Is live rock worth it?

[Sillyfishies]

In a reef tank is live rock really worth it? Or is base rock the way to go?

Pros and cons of both?

 

[melosu58]

Base rock is cheaper and it will become live over time. I would do like 80% base rock and 20% live rock to seed the rest of the rock.

 

[bigbanker]

My presence is mostly base.

 

[Bectan01]

I went all live rock to start, if you have the cash I think it's worth it. Beautiful colours, load of living things and a shorter cycle. Just my opinion

 

[Mr. Crabs]

I agree with Melosus on the 80 20 rule. Truth is you're paying for shipping when it comes to live rock. I've been using "Real Reef Rock". It's man made and pigmented. Nice stuff. Very clean without any nasties, but comes with a high price tag.

Might want to check craigslist. A lot of people get out of the hobby and it is practically worthless to them so they let it go for dirt cheap. I got about 70lbs for $50 that way once.

 

[Sillyfishies]

I agree with Melosus on the 80 20 rule. Truth is you're paying for shipping when it comes to live rock. I've been using "Real Reef Rock". It's man made and pigmented. Nice stuff. Very clean without any nasties, but comes with a high price tag.

Might want to check craigslist. A lot of people get out of the hobby and it is practically worthless to them so they let it go for dirt cheap. I got about 70lbs for $50 that way once.

It's depressing to how little aquariums we have here. On Craigslist 90% of the tanks are reptile tanks. The other 9% are super expensive tanks "Huge fish tank!" And then it'll only be like 30 gallons.

I have seen one 125 gal reef that was cheap and well take care of.

I've also seen a 75 gal FOWLR that didn't look bad

I have found 2 "fish tanks" AKA a Rubbermaid bin with goldfish in it...?

 

[Sillyfishies]

And the only aquarium club closed down years ago.

 

[Devilishturtles]

The color and the microorganisms are the biggest benefit... but base rock can become that quickly with good quality lice rock. I just completed an order from marcorocks.com... very pleased.

 

[Sillyfishies]

The color and the microorganisms are the biggest benefit... but base rock can become that quickly with good quality lice rock. I just completed an order from marcorocks.com... very pleased.

I see more pests on LR then good stuff

 

[Evansimp]

Can you seed the dry rock in the tank with live rock in a sump? Or does the live rock have to be in the tank? I agree that liverock is more pests than good stuff

 

[bavass]

I went with 100% dry rock on my rebuild. So far best decision i have made. No pests, coralline is taking to it well. I went to my LFS they gave me a few bristle worms some micro stars, ordered some pods from reefs2go.

 

[Sillyfishies]

I went with 100% dry rock on my rebuild. So far best decision i have made. No pests, coralline is taking to it well. I went to my LFS they gave me a few bristle worms some micro stars, ordered some pods from reefs2go.

What type of dry rock did you buy?

 

[bavass]

all Pukani from BRS. I cleaned the rock real good. Put it in the tank started the cycle thinking I was going to have a real big problem with PO4 and didn't. Now I am not saying I didn't have any I did have some. Got as high as .2 but nothing my GFO couldn't bring down, and once it was down to .03 stayed there. I do have algae on the rocks but its part of the normal cycle and its not bad. CUC and finishing the cycle will clear that up.

 

[ScottsPets]

Greatly depends on where you get your live rock from. LFS and Craigslist are a no no for me. IF you can seed your tank from a trustworthy and established reefer via clubs or forums, I would go that route 10 out of 10 times.

 

[Gti_Leo]

Base rock is cheaper and it will become live over time. I would do like 80% base rock and 20% live rock to seed the rest of the rock.

i agree on those numbers, but some like to go all base rock, this way they have nothign to worry about with regards to pests but they will have to find other ways to seed things liek coraline algae and pods