Went morel hunting, found coral instead.

Last weekend while hunting for morel mushrooms I found a couple pieces of coral back in the woods behind my friends parents farm. We're in northern Indiana so they must have been dumped there for whatever reason. What should I do to prepare it to put it in my tank? Soak it in bleach/water or something? Since there's nothing live on it (like liverock), it really doesn't need to cure, but it's got dirt and had some spiders in it, plus who knows how long it's been there. Not to mention the runoff from the fields that surround these woods that probably contain pesticides. How can I make it safe for the tank?

Thoughts?

 

It is dry rock I would just wash it off and put it in....
Danny

 

Yea but the pesticides from the field run off and stuff like that? Thats more what I'm concerned about...

 

you would soak it in bleach over nightand let it air dry (evaporate the fumes) Bleach will neutralize with air and then just to be safe you can buy a declorinator and let it sit out for a week to play it really safe. Most people bleach their berlin socks for example... they air dry them.

Nice rock by the way! That is the rock I like that I am looking for.

 

When I prepared my dry rock I soaked it in bleach for a couple days then soaked it in water and baking soda for a couple of days to neutralize the bleach.

 

That is what I would do

J

 

Thanks everyone!

 

I would actually cure it outside of your tank first if you're intent on using it. After bleach etc, I would soak it in RO water for a while and then throw it in a rubbermaid container with saltwater, small heater and a powerhead and test the water every couple of days. I would not risk my tank with some random rock found in the woods.

You never know what that rock was used for, maybe it was used in a tank that they treated with copper or some other meds which have soaked into the rock. I believe in order to get stuff out of the rock you probably would need to give it an acid bath to remove the outer layer of the rock.

It might turn out to be safe but you never know. Is it worth the risk?

 

I tend to overkill, but here's what I would do:

First bleach it, then boil it, then acid wash it. Then cook it for 8 months. Then, if you happen to have one, run a flame thrower over it for at least half an hour. After that carefully wrap each piece with 4, no more and no less, sticks of dynamite. This is the tricky part, move them to a safe distance and light the dynamite. I'm relatively sure nothing will live through that. However, you may want to take the extra precaution of putting it all into a deep freeze for 5 years before placing it into your tank. I know I would.

 

If you're pretty sure on the pesticides, I wouldn't use it. No amount of bleaching or soaking will ever get that out.