lace rock

[GOBY]

I was wondering what the best type of base rock is for my aquarium. The LFS has several types of base rock but all the coral rock I have found has been relatively small round pieces. I was wondering if Lace rock is suitable for use as base rock for some live rock.

 

[Anemoneman]

I used lace rock in a 55 once for rock. I had trouble with the pH dropping but it was in the early days of reef keeping. It could have been due to low alkalinity. I didn't have the problem before adding the lace rock tho. Lace rock looks a litle like vocanic rock or pumice (to me) so it may also have undesirable minerals in it. Just be careful. I have added some of that same rock (I kept it outside in the rock garden for a while after tearing down the 55) to my current reef with no prob. It gets covered by coraline fairly quickly.

Mark

 

[Guest]

Lace Rock

I too found some lace rock at one of the LFS here is J'ville, FL. I asked about it and the owner told me he had been using it for years without problems...He did however tell me that if I went out on my own to find it, to make sure that it is seasoned in the sun ( like firewood I guess ) to somewhat sterilize it... ( Chose to find some on my own because of LFS prices..Too high at $2.49 lb. ). I found some at a lanscaping retailer for $.75 lb. I bought 22 lbs of what I thought to be nice pieces and have sown no signs of dropping PH. My fish are loving it for the crevices and holes it has in it... I am going to add some LR soon to complement its appearance....


Here is a picture of one of the pieces.. Click on the image to enlarge its detail

 

[fishfreek]

Ok, IM confused...

I lace rock like some form of man made rock? Is it like land based limestone?

Just confused why Timbo2 could get it for $.75/lb from a landscaper. Shoot when I read the $2.49/lb price I was like thats a good price from a LFS

 

[Guest]

Lace Rock

As far as I have found, Actual lace rock is natural rock not to be confused with ARAGOCRETE Lace Rock that GARF talks about....Theirs is hand made... When I went to the Landscaping place, I did not ask where it came from. The sales man called it Florida Lace Rock...I did some searching on the web and only found a few entries that explained what Lace rock was and they weren't to convincing because, I believe it depends on where you are in the world as to what kind of lace rock you get. I noticed one site talked about volcanic wind blown lace rock and another one talked about this:

"Coal when compressed long enough will become a beautiful translucent diamond, and like a diamond, volcanic rock is produced over time. Lace volcanic rock is characteristically light in color due to the mixture of 62 to 69 percent silica and moderate amounts of sodium and potassium. As these elements are weathered over time these chemicals react leaving ornate streaks of sherbet colored lace that will accentuate any fish aquarium, terrarium, or pet habitat"

This is confusing as I know that there are no volcanoes in Florida....
I am going back to the landscaper place tomorrow and I will be more inquisitive as to where it came from and what it is made of...

But, yes $.75 a pound....Need some? You pay shipping, I send you a ton of it....Ha Ha

Tim

 

[GOBY]

The lace rock I purchaesd from the lfs was 1.50 per pound and came from feller stone in utah which sells alot of rock for aquariums it is a type of volcanic rock which i have been told allows coralline algae to grow on it very well the owner of the lfs said he used it in his reef tank with no problems.

 

[loganj]

We sell it for 1.79 per lb...just for comparison. Is is OK to use any kind of volcanic rock or are there some varieties that are unsuitable for the aquarium due to undesirable substances in the rock. You can bet I'll be scouring all the landscaping dealers in this area looking for some of that lace rock!
Logan J

 

[Brandon]

Most lava rock encountered in LFS's is a man made product and is perfectly safe for any marine aquarium. Natural lava rock on the other hand, often rich in sulfur and metals, should not be used due to potential pollution it may introduce into the aquarium. Similar to lava rock, Tufa rock makes an even better choice. Tufa is a naturally occurring calcareous rock, having a beneficial buffering effect on pH. Tufa rock is very porous thus providing plenty of surface area for both nitrifying and denitrifying bacteria to thrive. Tufa rock is a soft rock and can easily be carved to create desired shapes.
Another rock I have used for base rock is one put out by Feller Stone called Honeycomb. Not as porous but looks nice.