Looking for advice for tank re-build

[jgiannini]

Hi All - Been quite a while since I have posted any questions, but I'm hoping to get some advice on how to best proceed. Little backstory....So somewhere along the way, I added something (either a frag or a piece of live rock) that had a piece of caulpera on it (don't know exactly which strain, but I think peltata). Unfortunately didn't notice. So over the past year, I have been pulling this stuff out every 3-4 weeks but I will never win since it's embedded in the rocks. Due to this, I am planning on pretty much starting from scratch. I have about 60 lbs of dry rock from Marco rocks curing in a rubbermaid tub. I plan on getting a brand new tank (only a 38-gallon, so pretty cheap) and replacing all my sand as well. So here are the questions:

1.) I want to save as much coral as possible but not introduce any hints of caulpera into my new tank. I assume I should put them all into a QT tank for a while, but should I go about normal frag procedures to cut them all off the frag plugs and re-glue/toothpick them?

2.) Has anyone had any luck with LED lighting for a 20 gallon long tank housing corals (SPS, LPS, Softies)? Or what lighting would you all recommend for a short-term need like this. Currently it is just a regular fluorescent bulb since it was just a fish QT originally.

3.) I have a HOB fuge with a DSB and live rock rubble. Should I toss all that as well or would I be able to keep that?

4.) Should I add one bag of live sand to jumpstart the bio filter for the sand once I get the new tank in place?

5.) How long in pure darkness will it take for my existing live rock to become clean of this crap?

My main goal is to make the transition with minimal impact to the fish and prevent a cycle. Thanks for any advice and sorry or the rambling!

Jason

 

[JonsReef]

Your post, while well-intentioned I'm sure, is a bit overwhelming because of thr amount of information you are requesting. Have you considered breaking it into a separate post for each topic. I think you will end up with a more lively discussion that way.

Best of luck with the new tank

 

[sumant19]

.) Has anyone had any luck with LED lighting for a 20 gallon long tank housing corals (SPS, LPS, Softies)? Or what lighting would you all recommend for a short-term need like this. Currently it is just a regular fluorescent bulb since it was just a fish QT originally.

LED lighting will work well.. If you are buying a pre-built fixture you can always adjust the hanging length to adjust the intensity of light reaching corals.. or you can DIY it so it can later also fit in your new tank.. if its for a short time duration, i would think even power compacts will work.. the corals (especially SPS) can lose some colors but they wont die. I had power compacts in RSM130D and was able to sustain and grow (albeit slowly) SPS corals for a year or so before I made a switch to LEDs.

5.) How long in pure darkness will it take for my existing live rock to become clean of this crap?

You can boil the rocks and dry them completely in the sun.. i think that would work better than keeping them completely in dark..

just my 2 cents

 

[jgiannini]

OK...Thanks....Yeah, after re-reading I could see how that would be a lot of info to respond to. I guess the main question is what could I move from my current caulpera infested tank into my new tank without fear of re-infesting the new tank? I know I will be cleaning my skimmer and pumps, etc. but would i need to dismantle my HOB fuge too? Thanks! And I will split out a couple of the other question to new threads since they can be geared more towards general discussion and not specific to the original question from this post.

Jason

 

[JohnK]

Invasive caluperas can be, well, pretty darn invasive. When I went through a similar process I used all dry rock, cured and cycled it, and then fragged all the corals onto the new rock. I don't know about the HOB fuge, but if it were me and I were going through the trouble of transplanting the whole tank to escape the calupera I wouldn't want to take any chances. I wouldn't trust that darkness would completely wipe out the calupera. I'd boil or bleach if you want to keep some of the current rock.

As for seeding, I would get a cup or two of live sand from a healthy tank (skip that bagged "live sand" crap), and mix that with the new rock and let it sit for a month or three before the move. When I did this I kept it in a rubbermaid garbage can with a powerhead and a heater. Drop in a little fish food now and then or a raw shrimp from the grocery store and that will be plenty to feed a cycle.

 

[ReeferDre]

Peroxide peroxide peroxide. Remove a few rocks and ad peroxide directly to it let it fizz for a minute rinse with ro water and return it to the water. You can take all your rocks out of the tank and keep in a big Rubbermaid bin while doing this. Make your display a frag tank just get some egg crate and PVC. Then take tank water and do a 25% peroxide and 75% tank water solution dip the corals and let them sit 2-4 minutes rinse in ro and return to tank. Should take about 5 days of work but you will be algae free. No need to buy new rock or redo the whole tank I believe the thread I read was on nano reef. Good luck.

 

[jgiannini]

Interesting...had never heard to do that. Is the peroxide the normal CVS strength or the 35% that you would use for hydroponics? Although I would have liked to get a new tank and get it drilled for a sump....

Jason

 

[ReeferDre]

Regular type I go and get it at the $ store usually. You still don't want to add the nuisance algae to a new tank. It will save you on buying new rock. There is a few huge threads on RC and nano reefs

 

[JohnK]

Have you had success with peroxide to rid rocks of invasive calupera? I don't doubt that it is effective with more superficial algae, but I wonder how long and strong of a dip would be required to get to the last of the root structure that some calupera will have deep in the rock?

 

[ReeferDre]

Yes but it was a minimal outbreak. If I can find the thread I will post it.

 

[ReeferDre]

http://www.nano-reef.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=268706

 

[jgiannini]

I tried the peroxide bath on a small rock from my tank. I will see how it looks in a couple days......

 

[ReeferDre]

Did it start turning yellow yet?

 

[jgiannini]

Yep and so far I'm cautiously optimistic! The small rock I put it on has no sign of the caulpera. I will try one of my other rocks that is heavily infected tonight. If I go 2 for 2, I will try one that has some zoa's and xenia on it then continue through the tank. I guess the real test will be in a couple months if its truely gone. Thanks for the help!

Jason

 

[ReeferDre]

The one thing I can say if the cualpra does come back because it's a PIA you can just blast it in the tank with a syringe at first sign of it. I just wouldn't do that the first time Good luck.

 

[ReeferDre]

How's it working?