Live rock

[Omega]

Hi there guys.

I just want to find out something.

I bought some rocks from a LFS for very cheap that i want to use as base rock. I think these rocks has been out of the water for a long time there is absolutely no life on these guys. Is it neccesarry to cure them or can i just add them to my current system with LR.

 

[BillyZ]

if the LFS sold them as base rock, or dry-rock you shouldn't have to worry about curing them. I would just rinse them under some fresh waster to remove dust and debris and you should be good to go.

However if you suspect they may actually be dead LR the LFS is trying to get rid of, give it a good smell, seriously. If it smells really fishy or rotten, is may have remaining waste and other rotting bits on it. I would rinse it well, drop it in a bucket of SW with a heater and a PH and let it sit a few days. Check the water for ammonia. If there's ammonia then you'll need to change the water and repeat the above steps until you stop seeing the ammonia, then test for nitrites until you see 0 nitrites. Basically curing it. You can read the article in our article's section on curing if you need more info on it.

HTH

 

[austinsdad]

How do they smell? At least I'd take a nylon brush (new, not ever used with cleaning agents) and clean them off first. May also have to closely watch your ammonia when you first put them in to make sure there is no die off.

Hard to say not knowing what the rocks have been through, but I'd be on the side of caution. Maybe put them in water and test for ammonia after a day to see what happens.

 

[Omega]

Thanks for the reply guys.

I couldn't smell anything but i did put them in saltwater so they should be fine.

Another quick Q. Will the new rock become live with algea growth after a couple of months?

TIA

 

[austinsdad]

Yep.

 

[Drzy]

Here’s what might be a dumb question. What does live rock look like when you buy it? I see pictures of peoples’ tanks on here, and many of you have these beautiful rock structures for the fish to swim around that just happen to stretch the length of the tank. It also stacks to a height semi-near the top of the water’s surface. It almost looks like the rock was specifically sized to fit your tank.

So when I order, say, 50 lbs. of live rock for a 50 gallon tank, what will show up? Will it be something I can somehow shape into the structures I see in your pictures?

 

[Phyl]

You'll probably get 8-15 pieces of rock in various shapes and sizes. That much rock (depending on how pourous the rock is) will take up roughly 1/3 to 1/2 of your tank height when stretched end to end in your tank. You'll want 75 - 100 in the long run. When you buy "Live Rock", especially if it comes from LiveRocks.com it will have a lot of color and life to it. Some hitch hikers in the form of crabs, snails, corals, etc. If you were to get the remainder of the rock as base rock from your LFS put the base rock on the bottom and in 3 months you won't know the live from the base as you look at it.

 

[austinsdad]

The "shaping" comes by twisting and flipping LR and lodging it into each other.

Once you start situating rock, you'll see how various alterations bring swim thru areas, ledges for coral later on, and etc. I stack mine against the back glass also to help with the stability, also to get more swim space out front. The back of the tank will serve as their sleeping and hiding areas.

Then, you'll also have to consider water flow areas and dead spots. That's when powerheads and rock placement comes together.

It'll be fun.