Another drastic decision.....opinions plz

[Iceman72]

Hey folks I have been struggling over the past few months with my 55g tank. After lots of thought I think what made my take crash was my live rock that I added that wasnt cured enough. Even after this long it's still driving me must with hitch hikers I don't want. So I have decided to sell all 90+ pounds of it, get rid of all my sand and just go base rock with. Some live sand. I'm sure at the cost I paid for the rock and how much I am selling it for I won't lose a dime. I just think for a noob like me with the limited space and knowledge the base rock will be the best way to go. What do you guys think?

 

[Sniperhank]

I think that no matter what rock you use, when you cycle the tank everything ends up becoming live, cured or not...it is all basically the same just with some level of life on it. Base rock won't help anything be different if everything was properly cycled. It is only bacteria that makes things work smoothly that you are putting into the rock and sand.

 

[Iceman72]

My tank was going so smooth and well. I made a huge mistake by not letting my rock cure for more time. Now it's just a nightmare and major eye sore. What's crazy is that even with almost near perfect parms my water looks like someone dumped milk in it, it's got particle matter floating around. I just wish I knew someone that could come help me out. I can read enough but it's just not working out. I think with the base rock if I add that and do what I did at first and with all my better equipment I will. Be better off. What's funny is that in the beginning I had literally no skimmer, crappy HOB filter. It ran like a champ. Now with all my money dumped in to it it's worse off than ever. At least I won't have the millions of unknown hitch hikers. These latest worms that have taken over leaving this spider web in my tank is the straw that has broken me.

 

[Mebbid]

Why don't you run some filter floss in your tank to pull the floating particulate matter out of the water column? Once you do that you won't be able to see the nets from the vermetid snails anymore. That's a heck of a lot simpler fix than buying whole new rock and sand.

 

[Sniperhank]

If things are still running, I think staying with the issue and being on top of it will solve your problem. It can be frustrating sometimes, I understand. After running for almost 2 years I ran into algae issues and once I stopped that, cyano in one corner of my tank. It happens, the key is to not get frustrated by it and remember that this is supposed to be a hobby that you enjoy. Breaking down the issues to their simple solutions is the key...though these solutions may be simple it does usually take a long time for them to pan out.

 

[mr_X]

I also agree with the above that you don't need to remove the rock. If all you are worried about are vermetid snails, you can easily break them off the rock with tweezers or whatever.
Restarting the entire tank with dry rock is not going to change anything. Things like corals are going to be added, and it's nearly impossible to keep every single critter out.
Also, some filter floss and carbon will definitely correct the cloudy water issue.

 

[Iceman72]

Ok I will give that a try. That's definitely the cheaper way to go.

 

[mr_X]

Just a word of advice- Many of the things people say are detrimental and pests, can be, but you can also keep a healthy, happy reef with them. I have had many "dreaded" critters in my systems over the years and did just fine with them. I'm just saying don't go crazy if you see an aptasia or majano, or vermetid snail. Just keep them in check, by killing them as you see them, and enjoy your reef.

 

[Iceman72]

Thanks x

 

[Kimlafeiet]

Agree with above posters. I run purigen and filter floss in my filter on my tank (which is only a few months old) and it stays crystal clear.
I started my tank with some dry rock and some live rock, and ended up with a few hitchhikers I don't care for (vermitid snails and digitate hydroids), but all the good stuff I got from my live rock far outweighs the bad. Use epoxy putty or super glue over the vermitid snail tubes to keep them in check, I did, and haven't seen a web since.

 

[Jtisle506]

Look on the bright side, although this is a set back you will learn from it and be more educated about the hobby. And it could be worse. I know one guy that got marine velvet and another that had an infestation of aptasia.