Puffer_freak
Put the trombone down, *****!
Rock Cleaning for the Driven Insane
This article, is, as can be guessed from the title, about cleaning rocks. In particular, anything which is similar to "lava rock".
Anything similar to lava rock, will attract algae. It's quite simple really, there's so many cracks and dips in it that the algae has somewhere to lodge. This is not good if your tank is by a window (as mine is) and the sun is constantly saying hello to your fishes, and, indeed, your rocks/plants/whatever other decoration you have in there.
Lava rock, such as the one in the link below, are able to be boiled. Yes, they have air inside them, but no, they do not explode - in my experience. This is, as far as I can guess, because they have holes in them, so the air is able to escape.
http
/www.aquariumport.com/LAV1.JPG So on that note, the first thing to do, to get them clean, is to boil them. It needs to be a moderately heavy boil for around 30 minutes. Make sure you have a large pan and, if possible, that the water completely covers the rock. If you are still worried about the rock exploding, you could tie the lid onto the pan, but in my experience, there has never been any need.
You may ask: Why boil?
The reason for boiling, is that it kills the algae, and makes the rock ready for the next astage of the cleaning process. I boiled my rocks for the first time, because thye got so bad that it was a case of either they came clean, or they were going, no matter how much I loved or had payed for them. It payed off in the end.
After doing the boiling, you need to leave the rocks to cool, for a good two minutes. Then, take them outside and give them a good jet wash. You MUST leave them to cool, or their is a possibility that they will crack from the sudden change in temperature.
If you do not have some kind of power jet, a hose might do the trick, although it will probably not be powerful enough.
Do the above stages in the order given, and not the other way around. The reason for this is because the boiling kills and softens the algae, meaning it is easy to come off when power jetting. It is my experience that this way round works best.
I hope this helps you in some way. Please excuse any typos or grammatical errors!
Thanks for reading,
Puffer
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