Live Rock or (Dead Rock)

I have about 20-30lbs of Rock in a tank in my basement with cold SW. now when I say cold, it is really cold. Nothing live on the rock from what I can see.(moving critters). Do I assume this rock is completely dead? or could the algae (coraline) still be alive? Just trying to figure out if I need to completely clean, scrub the rock and let it dry. or if it would be ok as is. When I do use it, it will be in a brand new system.

 

you could do either one in a new system, the dead stuff would start the cycle but it wouldnt hurt to clean it.

 

if its a new system, no living critters in it or anything, then you should be fine. wont hurt a thing.

 

Agree with the above, just put it in the tank and cycle it. I wouldn't add any livestock until the cycle is complete.

 

wasnt gonna add anything for a long while. I dont even have the Tank yet. I want to get an 8 gallon biocube. the rock still has a purple color to it. is there any chance the coraline algae is still alive? would it bleach if dead?

 

yes, coralline would have likely bleached if it were dying off... Why not put a heater in with the rock/ water and start cycling it out of the tank? Then, when you do have a tank, it will be done. Maybe there is some hibernating bacterial colonies or who knows what else still present that will add some life and maybe help cycle faster when you set your new tank up?

 

my thoughts exactly

 

ok so I will add a heater to the water and see how it looks in a few weeks to a month.

 

yeah and if you can toss a powerhead in there too. this will keep the water warm all over instead of just where the heater is...