket reads zero phosphates. Im thinking 8 weeks in kinda a minimum for this. I have been following that kinda violent regimen on the batch im doing now and im hoping this next week (the 8th week), i will find that lovely zero phosphates number............. : )

BUT, even doing it for only 3 weeks is WAY better than nothing. : ) But honestly i dont think very many people have cooked their rock until the phosphates are that close to done. I think most people stop when MOST of the stuff stops cdoming out of the rock, not until the phosphates cant be measured in the water. So, again...5 weeks with a little elbow grease will suffice : )

coralcat · 10-06-2006, 11:31 AM

Ok will look at site. FLY, you think closer to 90F would be ok on the bio. I think you cooked for 12 weeks? I know your tank looks fantastic after 6 wks (ok, get that smirk of). Did you cycle, after cooking, the 6 week tank. This is all going to happen transitioning to a 210g I’m setting up a 72 as a holding tank for frags, mothers (or fathers) softies will go into 110 soft tank, and half the fish. Now, the fish that will go into, remain in main tank, new one, what to do? All I can think of is putting into 210, and Waite for rock to cook, then add rock, and wait how long, before adding coral back?

Fly Guy · 10-06-2006, 11:44 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by coralcat

Ok will look at site. FLY, you think closer to 90F would be ok on the bio. I think you cooked for 12 weeks? I know your tank looks fantastic after 6 wks (ok, get that smirk of). Did you cycle, after cooking, the 6 week tank. This is all going to happen transitioning to a 210g I’m setting up a 72 as a holding tank for frags, mothers (or fathers) softies will go into 110 soft tank, and half the fish. Now, the fish that will go into, remain in main tank, new one, what to do? All I can think of is putting into 210, and Waite for rock to cook, then add rock, and wait how long, before adding coral back?

For my 225 that is running i got all of the rock in fresh uncured. I cycled and cooked it all at once. When you are done cooking no cycle is needed, its been done. The bacteria is strong and good to go.......after a week or two you are ready to start adding corals and fish. I had a accident happen that invloved cracking of my holding tank and i actually added 50+ corals and 3 fish to that system in less than 2 days of starting it up. But, it was in fact 12 week old healthy system(12 weeks of rock cooking)....the walls just changed. ; )

I think it would be wise to wait at least a couple of weeks to start adding stuff, but i had other circumstances on that build that made me do it sooner. You will have a slight bloom...possibly a touch of HA but a tiny fraction of what a typical start up will cause and most of that on your sandbed, but for my last startup anyway it started up in the second week and was completely gone by the 4th.

As far as the temp goes.........i think 90 is a little warm.......mine usually fluctuates based on the temp in my garage and how much the mag 9.5 heats the water up. I defintely hit over 90 at times though....i will just walk by and check it and vent the lid slightly if i need to cool it. running 80-90 though for the most part

coralcat · 10-06-2006, 12:27 PM

alright. I'll get holding tanks ready. thanks

Fly Guy · 10-06-2006, 12:41 PM

I will offer one more thing that will help immensely. Whatever container you are cooking your rock in.........get two of them. Then before you start swishing you prep the new container of new ro/di asw before you start even swishing. Then its a simple swishing production line from one container to the next. Dont rely on a cheap powerhead....make sure you have a reliable venturi connection and electrical connection.....or you WILL make another cycle.......belive me......i did it on the first batch i did earlier this year. killed all my bacteria and had to start over.

i like to put a fitting on the end of a mag drive pump and drill a hole into it so that a airline tightly fits......makes a huge venturi...works great. you can see the two cords in the one pic going into the bucket...one is going to the mag 9.5 the other is the airline i mentioned.

I just took these pics a minute ago..kinda crappy pics but you get the assembly line concept.......today is swish day............hopefully only one more after this on this batch...the rock you see in that bucket was all solid coralline 5 weeks or so ago

coralcat · 10-06-2006, 01:08 PM

So, Am I looking at the rock comming out white? that's not a bad thing, as it will regrow coraline, just interesting the changes it goes through. I was going to add air. So you concider it "Done". when po4 is 0 and nitrates?, correct.... ?

Fly Guy · 10-06-2006, 01:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by coralcat

So, Am I looking at the rock comming out white? that's not a bad thing, as it will regrow coraline, just interesting the changes it goes through. I was going to add air. So you concider it "Done". when po4 is 0 and nitrates?, correct.... ?

I consider it done when the water it has been sitting in fro the last few days to a week reads zero P. To make that happen in 6 weeks you have to take a super aggressive scrubbing, blowing out and swishing regimen....if your rock was very loaded with phosphates to begin with it aint going to happen in that amount of time.

Nitrates are long gone by this point........your not giving the crap in the water time to do anything before you dump it. I dont lift the rock off the bottom of the container for the same reason......detritus can settle there...its not going to be sitting there long enough to be sucked up.

One more thing that helps is i do my first super hard swish in the bucket the stuff is coming out of............just beccasue i can swish harder in the 75 gallon conatainer than in the 5 5 gallon ro/di buckets to follow before being dumped into the new container.....