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cleaning rocks

2564 Views 6 Replies 6 Participants Last post by  Blacktetra
Any suggestions for cleaning algae discoloration off hardscape rocks?

The balance in my tank is fine, I've got light/co2/ferts pretty well handled, but there is residual coloration of my hardscape rocks. I'm not sure if I should just try a few direct doses of hydrogen peroxide, glut, or add just enough salt to my tank to help keep some nerite snails alive. (I've never had one live more than a week, and all I can attribute it to is that they come from a brackish environment and my tank has no salt).

Is anything known as a good means of cleaning rocks up?
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I drain water to expose rocks, then apply h2o2 with paint brush

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Honestly? Clarisonic. I even clean leaves with clarisonic "luxe" sensitive brush head! It oscillates and does not just rotate, so the "luxe" heads are safe on plants. We are talking butterfly-kisses gentle. Mechanical oto haha. Clean then water change. Four levels of intensity plus "turbo" mode haha. Rougher brush heads are good for glass and rocks.

Obviously I have dedicated brush heads for aquarium, that I do not use on my skin.

Don't judge me haha. You are supposed to toss the brush heads after three months of use and buy new ones, so I decided to recycle them for cleaning aquarium instead of just throwing away.

Going out and buying a new clarisonic for an aquarium is dumb since they are so expensive, but if you already have one, anyway.....
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Mechanical oto haha.
true story - try to not over think it.

i hold a hose around the area i'm brushing so stuff doesn't fly around during a wc and suck stuff out immediately after knocking it off.





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Just pull it out, bleach it, scrub it, soak it in dechlorinated water, and drop it back in.

As for snails, it's probably because your water is too acidic (must be above 7 pH) or not enough calcium (increase GH). Nerites don't need salt except to hatch the eggs ;)

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Dishwasher - also really fantastic on clear plastics etc used in the tank.

Actually, I try and encourage algae, but can only seem to produce green spot... I love how it looks on wood and rocks and my Ancistrus love it too.
I'll try draining tank low enough and directly apply HO and/or glut. And hope that once dead it eventually just washes off.
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