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Freshwater tank: I have a large rock thing in my tank & was wanting to know a safe way to clean it. I don't know what it is & can't remember where I got it. I don't know if it's real or fake. It's basically made up of irregular appendages & the whole thing is loaded with tiny pin holes. I think it's supposed to be white or possibly a light cream color, but right now it's rusty looking (not rust, just filthy) & I'm going to take it out & clean it with a toothbrush.

I heard you are never supposed to use soap, but read that a 5% solution of bleach in water is ok to use on aquarium stuff. I was wondering about using a whitening toothpaste (doubtful) or baking soda or letting it soak in vinegar or the bleach water. Of course I would rinse it good, but with the tiny holes I'm sure whatever I used, a portion would remain trapped inside this rock & slowly seep into the tank water once it was returned to the tank. Any suggestions on a good safe cleaner? A cleaner I have at home? I don't want to purchase something for aquariums just to clean a rock.

Hi,
If your "rock" was actually white, and from
your description, I suspect that it is really a
large piece of coral.
I'm sure over time it has lost its Lilly white color and
turned color as it stained and grew algae.

Scrubbing it with a new, unused, brown brush (kiai brush)
would be the best way. Soaking it in vinegar could damage
it as it is a form of Calcium Carbonate, and the vinegar
is an acid. The vinegar will eat away at it.

Scrubbing it in a weak Clorox solution might be the way to
go, BUT, be sure to immerse it under running water for
hours so that when you take it out, you cannot smell ANY
Clorox on the "rock." To be sure, after that, I'd put it
in a clean, unused bucket, and immerse it in water and add
water conditioner to it (chlorine/chloramine remover) for
a day or so. Be sure to use the original Clorox and not
one with any additives (stuff to make it smell better).
With all those "pin holes" to trap the Clorox you will
have to be really, really, sure to not have any trapped
in the rock when you place it back in the tank. Clorox
in the tank can have disastrous effects.

Your problem, by the way, is why many folks do not use
white sand substrate. It stains, and is a real chore to
keep clean.

Frank


-->>> The Confidence of Amateurs, is the Envy of Professionals <<<--

It sure sounds like a piece of coral to me as well. I really don't know what the best answer is though. Because the coral is so porous, by nature, I don't know if bleach is such a good way to go. I would imagine that bleach would get into every nook and cranny of the coral and take forever to get it all out, as you mentioned. IMHO, you’re fighting a losing battle. Even if you do get it clean, you’re going to be going through the same thing in a couple months anyways.

When coral is used in a saltwater aquarium, it is not meant to stay the pristine white. It will get covered up with coralline algae and other “good stuff”. I would probably just scrub everything you can off with a toothbrush and throw it back in. I believe it’s going to be too much work to get the bleach out once you introduce it.

-Josh

Well duh! I'm sorry guys! I just realized that I never mentioned the word coral in my post! Yes, I figured it was coral or rather a good imitation. I don't know that I've seen real coral, so when I acquired this thing, ( I'm thinking I might have gotten it in a used tank I bought) I assumed it was fake. People usually hope they have the "original" of something & then get disappointed when they find out they don't, so I just skipped the first part & went straight to the last, assuming it was a fake. I did check the bottom of it & it doesn't say, "Made in Japan." Anyway, rather than be presumptuous about it, I just always referred to it as my cool lookin' rock.

This thing looks kind of like it's made out of some sort of cement & is about as heavy too! I don't know if that's a description of coral or not? Anyway............. if it is....... I don't know what a brown brush (kiai brush) is? So apparently I don't have one of those laying around. You guys have me scared out of using bleach now & Frank said no vinegar. But I'll remember your suggestion Frank, if I ever use bleach for an aquarium item I'll remember to soak it in water conditioner afterwards. That's a good idea!

I remember scrubbing this thing with just a toothbrush & running water mo. ago before I put it in the tank. It came pretty clean then. It was good enough anyway. I think you're right jmara.......... it'll just get dirty again in a couple mo..

I'm assuming my toothpaste idea is out, but nobody commented on the baking soda?? Can I use that as a mild abrasive while I'm using the toothbrush? Or is that too much like Alka-seltzer? I read if you wanted to kill a fish to put it in a small container with water & put a couple of Alka_seltzers under it's gills.

Thanks so much for your advice guys! I've learned so much on this site that if I have doubts about doing anything, I know I can just ask here & you guys will tell me how it is! It's so nice to have fish buddies! Cause of course, non fish people just don' t understand.

Hi,
If you go to a grocery store or perhaps a hardware store
and look in their cleaning supplies, you should find a
brush that is about 3 or 4 inches wide, and about 8 inches
long with a flat wood "handle" and the bristles are
brown and very stiff. They are commonly used for scrubbing
surfaces needing lots of "elbow grease."
These same bristles can be found on the bottom of a
buffing machine's scrubbing brush.
That is the brush I'm suggesting.

Frank


-->>> The Confidence of Amateurs, is the Envy of Professionals <<<--

Thanks Frank. I believe I know the brush you're talking about. Since nobody has commented on the baking soda, I will assume that if I decide to scrub with that it 'll be ok. I finally found a site on the net that tells how to clean coral & it said the same thing you did Frank about how you can use bleach! It also told some other ways. If anyone would like to read about it, here is the link.
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/clnornfaqs.htm