Is live rock necessary when you are cycling the tank?

[Gordo124]

Want to turn my 29 gallon tank into a nano saltwater tank... I know about everything that i have to get but im not sure if ill be able to get all the live rock at once or even get any at all when i first start it ... Will it be a problem if i add the live rock in after i get my fish in the tank ??

 

[spoonman]

If you can get the live rock right away that is the best way. I think it is best to get all the stuff that is going to be in the tank right away while it is cycling. Once you are cycled I dont like to make too many changes. If you add the live rock after the cycle, you need to make sure that you cure it in a container with powerhead and heater. Then add to the tank and watch for spikes in ammonia and nitrite.

 

[carey]

You will need to cure whatever live rock you add if you already have livestock. The live rock can cuase an ammonia spike. :-(

The solution would be to buy mostly base rock which is cheap and a few lbs of live rock. Then cycle and you'll be set after the cycle completes/

 

[Gordo124]

Where can i get the base rock? I keep hearing about that i just dont know where to get it....
And also the rock that ill be getting is dried rock at liverockranch.com

 

[Gordo124]

It says its already cured... And ill just take some tank water out in a bucket then put the dried rock in the bucket so that it can be covered in the same water as in the tank...

 

[carey]

You can get base rock at the following places:
Bulk Aquarium Supplies - Reef Aquarium Supplies | BulkReefSupply.com
The Reef Rock Store
Reef Cleaners| Clean up Crews and Macroalgae

Anytime there is live rock shipped, there is gonna be some die off which means ammonia. This is great if you are just starting your tank and have no livestock yet. It will help you cycle. I would add all the live rock you can now and as much of the base as you can as well. base rock can be added even after you have livestock so that's another option.

 

[Schism]

Ok i see a few problem here.

1) how do you plan on supporting the bioload with no live rock? Not impossible but just asking how your planning to do this?

2) dead rock, is not live. Meaning it cannot function as a biological filter. It will need to become live first.

I highly suggest waiting to cycle the tank, and waiting for live rock. Otherwise you could be asking for problems that could endanger any livestock. Not a great idea to start off a tank when its not ready. Just my opinion.

 

[Gordo124]

Ok i WILL buy the all the rock at once ...
It says that it is dry LIVE rock...
I will still cure the rocks but i just saw the rocks in bulkreefsupply.com andit says it is dry live rock... So im alittle confused... This is the only thing on saltqater tanks that confuses me...