Adventure or folly?

[maleficent]

I am considering buying completely uncured rock and curing it myself. I would love to hear how this went for others and some tips. I like the great mystery of finding out what might be living in/on it. Tips? Horror stories? I plan to cure the rock in large plastic tubs. How bad is the smell and how long does it last? I am too curious, as are my kids, for the tubs not to be in our house. Will we have to move?

 

[mommyfish]

hey maleficent...i've been interested in the same thing i'm setting up a 75 gal and i want to cure my on liverock too...hmmm i heard on other boards that u get a big tub and place the rock in there with an airpump for a month...i would still like to hear other peoples oppinions tho!

 

[kris walker]

Never tried it, but also interested (and it's late with nothing to do).
I would imagine that you should try to keep everything as close to natural as possible to retain as much life as possible. That would mean keeping temp and lighting regulated. But I don't think this is done in practice. I would also think that the less ammonia you get from dieoff, the better chance the rest of the life on the rock has of surviving. So if you cure LR in an established aquarium (no marinelife except bacteria for filtration), I would think this would help.
kris

 

[ren]

The smell won't be bad as long as ya do alot of water changes. Will take 1-2 weeks for the dieoff to dissapate.
minimum requirements - tub/powerhead/airstone/small air pump/and probabbly water change every day or every other day till Ammonia stops. You will need alot of circulation to get into all the crevisis of the rock.
Additional- Lighting. Ya don't need it but it will help to start coraline growth.

 

[kelly]

Maleficent,
If you decide to do this, there are a few things that you should keep in mind/do. The rock when you get it will have a fair amount of die off, and can stink. The die off will cause a major ammonia spike.
1. get a good protein skimmer and run it 24/7
2. you do not need light when curing, it may cause an algae bloom (nutient rich water + warm water + light = algae bloom)
3. you need good/strong circulation.
4. make sure that all rock gets a good water flow to help remove/dislodge dead creatures.
5. make sure you remove the dead creatures from the tank as they are come off the live rock.
6. if you have an extra tank setting around, you can use it to temporarily house things such as clams, crabs, snails, starfish, nudibranchs, etc. while the rock is curing, this should help keep them from dieing and adding fueling the ammonia spike.
7. I would keep the water temp around the low 70's rather than near 80 if possible.
8. do water changes daily, checking ammonia.
9. be careful when handling the rock, either use gloves, or watch where you put you fingers, bristleworms are not fun to touch, trust me.
10. If something stinks really bad, and is slimy, it may be a good idea to scrub it off the rock.
11. use common sense, it goes a long way.
12. do not get in a big hurry, it will cure in time.
The best of luck, I hope this helped a little.