How to prepare base rock

I've got about 50 pounds of what used to be live rock but it has been out of the water and sitting in a cardboard box in the garage for several years.

What, if anything, should I do to prepare this base rock before adding it to a new tank?

If I wanted to seed this base rock with some premium live rock, how much of a setup would I need to have in advance of having my full tank up and running? Would a rubbermaid tub, skimmer, and powerhead be sufficient? How about lighting requirements?

 

You really don;t need to do anything. I would wash it in some RO/DI water. Seeding wise, a rubbermaid container would be fine. You will have to keep parameters at about the same as a tank. Temp between 74-82, salinity 1.022-1.026, lighting doesn't really matter, the bacteria don't need light, although no coraline will grow. You will need to give the bacteria some food, so a piece of shrimp or other seafood type item will work.

 

Yep, just rinse it off real good and place in your tank. Get a few pieces of liverock or even rubble and place it on top of your base rock. Could even get some coraline from another tank, off the glass or even off a powerhead and place it in your tank. Throw a shrimp tail in there and let it rot for a bit to get the cycle started. Dont run any lights on it and keep some good flow in the tank.

 

Since the rock was probably not cleaned before it was stored (and since you have no idea what was on the rock before it was stored) I would give it a good soaking in a 50/50 r.o. water/bleach solution for a few days then rinse, soak again in fresh water r.o. mixed with a box of baking soda for another few days, rinse again and let soak in fresh r.o. water for a few more days. One last rinse and allow to air dry.