adding dead coral to a tank

[lovehatejon]

im not sure if this is the right section to start this thread in, but..
my uncle was telling me about how he has about 10lbs of dead coral that he has from aruba when he went this summer. and asked if i wanted it.
now i was wondering.. is there anything positive/negative about putting dead coral in a fowlr tank? does it get "live" in a sense by seeding it?
also i hear somewhere that you have to boil it before adding it. how long does it have to boil for?
thanks a lot.

 

[flower]

Quote:
Originally Posted by LoveHateJon http:///forum/thread/382830/adding-dead-coral-to-a-tank#post_3343715
im not sure if this is the right section to start this thread in, but..
my uncle was telling me about how he has about 10lbs of dead coral that he has from aruba when he went this summer. and asked if i wanted it.
now i was wondering.. is there anything positive/negative about putting dead coral in a fowlr tank? does it get "live" in a sense by seeding it?
also i hear somewhere that you have to boil it before adding it. how long does it have to boil for?
thanks a lot.

As I understand it..
You boil it to make sure all is truly dead on it so you won't have ammonia spikes. Long dead coral and out of the water does not need to be boiled. On a reef most of the "rocks” are dead coral where another critter has taken up residence.
I keep my coral skeletons in the tank, sometimes I attach a frag to it.

 

[meowzer]

NO, it will never be live again.....Boiling it will just sanitize it so you are not putting gunk in your tank...just let it boil for a few minutes
I can tell you this....what will grow on it is algae......you will have to clean it off periodically

 

[lovehatejon]

meowzer i dont mean the coral to be live, but as in beneficial bacteria on it, being that its pretty damn porous.
hmm, algae as in food for the tangs? doesnt sound too bad to me haha.
so pretty much nothing wrong with adding it?

 

[meowzer]

OH....LOL....
Algae will grow on it....and I am sure other things will crawl on it too. NOPE...it's ok to add....you can always take it out later

 

[lovehatejon]

okay, thanks a lot for the help.
does it do anything for the pH, like crushed coral does?

 

[meowzer]

Quote:
Originally Posted by LoveHateJon http:///forum/thread/382830/adding-dead-coral-to-a-tank#post_3343732
okay, thanks a lot for the help.
does it do anything for the pH, like crushed coral does?
HMM...I have no clue.....

 

[flower]

Quote:
Originally Posted by meowzer http:///forum/thread/382830/adding-dead-coral-to-a-tank#post_3343734
Quote:
Originally Posted by LoveHateJon http:///forum/thread/382830/adding-dead-coral-to-a-tank#post_3343732
okay, thanks a lot for the help.
does it do anything for the pH, like crushed coral does?
HMM...I have no clue.....

It will do the same thing as crushed coral. That's why it can only be used in saltwater not freshwater.