need help to prevent rip off

[33w_fish_guy]

I am a lil concerned that I purchased LR from some one other than LR.com. can anyone tell me if marinedepotlive.com is a good source? Buying something without looking at it got me worries, specially when is something fragile and expensive...
If i do get something the is not LR.com quality what things can I do to make the best of what I got...

Once the LR arrive (2 days from now) what can I do to minimize loss, any suggestions...

also is there a good thread or site that has a step by step one curing LR

Thanks to everyone that has help me so far , AA is great!

Like before here is what I got:

 

[RocketSeason]

as soon as you get it in the mail, it goes into the tank.

I diped mine in a freshwater dip for about 2 minutes each piece. This helped flush out a few of the bad hitch hikers (crabs) it then goes directly into the tank. Use a plug in timer to set your lights to 12 hour days, add a small piece of raw shrimp from the supermarket, ( half a shrimp) and sit and wait.

There will be a good amount of die off but after its gone, your algeas will start to grow back.

Check your parameter everyday and record them in a book. you should see a considerable amonia spike which will subside about the same time your shrimp is gone. finally, after your nitrates, nitrites, and amonia all are 0 for at least a week, you can add fish.

The whole process should take about a month.

have fun and be patient! its worth doing it right the first time!

 

[srgetz]

also is there a good thread or site that has a step by step one curing LR

good question...yes, you can find that and many other interesting articles here:

http://www.aquariumadvice.com/showfaq.php?fldAuto=2

But the one you want is titled "Curing Live Rock? I didn't even know it was sick!!"

 

[RogerMcAllen]

Rocket, why do you need lights on 12 hours? I was under the impression that you wanted minimal light to help keep algae out of the tank before it has a chance to establish.

 

[lando]

I would expect consderable die-off if it is out of water for more then 24 hours. If it is comeing two day air this will probably be the case. Since this is a new tank that is still cycling, I would just throw it in the tank and let it cycle.

 

[RocketSeason]

Rocket, why do you need lights on 12 hours? I was under the impression that you wanted minimal light to help keep algae out of the tank before it has a chance to establish.

Good point. I did have a considerable Diatom outbreak. To counter this I added hermit crabs and then cut my lights down to 6 hour days until it was back under control. once under control I then bumped it back up to 12 hour days.

 

[33w_fish_guy]

Sump Idea

While Im waiting for my LR to arrive I have been taking a closer look @ my setup. I am concerned about to much aeration from the filter. when I open the protein skimmer valve on my Skilter 250 for air flow the filter over fills with tiny air bubbles and cause the tank to get cloudy. I got some picture of the valve on and off.

Is too much air in the system cause a problem?

I was thinking of a sump setup to remidy this... a cheap 10gal with 2 pcs of plexy in it to create 3 chambers. To minimize the air problem plus give me more water capacity.

 

[RocketSeason]

a sump is a good Idea, but you should have a TON of tiny bubbles in your skimmer, thats what makes a skimmer...skim.

as long as those bubbles aren't getting into your main tank, you are alright. If they are, you may need to adjust the airflow a bit.

also, note that there are many poor performing skimmers out there. around here people pretty much agree that there are really only two ways to go; Aqua C Remora, and CPR BAK PAK 2.

 

[33w_fish_guy]

a sump is a good Idea, but you should have a TON of tiny bubbles in your skimmer, thats what makes a skimmer...skim.

as long as those bubbles aren't getting into your main tank, you are alright. If they are, you may need to adjust the airflow a bit.

also, note that there are many poor performing skimmers out there. around here people pretty much agree that there are really only two ways to go; Aqua C Remora, and CPR BAK PAK 2.

that is the proble the bubbles are comin thru the filter media and into the tank...

 

[Nate C]

Be ready to be patient I got 70lbs "premium tonga, non branched" rock from them back on August 16th and my tank did not finish cycling until the end of the 5th or 6th week.

It is not bad rock, it just has to travel farther and will have more die off. I also later bought 40lbs lr.com rock and I do like it better. (I had not heard of them when I purchased the first batch). The FL keys rock is aquacultured, which is kinda cool, and also had quite a bit less die off - 3 day cycle instead of several weeks.

If you have nothing in your tank yet, go ahead and put it in there asap. The only thing I would suggest is try to identify any sponges and remove them. Once they have been exposed to air, they never recover and will release alot of ammonia into the water while they slowly die. I pulled one out that was nearly baseball size.

**Addendum to original post**

It is entirely possible that part of the reason the LR.com rock cycled so much faster is that I was adding 40lbs to the system after the MDlive rock had already gone thru a cycle.

It is also notable that the pacific rock from MDlive was much less dense / more porous than the LR.com rock.

After all was said and done however, when I do eventually buy more it will be from LR.com.

Nate C

 

[darb2]

some bubbles from a skimmer are normal for the first 2 weeks. The break in period. Try to adjust the air flow to slow it down some.

 

[Hara]

IMO the rock from marinedepot and live aquaria is a very pretty rock. I have gotten close to 300 lbs of liverock.com rock but use it in my sumps. I prefer the look of the fiji rock for the show tank and the liverock.com for base rock and sumps.