# I went holey rock hunting, what's next?



## esparzar1 (Jun 14, 2009)

So, I spent my christmas in Austin TX and found some great pieces of holey rock.  
I've bleached them overnight with the results in the pics below...I think I'm gonna bleach them one more time overnight to get them nice and white! So my question now is, how long and often do I need to rinse them after the bleach? I'm gonna leave them in reg tap water with daily water changes for at least 1 week. Of course I'll do the "smell test" to ensure they don't smell like bleach. Is this long enough? Any help is appreciated!


----------



## benny71 (Sep 30, 2010)

Sorry, I can't help you as I've never bleached my rocks...I just stopped in to say those are going to look stunning in your tank. :thumb:

Is all that going in your 55g in your sig or did Santa bring you a new tank?


----------



## esparzar1 (Jun 14, 2009)

IYeah, all of that in the picture is going in the 55 I have a couple of other peices that will be going in my 30gal saulosi tank. Its not as much as it looks like. Once I put it in the tank I will definetly post some pics....I just gotta make sure I get all the bleach outta them lol....I think I'm gonna do daily water changes for about a week then I'm gonna do a couple of days of daily water changes with treated (water conditioner) water. Then I will probably let it air dry for a couple of days.....I'm hoping all of these precautions will be enough. So hopefully in about 2 weeks ill have these in my tank. I can't wait to put these rocks in the tank   but I figure better to be safe than sorry. I only wish santa brought me a new bigger tank, lol....until that happens I'm just gonna continue to try and make my current tanks better


----------



## PfunMo (Jul 30, 2009)

Good to be cautious but for future there are a couple points I might make. The chlorine in bleach is a liquid so it dilutes right away without stirring, etc. It reacts with anything organic it meets and part of it is gone that way. The reason it smells so strong coming out of the bottle is the chlorine becomes a gas and blows away. What that second part means is that it will blow away as soon as it is left out in the air. Soak to clean, rinse to dilute any left, and when it airs out, the chlorine is gone. If you can't smell it, there is a good chance there is more in your drinking water than on the rocks. I assume you are going to put that much rock in a new setup and you will be using a dechlor product (Prime,etc.) with the new water? Say there was some chlorine left on the rock. The dechlor takes care of it just like what comes with the tank water. No problem!


----------



## esparzar1 (Jun 14, 2009)

pfunmo,

Thanks for the insight, soak, rinse, dry......I can't wait to see the results :thumb:


----------



## PfunMo (Jul 30, 2009)

Be aware that the algae may make this a routine job if you want them to stay white!!! Mine? I like them au natural!


----------



## limpert (Aug 28, 2007)

PfunMo said:


> Be aware that the algae may make this a routine job if you want them to stay white!!! Mine? I like them au natural!


Agreed. A little algae never hurt anybody.


----------



## bluedog800 (Aug 26, 2010)

there are chlorine test strips that you can buy, they will detect when there is no longer bleach in the water that you are soaking the rocks in
very nice rocks btw i am jealous...


----------



## BoilerFan (Jun 20, 2010)

It's a way off, but I will travelling to Odessa, TX in 2012. Any places I should consider stopping to hunt? Is it so common that I can just watch for it on the side of the road? Or do I need to work a little harder?


----------



## PfunMo (Jul 30, 2009)

I would guess Odessa way out of the holey rock area, but then which direction are you coming from? Odds are not good of finding it driving down the road. Georgetown Lake is a spot where some can be found but it gets picked over pretty quick if it is accessible and of any value.


----------



## BoilerFan (Jun 20, 2010)

I will be driving from Indiana through Arkansas so I'll be driving pretty much across the state. I'd likely try and stop on the way back home so anywhere East of Odessa works easily.


----------



## PfunMo (Jul 30, 2009)

I am no expert on Texas by a long shot. Much of it , I have only driven through but for holey rock I think of it as a fairly isolated area where it is found exposed. The guys from the Dallas area might correct my thinking but I think of finding holey rock between Waco and San Antonio on the west side of I-35. I- 35 is built along the East side of an uplift that exposed the rocks. Feel free to correct me if this is not accurate.

I rarely see it as I drive but find it when I'm out trekking here and there. Much of what I see driving is built into somebody's fence or rock wall! :roll:


----------



## esparzar1 (Jun 14, 2009)

Wel,l everything turned out great! No problems w/my readings and it looks good. Now I just gotta get some real plants to cover the ugly filters/heater!










Bolier Fan,
As for the question asked above, anywhere near waco/kileen should be a good area. The first place I would check is any local lakes in that area and see what you can find. If you get close to Austin the same thing can be said (Lake Travis/Lake Austin) that whole area has holey rock that is washed up on shore from the lake. Hopefully that helps!


----------



## PfunMo (Jul 30, 2009)

I shouldn't tell but my picking spot is Lake Georgetown. A bit closer to I35 than the bigger lakes farther West. Choosing a dry time when the lakes are really low makes for a lot more area to look over along the shore.


----------

