Ich outbreak, starting over

[heifinator]

I had a bad velvet / ick outbreak and have learned to QT, I have a QT setup with my 2 surviving fish who were CU treated and 2 weeks later show no signs of problems.

 

While my tank was fallow I have had some issues with algae, and my rock work falling apart (somehow..) anyways, I am considering just starting over instead of waiting the 8 additional weeks, and just letting my tank cycle again.

 

This tank was only setup for a month prior to the ich outbreak, I moved over to it just in time for all my fish to die!

 

All my sps and other corals are fine and happy right now, but I can put them in a temporary tank for a couple weeks while my tank cycles again.

 

Could I do this and be safe from the ich returning:

 

Remove all rock, put in a bleach / water mix for 24 hrs, then rinse with RO/DI very, very well. Then ditch all the sand, every grain. Get new sand and put my old (now dead) rock back in. Let the tank cycle for the normal time, then re-introduce my corals and inverts, then my fish once they are 100% clear in the QT.

 

Would killing my live rock and removing the sand assure me there is no residual ich? My concern would be ich in the residual water in the plumbing...

 

The reason I am even considering this is I am going to have to pull the rock out to reattach the pieces that have fallen off, and to deal with the biprosis.

 

Thanks!

[Salty_Snack]

You could do this but it's going to be messy. I personally hate bleaching live rock.

 

I would just let the tank sit without fish for 4 to 6 weeks and then restock. From dead rock to LR would probably be about the same period of time once you bleach it.

[heifinator]

Yea, well, im going to let it sit more like 9 - 10 weeks, to be sure.

 

Anyways, I have to reassemble my scape... How long can I have the rock out of water to do this? No coral on it, would just be some snails and maybe crabs deep inside?

[C.I._Reefer]

An hour is generally a good rule of thumb, any longer and you will get SOME die off, but it would have to be several hours before it was significant.