Live Rock Question

[neeker4]

What is the proceedure for handeling LR? Do you simply buy it and throw it in your tank, or do you have to wash it in salt water and put it in? Also, how does LR take to being handled with no gloves? Newbie who is curious...

 

[neilanh]

Is your tank already setup and running and cycled?

WHen you buy live rock, through shipping or transporting it's common to get what's called Die-Off when you put it in water. This is just stuff on the rock that has died that usually causes an ammonia spike.

So, if you get new LR and your tank is already cycled, it's a good idea to "cure" it before you put it in your tank. Put it in a container or whatever you have with some SW, a heater and a powerhead and let it sit for a while to process all the dead stuff off so you don't cause an ammonia spike in your tank.

However, if you get the LR from your local LFS or a friend or something that's had the rock in a tank or curing vat already, then if it's already fully cured you can put it straight in your tank.

As for handling it, you can just grab it. More risk is posed to you than it is to the rock itself. I wear nitrile gloves whenever I handle it, as there can be things on the rock that will hurt you.

 

[dannyb]

You can touch LR, Just be careful of whats on it. A crab may pop out, You might touch something slimy, You might touch something hard and spikey. You never know, Your best of doing some research about "LR Hitch Hikers" and seeing the things that come with LR sometimes.

There is no need to wash it as it needs to be cycled.

Usually, LR will come from a sump or a tank in the LFS. Once you buy it, They may put it in a box of some sort, Then you go home, put it in your tank and start the cycle.

 

[neeker4]

I am setting up a 20g long tank and am looking into everything before I go out and buy. I will want the LR to help the tank cycle so I will be putting them in an uncycled tank. Neilanh, where do you get the nitrile gloves that you mentioned. Those sound like a wonderful thing to have.

 

[cmor1701d]

I agree on wearing gloves, but be aware that there may be very sharp edges. I generally end up with small cuts a/o torn gloves when handling my rock.

 

[neilanh]

You can get nitrile gloves at any local hardware store. Try to find the unpowdered version. I've used both, and while the powder hasnt affected anything, the unpowdered ones don't put stuff in your tank that doesn't need to be there.

They're only a small level of protection, though. If you're really concerned about it, you can use heavier duty rubber kitchen gloves (just get a set and ONLY use it for your tanks if you're going to do this though. no cleaning the toilet then using it in your tank. lol)

 

[neeker4]

Cool, thanks for the advice. Two more questions. How much LR is possible with a 20glong tank? How do LR and coral get along?

 

[Crepe]

1-2 pounds per gallon has been the rule i've always used. Although for a 10gallon tank 20 pounds is already enough. It also depends what type of LR you're talking about. Pacific and fiji rock is considerably less dense than atlantic Lr.

 

[neeker4]

Alright that seems simple enough a 2:1 ratio. Still curious about how LR and most corals get along. I realize every type of coral is different but I will eventually want some easy to care for coral as I am a newbie to SW. Any suggestions on nice looking easy to maintain coral? Thanks for the help everybody BTW!!!

 

[thincat]

Do your research and remember that corals need allot of light so be sure to figure that item into your overall layout.

 

[neeker4]

I plan on going with a T5 set up with, I am thinking, 10 or 14k lighting. Will this be sufficent? From what i've seen, that is what most coral/LR tank owners have but will that be over kill on a 20g/long?

 

[thincat]

Be sure it's a T-5 HO unit and if you plan on corals you will never have to much light. More so if you want sps corals and large clams.

 

[neeker4]

I assume HO means High Output. If that is the case, I intend to do so. Also, can I mix and match LR? For instence, 20 lbs from Fiji, 20lbs from Caribbean? I assume it would work but I don' want to make an [moderator edit] out of me!

 

[neilanh]

You are correct on HO.

And yes, you can mix and match your rock all you want.

 

[thincat]

As neilanh stated, the more the mix the better.

 

[Zer0]

Just a little suggestion.

Get a brand new toothbrush.. or a brush similar to toothbrush material, and clean the rocks. You won't believe how much crap is really on those rocks that will make your tank dirty for WEEKS. When i first got my LR.. i just threw it in the tank with no prior cleaning, and my tank was dirty forever. Even when i managed to get the tank decently clean, waste and garbage kept floating up from the sandbed. It was a total nightmare.

You don't even need to scrub it like your life depended on it.. you just need to lightly brush off junk. And trust me.. just because you cleaned off some junk doesn't mean your rock won't cycle your tank anymore... There are TONS of things living in the rock, and some of them are bound to die-off and produce ammonia to start a cycle. So don't worry about that.. just clean off the rocks before you put them in. You need to clean them off with pre-mixed saltwater though. You don't want to clean it off with regular freshwater otherwise you will kill a lot of things you may want, and that may live through the cycle.

 

[David S]

although there are low light corals as well,I would just setup your tank and get used to all the testing, water changes and generally how to take care of your tank and fish before even thinking of coral,then maybe once your tank is established think about corals.

 

[cmor1701d]

If you are setting up a new tank I would just add the LR directly to the tank and let it cycle the tank. There will be some die off even if it's cured LR, uncured is better for this purpose.
You should inspect the LR before adding it to the tank. At the very least, swish it in a bucket of sw to knock off the loose sand, and debris from shipping.

Instead of mixing LR from the pacific and carribean I would suggest getting 50% base rock and 50% pacific rock (fiji, marshal island,Vanuati, Bali, etc.)

You had asked about the interaction of coral and LR. LR is the base to which you attach a coral. LR is part of your biological filter. The surface area hosts the beneficial bacteria that break down ammonia to nitrite, nitrite to nitrate, and in the deep crevices breakdown nitritate to nitrogen. That's one of the reasons I perfer pacific coral LR.

 

[neeker4]

Well this was certainly illuminating. Thanks for the tip Zero and David S. Thanks for the knowledge Cmor. I will probably be looking at putting 30-40 lbs of Fiji live rock into my 20glong. I think it looks nicer and from what I have been reading, does a little better job per lb of filtering than any other LR. As far a corals, I will be waiting a while to put any inthere, but I want to have the tank set up and ready for it at a later time. I don't want to have to go out a few months down the road and find a new light or get now LR because they are not compatible with whatever coral or fish or whatever I want. Thus all the questions. Thanks for all the help ladies and gentlemen. I am getting closer to the start date...

 

[neeker4]

Big news...I just convinced my girlfriend to let me go with a bigger tank... new question...39g or 55g?