so can I fix it?

rcboone72

rcboone72

New Member
I recently had my first case of ich, it did kill all ly fish, only had three. I dosed my tank with a copper treatment, dumb move I guess because I've been told to scrap the rock and sand. I was wondering since I don't need the rock for awhile if doing a couple hot water soaks and then let it soak in a bucket for a week make the rock usable for when u add shrimp into my tank with fish? Thanks for input
 
snakeblitz33

snakeblitz33

Well-Known Member
Get a copper test kit first, and see how much copper is actually in your water. Then, stock up on what are called "polyfilter pads" They will turn blue when they react with copper. It will pull some of the copper out of the tank. Also, another idea is to add macroalgaes to your tank, so that the macroalgae will soak up the copper, and you can harvest it out of your tank. Keep testing with the test kit until you can't tell that it's present.
The problem with copper dosing a tank is that it leaches into the rock and sand and silicone seems of a tank. It also soaks into any plastic that is in your system. Basically, it's there.
Maybe you could use the tank you have now for a quarantine and hospital tank and get another system set up? I'm just throwing some ideas out there for yah. I hate that it happened, but now's the time to do some things to stop it from happening again...
 
2quills

2quills

Well-Known Member
I guess the possibility of the copper leaching into the silicone is viable. I hardly doubt that from the single episode that you had it would have built up to levels that would be so lethal that would render the tank useless for a reef tank ever again. Carbon will remove copper, water conditioners will neutralize it and algae's will consume it. I'd maybe empty it, fill it with some RO water and run some carbon and water conditioner in it for a while and I think you'll be good to go. Ofcorse a test kit would be good to have...which you should have gotten when you started dosing the copper in the first place. I doubt after you empty the tank, remove the rock, sand and then fill it back up that you will end up with any detectable levels.
Not sure about your rock. You could try some of the methods I mentioned above and test it out. Maybe soak the rock in conditioned water, and do a handful of water changes on it as well as run some carbon filtration on it for a while. Maybe that will make it safe again. Can't say for sure but I think it could be possible since you weren't dosing the copper for any great length of time.
 
snakeblitz33

snakeblitz33

Well-Known Member
I agree with what Corey said. I've always been a little pessimistic when it comes to using a tank that has ever had any copper in it.
Have you ever seen a tank that is kinda old and has been empty for a little while? Sometimes the silicone turns blue? that's the copper that was leached into the silicone. Not all old empty tanks do that, just the ones that have been copper dosed. At least, that's from my experience and from what I have read a while back.
Water changes. Carbon. Macroalgaes, polyfilter pads, conditioners, etc... those are all viable options when it comes to copper dosed tanks.
 
2quills

2quills

Well-Known Member
Not sure what size tank this is, I missed the other thread. But it may just be more cost and time effective to toss the rock and get some new base rock + sand. Or the fish only tank idea works to if you really want to keep it. I see no good reason to keep the old sand though. The pessimism is understandable and I would be skeptical to ever try and make a reef out of an old hospital tank. With the available options I think it could be done in this case. But I'll leave that up to RC to decide since it's his pocket book on the line.
 
rcboone72

rcboone72

New Member
Well I do have a copper test, it is one ppm now. I will look into that filter, I plan to go to a bigger tank when I start over, and was gonna use this other tank for a sump after u attempt to leach copper from it, when its tests okay I then will add shrimp and crabs. I am going to go ahead and throw this sand away I have now, $15 is not to bad. I'll just order extra when I order sand for my tank, I also did plan to run macroalge in my sump refugium. Need to do some more reading up on that whole process though.
 
rcboone72

rcboone72

New Member
I will defiantly run carbon then if its Any help at all since I make my own carbon bags for my freshwater tank I have a lot of carbon left. And like I said I will dump the sand, its just 70-80 in dry rock and 20-30 on live rock is bit for me. BTW, the tank that had copper added is a 20l, and I'm hoping I can use as a sump after I do all the ideas you guys mentioned. I kinda planned to put a 10g tank over built into the side of my tank stand for QT since I'm bout out of space for everything I have that room. The tank I'm moving to is a 40b.
 
btldreef

btldreef

Moderator
We spoke briefly about this in your other thread, and my dislike of using copper treated items for a reef. But since you really seem to want to try it, I recommend also using this product: http://www.seachem.com/Products/product_pages/CupriSorb.html
 
orca t

orca t

Member
Quote:
Originally Posted by RCBOONE72 http:///t/388734/so-can-i-fix-it#post_3430143
I will defiantly run carbon then if its Any help at all since I make my own carbon bags for my freshwater tank I have a lot of carbon left. And like I said I will dump the sand, its just 70-80 in dry rock and 20-30 on live rock is bit for me. BTW, the tank that had copper added is a 20l, and I'm hoping I can use as a sump after I do all the ideas you guys mentioned. I kinda planned to put a 10g tank over built into the side of my tank stand for QT since I'm bout out of space for everything I have that room. The tank I'm moving to is a 40b.
I would invest in the poly fiber too. With this media, you can see if there is copper in your system. The pad will turn different colors to let you know what it is filtering out. I believe blue is for the copper. run it and see.
 
snakeblitz33

snakeblitz33

Well-Known Member
Quote:
Originally Posted by Orca T http:///t/388734/so-can-i-fix-it#post_3430186
I would invest in the poly fiber too. With this media, you can see if there is copper in your system. The pad will turn different colors to let you know what it is filtering out. I believe blue is for the copper. run it and see.
Glad to see you know what a Poly Filter is too...
 
florida joe

florida joe

Well-Known Member
Just for the record silicone absorbs copper, then over time it leaches out. I have had a lengthy discussion on the phone with a representative from seachem. They state that there has never been any documentation of detrimental levels of copper leaching back into a tank when their product has been used as directed
 
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