Rock question...

[th08tu]

Hello everybody,
As of right now I am still reading about setting up a reef tank. I am working my way through Saltwater aquariums for dummies lol. Anyways, I have access to a lot of river rock. I was wondering if I could clean the rock properly, and put it in the aquarium, then seed it with LR. Would the river rock become live? or does the live rock need to be either live rock or dead live rock? Thanks everybody!

 

[mfdrookie516]

the word "live" only refers to the bacteria that are living on the rock... one of those funny looking statues from petsmart can be considered live once the bacteria has established on it. the only problem i would see with adding river rock would be that its not all that porous (usually) and depending on what type of rock it is, it could leach things in to the tank that you dont want... if you dont want to use live rock, marco rocks are a good base rock and are fairly cheap, especially when compared to the cost of fiji lr. imo it would be worth the peace of mind knowing you have something safe for your tank, rather than always worrying it might be leaching harmful things in to your water... jmo

 

[th08tu]

ok that makes sense, I just wasn't sure if there were minerals (calcium, etc.) in the dead live rock that permited special bacteria to live on it...

 

[th08tu]

I have used many of the riverstones in my freshwater tanks, and they haven't leeched anything into those tanks. Would I have to worry about them leeching different chemicals in saltwater even if they don't in freshwater?

 

[HN1]

One of the biggest advantages of "live rock" or "base rock" is that we're usually referring to aragonite based rock which helps to buffer the pH, GH, Kh. River rock in a SW setup could work, but personally I wouldn't try it nor does the imagined look of it appeal to me. You can run a SW tank without rock of any kind. I'd suggest you keep reading a bit longer.

 

[th08tu]

lol point taken. I am only on chapter 4 discussing different inverts lol. I am most likely not going to set this up until the summer, and I was amazed at how hard it is to find live rock, so I thought since I have a stream in my backyard, I had access to many rocks. I will prolly just take the drive and get the live rock that will look nicer as you said HN1. What size do you guys recommend for somebody who is starting out a reef tank, but is fairly experienced with freshwater/brackish (5+ years). I am looking for something that would break the budget, (i.e not 150g) I was kind of thinking of picking up another 20 gallon, and having only a few small fish, like clowns, and then probably some corals too. Anyways thanks for all your help!

 

[HN1]

A good starter size IMO would be 40 or more gallons. The larger the water volume the more stable it will be and that stability is much more important in marine than FW. Check out the Contientious Marine Aquarist by Bob Fenner. It's a great read and will really put you on the right track. Other than that, the stickies and articles here and on other sites are a great resource.

 

[th08tu]

alright sounds good, i'll keep reading and hopefully find space for another 55 in my house lol.

 

[mfdrookie516]

if you decide to go 55, might as well go 75... they provide a much better footprint for aquascaping. lots of people start with a 55, then figure out its too narrow to do much with

 

[thominil]

I wouldn't recommend Saltwater Aquariums for Dummies seeing as it is out of date IMO. I skimmed through it after I got it and it suggests crushed coral and gravel as the best substrates. Also says PC lighting is best if I remember correctly, both of which are incorrect now. Better using the articles and threads on this and other sites, or just go grab an in-date book such as the one HN1 suggested or Reef Secrets. JMO though.

 

[Kurt_Nelson]

Agree about the book. I normally like the "... for Dummies" series, but I thumbed through that one at the bookstore a while back and was very disappointed. Out of date advice, and just plain wrong advice in some areas if I remember correctly. Fenner's book or even Michael Paletta's "The New Marine Aquarium" are much better ways to learn about the hobby.

 

[austinsdad]

I still like to recommend Fenner too - - except for the one, outdated reference to cycling with damsels.

 

[th08tu]

ok thanks for the advice, I tried to start on these threads but I didn't even know the terminology. Now that I have finished the book, I will keep looking for more book and will definetly look up the Fenner one. Thanks everybody! Currently in one of my tanks I have argonite sand. If I was to remove the fish, add live rock and salt, would i need to replace the sand or would the bacteria in it aid with the cycling process? I understand the process of setting up a saltwater tank from scratch, I think but I haven't found very much about converting a freshwater to saltwater.

 

[thincat]

It won't work! Two different types of bacteria. You could rinse out the FW argonite sand and use that sand in a SW tank, but rinse it good or you will be starting out with lots of dead sand.

 

[th08tu]

I don't mind having to start with dead sand, I just wanted to make sure that that sand isn't ruined because it has been colonized by freshwater bacteria. My plan as of right now goes like this:
Week 1: Remove everything from tank, rinse sand well, fill with salt water, put sand in
Week 2: Add live rock
Month 1-2: Fishless cycle
Month 2-3: Add some frags
Month 3, week 2: add a few fish

 

[HN1]

Looks like a pretty good plan to me. That's about the schedule that we used to start up my first SW tank.

 

[Kurt_Nelson]

I'd add the fish first, THEN the frags... but that's just me. Water parameters will take a while to stabilize, and as the bioload increases from the fish, water parameters can possibly go a little sideways on you. Putting frags in to start with runs the risk that you may lose them if things don't go as planned when adding fish.

 

[austinsdad]

Take Kurt's advice on that plan. Frags later.

Also, consider base rock also when you do the LR. It'll be colonized as you cycle and give you a better, cheaper start.

Also, your schedule won't take that long. You can begin your cycle right after you add the rocks.

Don't forget your cleanup up crew. They can be added after the cycle and as you add fish too.

 

[th08tu]

alright thanks that sounds good, I will switch the frags and hish. What do you think about adding a shrimp and a few snails at the same time I add the rock so that they will cycle the tank? They are pretty hard for freshwater is it the same for salt?

 

[austinsdad]

When you're cycling, there are no snails or live shrimp. If the rock doesn't have enuf die-off (decaying matter), you'll be adding fresh grocery store shrimp to decay and start your cycle. Dead stuff cycles the tank. The ammonia won't allow for any inhabitants. You're pretty much stuck with the course of events we already agreed upon above. Don't change them!