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bugzme 
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 Topic: oyster shells
Posted: September 27 2004 at 4:16pm |
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i just ate a dozen fresh oysters and i want to use the shells for zo frags. how should i clean the shells so they will be safe for my tank?
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Jeff
125 tank
50 gallon sump
T-5 lighting
Rum drinker, Carbon User
I KNOW ROCKS THAT ARE YOUNGER THEN ME!! I AM A Realist! I write what I think!!
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Weimers
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Posted: September 27 2004 at 5:25pm |
I don't see anyone else replying, so I'll give it a go. Sounds like an interesting idea to me. You want to make sure that they are super clean, but not put chemicals on them. Ideas:
Scrub with a toothbrush (but might not get them clean enough)
Put them in a dishwasher without adding soap (waste of water)
Boil them in a pot of tap water (a little chlorine in the tap water + boiling couldn't hurt) then rinse rinse rinse
Hmm... I like the boiling thing. Then if it were me, I'd leave them in a glass dish with R/O water for a few days just to let anything bad (like chlorine) evaporate away. Then I'd put the shells in my refugium for a month or so.
Crazy ideas? Maybe. I'd like to see what other people suggest.
Renee
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peregrinus
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Posted: September 27 2004 at 5:36pm |
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well my thought is that if you just ate them there could not be much bad stuff on them. maybe rinse them and put in refug or sump for a week or so?
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In Clearfield
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Adam Blundell
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Posted: September 27 2004 at 6:37pm |
NO NO NO. That is what I say. Only because of all the horror stories (and my experience) of using oyster shells as substrate and for making aragocrete. Bad stuff that kills.
But, large whole oyster shells may be fine.... I've never tried them. But I wouldn't risk it.
Adam
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dianatabor
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Posted: September 27 2004 at 6:45pm |
I agree that the shells are probably pretty clean since you just ate them. But, I'd still recommend cleaning them and heating them, just in case.
I can think of a couple of options. First, you could boil them as Renee mentioned. I'd use RO water, just to be safe. While the water's cooling, you could throw in a bag of activated carbon to absorb any odors/chemicals that may be on the shells.
A second option would be to rinse them well, then place them on a clean baking sheet in the oven. I'd use 350 degrees for about 10 minutes, but that's just a guess. If you decide to do that, you'll want to keep an eye on them to make sure they don't warp, break, or char.
You could also bury the shells in a thin layer of dry sand and bake them for 30 minutes or more. For either oven option, make sure you let them cool well before adding them to water, or they may crack.
Hope one of these ideas works for you. Good luck 
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dianatabor
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Posted: September 27 2004 at 6:50pm |
About Adam's warning... I've also heard of people having problems with crushed oyster shells, but I can't remember exactly why. All I know is that I have at least 10 pairs of large oyster shells in my 17 gallon tank and have never had a problem with them. They cover quickly in coraline and look great. I think they'd be great for frags. Just my opinion.
(Sorry Adam.  )
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Weimers
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Posted: September 27 2004 at 7:08pm |
What if he microwaved them for 2 or 3 minutes?
Renee
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dianatabor
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Posted: September 27 2004 at 8:19pm |
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The only reason I didn't include microwaving is because I heard somewhere that you shouldn't microwave dry things. I'd hate for them to get too hot and shatter! Jeff, I guess you could try to microwave a couple of them and see how it goes. Personally, I'd just boil them for 10 minutes or so and call it good.
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Richard L.
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Posted: September 28 2004 at 8:02am |
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Try this- boil for threeor four minutes, then soak in weak bleach (chlorine) solution for a couple hours, rinse well , then soak in weak baking soda solution for a couple hours. Rinse well and dry thoroughly in the sun.
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Richard
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jfinch
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Posted: September 28 2004 at 8:36am |
I would just lick off all the horseradish sauce, run them under the sink for a few minutes and drop into my tank  .
As Adam mentions, oyster shells contain more phosphate then other calcium carbonate sources. It can be a problem if you use chicken scratch (crushed oyster shell) for a substrate, but might be ok as a large shell.
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Jake Pehrson
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Posted: September 28 2004 at 8:44am |
 Adam Blundell wrote:
NO NO NO. That is what I say. Only because of all the horror stories (and my experience) of using oyster shells as substrate and for making aragocrete. Bad stuff that kills.
But, large whole oyster shells may be fine.... I've never tried them. But I wouldn't risk it.
Adam
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I wouldn't worry about them. Rinse them off well and place them in your tank.
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