coppersafe in reef tank!! please helppp

egybels · #1 04-12-2010, 01:00 AM

luckily i just started this tank and dont have any corals but i do have hermits and snails how long before i can add them back?

JenniferL · #2 04-12-2010, 01:02 AM

I thought that the live rock would absorb copper and then leech it into the water afterwards?

egybels · #3 04-12-2010, 01:04 AM

thats what i thought! so is the live rock ruined?

MikeInToronto · #4 04-12-2010, 01:18 AM

Your live rock is dead but that's not the problem. The problem is copper is adsorbed on calcareous substrates and is slowly released back into the water column. Fishes will be fine in the tank but inverts will never be. Some may survive for short periods of time but they will be slowly poisoned.

I'd throw away the live rock. Even if you think there is the slightest chance the copper can be removed from the rock, the cost of replacing the rock is worth your piece of mind.

I won't comment on copper adhering to glass or silicone.

I think if you want to recover the rock you have to wash with HCl and acetone and all sorts of other stuff that makes it not worth the trouble.

egybels · #5 04-12-2010, 01:19 AM

so i need to replace my tank as well?

egybels · #6 04-12-2010, 04:21 AM

so say if i were to start up a fowlr predator tank the fish would be fine? what would i do about algae and stuff if i dont have inverts?

Madreefer · #7 04-12-2010, 01:32 PM

I've had a tank for 9 years. For the first 3 years it was fish only and I treated with Coppersafe the recommended amount more than a few times. I have done many tank upgrades since than and still have every peice of rock from day one. My tank is now a reef tank with anemone, about a dozen mixed kind of shrimp, some clams, starfish, crabs, SPS, LPS zoo's etc. I don't think I'm wrong to say that the Coppersafe eventually goes away.

kien · #8 04-12-2010, 03:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by egybels

so say if i were to start up a fowlr predator tank the fish would be fine? what would i do about algae and stuff if i dont have inverts?

There are a lot of great maintenance fish that can help deal with algae :-)

christyf5 · #9 04-12-2010, 05:45 PM

Personally, I would do a massive waterchange and use Cuprisorb which may help remove copper from the tank and any leaching from the rock. You may have to run it for quite awhile before seeing very low or zero levels.

corpusse · #10 04-12-2010, 01:06 AM

IMO you should throw the rock out at this point.

I'm not sure if it would be safe for a fish only tank but it won't be safe for a reef. Inverts such as your snails and hermits would also perish they are very sensitive to copper.

If you really want to save the rock I guess you could cook it, which involves drying out the rock and washing it over and over again. Someone who's actually done it can explain it to you better if this is something you wish to pursue.