whats the deal with live rock?

[hc8719]

finding a lfs also has fw fish as well as sw i stopped by, and as always checked out the sw tanks for a bit. now i had known about coral and live rock (are they the same thing?) and had seen them, but i never payed attention while i had a goldfish tank.

now that i have some tropical fish, ive really started paying attention to sw tanks, and realized the live rock the lfs was selling was ugly, it looked like some weirdly shaped limestone, nothing that i'd use as a decoration.
it was only $4.99 a lb so maybe thats just how much ugly lr cost

ok but what does lr actually do? filter the tank i guess? i have heard that sw people dont need to do pwcs as often, maybe this contributes?

[roka64]

$4.99 a lb so maybe thats just how much ugly lr cost

Thats an awesome price for cured LR!!!

ok but what does lr actually do?

It houses the beneficial bacteria, provides hiding places/caves for your critters. You answered it, it is probably about the best bio filtration you can have.

i have heard that sw people dont need to do pwcs as often, maybe this contributes?

This depends on what is in your tank. A PWC replenishes the nutrients that are depleted. I do a PWC every 3-4 weeks, unless there is a problem.

i had known about coral and live rock (are they the same thing?)

Live rock is, well, rock that has life on it (bacteria/sponges/inverts/and possibly corals). Coral is a living creature. CC is dead coral.

the live rock the lfs was selling was ugly, it looked like some weirdly shaped limestone, nothing that i'd use as a decoration.

I think LR adds a natural look to a SW tank. In SW, we generally don't have the luxury of adding neat decorations. Our decos are corals and fish and lots of color.

Hope that helps....Sorry I answered your questions out of order! LOL!

+++EDIT+++

Check out the SW pics of tanks, on this site....

[Devilishturtles]

roka pretty much hit it straight on.

If you don't like your LFS's live rock, you can check out online dealers. Liveaquaria.com is the one most reccomended. There is also tampabaysaltwater.com

I also do a pwc every 3 weeks or so.

[hc8719]

ohh i checked out the sw members pics, i guess lr is just in my opinion, "uglyish" itself, kinda lacking strong colors, but i have to give you guys points on arranging them.

when you say coral is a living animal, you mean thousands of living animals living together right, i know its wrong, but arent they kinda like plants? they need the sun, they grow, they dont really walk...

and how fast does lr grow?

how much does coral then cost compared to lr?

IMO, LR is the thing I am MOST excited about. Check out tbsaltwater.com and look at the LR. I am picking mine up Saturday. There is no better thrill IMO than seeing something appear in your tank that you didn't know you had.

no, coral is a living animal that eats and reproduces.....

The LR does not grow. The rock itself does not grow because rock itself is not alive. What makes it alive is all the "bacteria," inverts, corals, and anything alive that lives inside the crevices and on the rock.

[hc8719]

when you guys keep mentioning the things that live inside them, what can i expect, snails? water worms? mantis shrimp? bugs?

i totally beleive you mike that coral is an animal, im just skeptical, it requires special lighting, moonlights..., and im a freshie so dont hammer me too much if im totally wrong...
i went snorkling at a reef recently, and assuming a reef is just alot or coral, i think its kinda a rock. it did have things like elephant ears and stuff growing on it, a few waves threw me into some reef and i got some stings

[lando]

First and foremost, LR is the single best thing you can do for any SW tank. What makes it "live" is all of the benifical bacterial that colonize on the extensive surface area of the rock. This is what makes it so good for your tank. Depending on where the LR is from, it can also have visible life on it. Things like various small corals, snails, crabs, sea stars, algaes, shrimp, worms and others can hitch hike their way into your tank on/in the LR. Some are good and some are not so good.