live rock into base rock ???

unfortunately i had to break down my tank and sell my fish/corals two nights ago (long story), i have about 40 lbs of liverock sitting in buckets i dont want to get rid of.. because i definitely plan on starting it back up again in a year or so.

that being said, what is the best process to turn my 40 lbs. of liverock into completely dead and clean baserock that can be stored away for the time being???

 

I would say let them dry out and then scrub or nuke them

 

I dried mine out and then washed it with a high pressure hose. Looking back on it, I would probably uses a pressure washer or boil them next time, unless you want some funk to start you cycle next time.

 

Basically your gonna want to "cook" them, there are lots of Posts on different web sites the tell many ways of doing this including this one Cooking Live Rock - Reef Central be forewarned though this is one stinky proposition!

For long term storage of rock from a tank one of my favorite ways of really cleaning rock and about the easiest it to use regular House hold bleach and water.

I use a big rubber garbage can at least 30 gallons. First scrub off the rocks as best you can in a sink with fresh water and a scrub brush. Then put them in the garbage can, fill can to Just above the rock. If the can is 1/2 full I add a 1/2 gallon of bleach if full a full gallon and stir with a stick the best you can.

Let this concoction sit for several days stirring as best you can with a stick once in a while. Then take the rocks out and rinse them off and repeat the process again, leaving them for another couple of days.

Then take the rocks out of the can and rinse them off in a sink really good. I basically fill the sink up swish the rocks around in it and drain the sink. After doing this process several times with all the rocks I wash out the can and put the rocks back in, fill with water and add about twice the recommended a dechlorinator like Seachem Prime Water Conditioner or AmQuel+ Instant Water Detoxifier let sit, stir, and repeat at least 1 more time.

You can then air dry the rocks and store them in boxes (do not use buckets unless you leave the tops off} with out any issues. If they are stored in a clean dry place you will basically have a bunch of base rock that will not even have to be rinsed when you decide to start up another tank.

Although I am sure that there are some out there that will say I am crazy, I assure you this is perfectly safe because any left over chlorine will dissipate completley when as the rocks dry out. I did this with about 100lbs of rock from a 90 gallon tank I took down back in 2001 and used that same rock in the tanks I have now. I have helped several other people do this also with out any issues.

 

Soak the rock in fresh water with circulation pumps for 2 weeks. For the first week change the water out every 2 day for the secound week every 3 days. If the rock no longer smells then u can put it out to dry if it dose smell that repeat the process untill it no longer smells. if you want the rock to turn white when you take it out of the water u can put it in the over for a few minitues 350 till its bone dry and white.

Did this with my rock and it came out amazing