# rocks from the river



## zach62040 (Mar 2, 2009)

I went and picked up a bunch of nice rocks from the river around here. What is the best way to clean them etc. The rocks i picked up look like they are used to hold the soil down. They are not the lil rocks they are larger size etc. Im gonna break up the bigger ones etc. I heard bleaching them is one way and baking them is another? Would it be better if i bleached them then baked them . Thanks for the help


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## Grey Legion (Apr 11, 2005)

part A - 1 part bleach to 10 parts water

soak for 24 hours

Part B - soak in 100% water 24 hrs with declorinator

rinse and repeat Part B

allow to dry, in sun if possible.


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## ridley25 (Jan 5, 2008)

http://www.cichlid-forum.com/articles/rock_metals.php

In most cases a scrub with a wire brush and a nice two day soak will have you set to go. If you're really nervous you can drop by a coin-op car wash and power wash those suckers. If you do go the bleach route, dilute the heck out of it and make sure you rinse religiously afterward.


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## zach62040 (Mar 2, 2009)

doesnt the rock absorb the bleach although u can rinse it over n over? what if i boil it for a while or bake it? trying to get the rock in the water asap. thanks much


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## zach62040 (Mar 2, 2009)

yah thats what i thought. haha the car wash idea would be great lol.. heck if anything survives the power of that spray would be crazy haha.


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## ridley25 (Jan 5, 2008)

Grey Legion said:


> part A - 1 part bleach to 10 parts water


I'm not claiming to be an expert but I'd lean more towards 1% bleach than 10%...


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## zach62040 (Mar 2, 2009)

yah i dont think im gonna bleach em. i will prolly rinse em good then bake em then rinse em again. all i have in the 55 gallon tank is yellow cichlids. they are hardy as heck so who knows lol


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## venustus19 (Aug 30, 2007)

i've heard that baking could cause certain rocks to explode... 
all i have ever done with rocks found in nature, is give them a good scrub with a stiff brush and some hot water... maybe even boil some water, then just dump over the rock if you are concerned, but i've never bleached or boiled rocks before, and i haven't had any issues before...
just crub really good and you'll be fine...
HTH.
good luck.


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## Morpheus (Nov 12, 2008)

I boiled the ones I had in my tank. And the driftwood. In fact, I'm pretty sure my wife has given me that pot for fish related things.


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## SupeDM (Jan 26, 2009)

I will second that if you bake the rocks or boil them it may cause them to explode. If there is any moisture trapped in the rock it will turn to steam and the pressure could be very dangerous.


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## sleepy09 (Jan 15, 2009)

I bought a salt water tank off of craiglist that had about 150 lbs of holey rock in it. The tank sat with no pumps or filters running for 6 months and it was nasty. I put all of the rock in a 30 gallon trash can and put about a cup of bleach in it. I then used a powerhead to keep the bleach water moving around the rocks. They stayed in the can with bleach for about 3 days. I then pumped the water out and fill the can with fresh water and about a cup or 2 of declorinator. Again I used a powerhead to keep the water moving in the can. After about 2-3 days I power washed all of the rock with hot water. I let the rock dry for about a day and then added it to the tank. I had no problems or issues doing it this way. If you can smell bleach on the rocks then you need to soak them longer in declorinator.


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## BillD (May 17, 2005)

I don't understand the paranoia with bleach. If the rocks came out of the water, then definitely bleach them. 10% is a very light solution. I add enough to make the water feel slippery. Bleach will kill any life on the rocks as well as burn off dead organics (it is an oxidizing agent). Rinse in some water with a bit of vinegar and the bleach will be gone. It will also be gone if you allow it to dry. What is left after bleach has had a chance to dry out is salt. I bleach virtually everything before use/reuse.


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## JimInAugusta (Mar 16, 2007)

I have been throwing rocks in tanks for 40 yrs. Never used bleach. Never had a problem. But remember the common sense rule. Do what works for you and always be willing to innovate.


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## Chris Lomax (Feb 8, 2004)

I use round river rocks that I get from dry stream beds. I just wash and scrub them numerous times with a wire brush. Then I soak them for up to a week, changing the water each day. Never had a problem.


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## PaulineMi (Apr 3, 2008)

I bleach and scrub my holey rock to clean it. As a matter of fact I just bleached it last week. I rinse it, rinse it and rinse it some more. Then I set it out in the sun to dry. It's winter in Michigan so I picked a sunny day then brought it in the house afterwards to be certain it was totally dry. I put it back in the aquarium the following morning and all is well.

The rinsing process is done in the shower in the winter. In the summer I hose it down outdoors.


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## doza42 (Feb 21, 2008)

Ditto wire brush, hot water............never have used bleach seams like a hassle. Never had a prob.


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## LG0815 (Aug 1, 2007)

i got some missippi (hope i splled corectly) river rocks from the beach i just soacked in water hot wenough to handle and i scrubed them then throught thm in my 40 gallon fire belled toad tank i have a bout 25 danios in with them


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