Saltwater to Freshwater

[seahorse1]

If i want to convert my saltwater tank to a freshwater tank, does anyone know if just boiling the live rock is ok to put back into the FW tank? What about cleaning the glass, etc?

OK another question. I had a pink urchin that was looking good one day and the next it was lying on the bottom of my tank upside down. I have plenty of algae for it to eat. There is nothing else in the tank that could bother it, just 2 feather dusters. All water parameters are fine. Any suggestions?

 

[JohnK]

IIRC urchins can be very sensitive to salinity levels and acclimation.

With the rock, if it's actual LR composed of calcerous rock, I wonder how quickly it would dissolve in freshwater. I say that because with the lower PH of FW your tank would be acting almost like a Ca reactor. Assuming the PH was low enough to dissolve the rock somewhat quickly, it would be putting a lot of Ca/alk into the water which might cause some issues in a FW tank. (I'm just guessing on all that, but it's probably worth some consideration???)

 

[KRod]

Even after boiling the liverock, there will still be a ton of die-off and it will take a long time of soaking before its completely clean and safe to be put in a freshwater tank. I really don't understand why people would ever want to do this...I think a much better option is selling your liverock and just buying baserock if you like that look (works well for african cichlid tanks).

 

[Joel A]

I wouldn't use the live rock, at all. What Jimmy said i would imagine is right.

 

[seahorse1]

I was thinking about just buying new baserock. I just have this one piece of LR thats about 100 pounds and an unusual shape and I dont want to get rid of it. It would look awesome in the FW tank. But I agree that it wouldnt be such a good idea. I didnt think about the rock dissolving and raising the Ca+ levels. Thats a good point.