Rock Questions

[ReefNooB]

From my understanding all LR is very porus* so that the tiny bacteria and tiny organisms have a place to hang out (provide surface area)...sooo i was wondering if you could use lava rock, like the kind commonly used in pond filters could be seeded for LR?

It seems to me that u reefers tend to lean towards LR/LS filters as a natural ecosystem. However, this tends be able to sustain only low lvls of fish, and i dont do low lvls of fish :? . I was wondering if placing some live rubble in your fuge or even possible as some sort of W/D setup work as efficentialy as adding the live rock straight to you tank? Would the rubble in a W/D setup work just like bioballs would or would the life in the rubble die without being fully submerged?

 

[fishfreek]

The porus level of live rock will vary depending on where the rock comes from. For example fiji rock is usually more porus than Florida rock. I have never used lava rock but what I have read says that lava rock can carry hard metals and other elements that are less desirable in our aquariums and thus can cause problems in the long run.

There are other benifits to low levels of fish. SHould your pumps ever fail due to a power outage having an overcrowded tank will cause your fish to quickly sufficate. This is because there is lower oxygen in SW than in FW. In addition SW fish are more agressive and need more room to live in peace with eachother. In the natural reef while you have some locations that appear to be packed with fish overall the reef has very few fish per square yard.