plz answer this question

[deathtrooper02]

ok so i have sand from my very first set up that has been in my garage for about a year can i re use this in my new set up?

 

[lvsuckerfish]

wet or dry what kind of sand?

 

[deathtrooper02]

its live sand and its under wanter in the bucket

 

[lvsuckerfish]

I would rinse it out in a old pillow case iwith a garden hose and then use it. as the die off will start a big Ammonia spike which could be a good thing if you are starting a clean new tank and will let it cycle properly.

 

[lvsuckerfish]

old sand a skimmer and relax for a month or so. no fish or corals

 

[deathtrooper02]

its gonna be a live rock and reef tank only

 

[barrierreefcf]

As long as its never been in a system that underwent a copper treatment lvsuckerfish is right on. If it was in a copper treated tank it could have copper bound up in it that might be released into your new reef. This would harm invertebrates. Since you say it was live sand I doubt its been exposed to copper but I thought I'd throw this out

 

[lvsuckerfish]

good catch Cy i didn't think about copper

 

[khaosinc]

I'd toss it in and let it kick start the cycle ahead of getting the live rock. So yes, I think you can use it.

 

[deathtrooper02]

what does the copper come from. i had put ick killing stuff in the tank i now know i wasnt suppose to do that it was my first tank i have ever done

 

[ntswift]

Copper comes from treatments like killing Ich. That is why you have to be careful of what you put in your tank. If you are using your old tank too it may have traces of it in the tank as well.

 

[OldFishMan]

Copper is reactive --- put some in today and it will be gone tomorrow --- yea, it binds to things well as stated earlier. So, it does not just jump back into the water --- it will stay bound.

OFM

 

[returnofsid]

Copper can leach out, back into the water column, killing inverts.

 

[OldFishMan]

Copper can leach out, back into the water column, killing inverts.

Okay, at a low enough PH these things happen. Did you, or did you not, dose copper to the required levels for days or weeks ?

"After treatment has been completed, copper can be removed from the system, although complete removal is difficult to achieve - especially if calcareous gravels (including the popular crushed corals or aragonites) or decorations have been used. A significant amount of copper can be stored up in these substances, and slowly leached back into the system as copper levels in the water are lowered. Frequent partial water changes and the addition of activated carbon or certain commercial ion exchange resins will slowly remove copper from the system, but it will probably take a month or more to extract the bulk of the copper. Some aquarists and dealers prefer to keep a fish-only tank permanently coppered, and I have seen fish that have been kept in properly coppered tanks for as long as a year that do not appear to be any worse for wear."

The answers to the other questions are in the article:

http://www.bestfish.com/copper.html

Fish or FOWLR I would say Okay --- Expensive Reef --- What is another $200.00 !

Your call.

OFM

 

[OldFishMan]

I'll act like Paul Harvey --- the rest of the story !

"The addition of DOC into the exposure media provided germlings with protection against copper toxicity"

http://www.sciencedirect.com/scienc...serid=10&md5=6abdc1676f7cd9e0a753d15208d9270d


In short copper binds to almost everything and docs are removed by carbon and skimming. It is removed by my Phos-Ban stuff I use --- You will never get a copper measurement in a tank with carbon and a skimmer even if you dosed for weeks !

It is still your call !

OFM

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“In times like these, it helps to recall that there have always been times like these.”

Paul Harvey quote