Live Rock Talk!!

[PSU4ME]

I’m really torn between ordering Live Rock for my tank or going the dry/seed approach. From what I gather (high level), live rock supplies the good bacteria and a whole bunch of other life forms such as bugs, worms etc. Dead rock, when seeded with live rock provides the good bacteria but is limited to the other life forms it supplies because they are only in/on the small amount of live rock you supplied…….adding more live rock to get more “stuff” starts to defeat the purpose of this method. IMO (and this is just my opinion) the dry/seed approach is an alternative to live rock but not a replacement.

Another thought I had was buying some of these “ kits” that are out there that help get the beneficial life forms into the tank…… : : : : Indo-Pacific Sea Farms : : : : but then you start adding cost, and sooner or later, your back to live rock.

The big fear about live rock is unwanted hitch hikers….and oh yeah, cost.

So my purpose here is to not only get your thoughts on the above but to also get your advice on treating the rock with interceptor prior to putting it into the tank. I would do this during the curing cycle. I’ve heard that people put this in their tanks and it kills the nasties but everything else is fine. What do you think about this? Is this defeating the purpose/benefit of live rock to begin with?

Thanks!

 

[jjmoneyman]

I prefer the dead rock approach with a few pieces of LR from a well established tank. I'm afraid using LR and then using a potion is going to kill just as many of the good things you want as bad things but I've never done this. I actually keep a 40 gal tank with a DBS and LR for locals setting up new tanks that need a few rocks to seed their tanks with new life. Adding chaeto from a well established tank will also set you up well with pods and such.

 

[Bearjohnson]

I'm a big believer of the dead rock approach and a few deli shrimp. It may take a little longer to cycle but I'm bad when it comes to "If I didn't add you, then you shouldn't be here"

 

[ChrisOaty]

I agree with the two above posters. I added rocks from my LFS and ended up with nudis and red bugs. It was a 29gallon that I was setting up temporarily while I build out my 40B. After reading about the hassles of getting rid of both of these pests, I decided to tear that down, nuke those rocks and start fresh with a seeder rock from another well established tank of mine. In my opinion, the positives of having beneficial life on a fully live rock build are outweighed by the possibility of bad hitchhikers. By starting off with dry rock we can retain a certain level of control to the life we add to our systems.

 

[TwiceIrish]

This is not the voice of experience as I am just doing my second reef, but I have chosen "dead" dry rock from Bulk Reef Supply (They sent lovely rocks) for the rebirth of my little Red Sea Max 130D. First time around, loved the little starfish and tube worms that grew but hated the huge bristle worms which became the largest predators in the tank. Yes, we did try everything to catch them and succeeded in catch one that was more than 8 inches when not extended! Crawled over corals, ate snails and caused me to be afraid to put my hand in the tank.

No, I don't know how it will all turn out but Glenn (nanoreefing4fun) has a very nice reef and I believe he used all dry rock several years ago to get it started. Glenn could really weigh in here!

 

[engineer goby]

I used 50lbs dry rock and 70lbs of Fiji live rock from my LFS and I didn't really have an issues with hitch hikers, I guess I'm just lucky. I had some britle worms in my tank and I think they benefit my system rather then hurt it and I did have some flatworms but their all gone, I'm thinking the Goby ate them. I really like all the other things that came along with the rock such as feather dusters and pods however if I could do it again I would use all dead rock just because it's cheaper not because of pest.

 

[redneckgearhead]

To me I would never set up a tank with dry rock, according to lee it will never be "live rock" to me it's worth the gamble of bad HH because with the bad comes the good as well. I'm betting that more people get good HH than those that get bad ones, you only hear about the bad ones. Here is a good thread on LR http://www.reefsanctuary.com/forums/fish-diseases-treatments/61875-what-live-rock-anyway.html

 

[dmatt88]

Gimme the critters. Ill take 50/50 live dead.

.........yep. I'm a reefer.

 

[immerume2]

I like the little Hh. I have gotten.

Sent from my DROID RAZR using Tapatalk 2

 

[Brandon78]

I go with LR just because the fact, I love not knowing what im going to get. I find it fascinating to see all the little HH that you get with lr, yea there is also bad things, but thats one of those chances I like to take

 

[PSU4ME]

Thanks for all the responses guys! There is no wrong or right way so i appreciate everyone weighing in. I have to go with maybe the minority here (Scott) and go live rock...reading Lee's article on live rock makes so much sense to me and all the little life is half the fun for me. I'm going to get about 100# of manado rock from premium aquatics....it is a fused finger type rock an very open so hopefully i might be able to ID any bad guys before they get out of had. I'll supplement with the 30-40# of dead stuff I have here to make up the difference. Found a nice little fish store all the way up in NH today (I swear I was in Canada) and they have amazing ultra fiji for $6.99 a pound.....probably get one of these rocks for a little biodiversity along the way.

 

[sportparadise]

I am always learning from RS but my choice would be 80/20. I have had alot of issues in my time and still am. But I think dead and start fresh.

 

[Haaileybop]

I'm a big believer of the dead rock approach and a few deli shrimp. It may take a little longer to cycle but I'm bad when it comes to "If I didn't add you, then you shouldn't be here"

+1

 

[Doogle]

It can depend on if your reef or fish dominate also, h.h. Aren't a issue in fish dominate tanks. Most bad things get out of hand by improper care/ quality of your tank.you always risk getting a h.h. when you get new livestock and coral frags anyway, so your attempt to be pest free could be a waste and then you have bad hh and no good ones. Try both ways to find out, eh?

 

[kain101]

It depends on your patience, wallet and how you want your reef to operate. Base rock is cheaper. Some ppl take a very naturalistic approach, others want no HH if possible. The there is one LFS near me that does not sell live rock, they have DIY base rock painted to look like coraline algae is growing on it (a little extreme in my mind).

-if you don't mind hitchhiker creatures and can afford to, i would do 50/50 or 80/20 if you have time
-if you dont want HH then go 100% base and do a long cycle or a chemical cycle (and never buy a large piece of coral, cause you will probably get something there at some point).

my first tank i did not prevent HH at all, I even lucked into a small clam, and other cool HH that way
for this current tank I recently bought 30lbs of live rock from a guy taking down his tank and killed everyting on it (there were literally 150 - 200 visible dead worms, bristle, fire, etc.. in the container after)

 

[Doogle]

One thing I don't get is when people use 1 or 2 live rocks with 50 dry rocks. What's the point? The live part is staying on the two rocks and not spreading to the other fifty rocks.Coraline Algae?... If it's that get a thing of plastic and put it in an established tank and then wait till it's covered with algae and nothing else, then introduce it to your tank. isn't it recommended to put new l.r. Into your system every few years or more, to replace old died off organisms, because they can't reproduce in contained systems?

 

[redneckgearhead]

One thing I don't get is when people use 1 or 2 live rocks with 50 dry rocks. What's the point? The live part is staying on the two rocks and not spreading to the other fifty rocks.Coraline Algae?... If it's that get a thing of plastic and put it in an established tank and then wait till it's covered with algae and nothing else, then introduce it to your tank. isn't it recommended to put new l.r. Into your system every few years or more, to replace old died off organisms, because they can't reproduce in contained systems?

That's what some recommend.