Live Rock Advice

[stoneriff]

Hello Everyone;
I am new to both the hobby, and Manhattan Reefs. This website is very informative. I'm happy I signed up. I am very excited to get started. I bought a 72 bow front tank with some great goodies. I'm ready to get started, but I need advice on cured live rock. I don't have the space to clean and cure live rock. Which is best? Any recommendations on where to buy it? Any dealers in New York vicinity that sell quality live rock? Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thank you. Jesse.

 

[DontXtripNfall]

Welcome to MR! And that depends on what kind of live rock you want to buy, cured or uncured. Once you have you salinity stable you should add your rock and sand. The people I got my LR from were House of Laughter (For the best beneficial hitchhikers and cool shapes), Aqua Pro Builder (Beautiful show size pieces) , and Aquatic Express (Semi cured rock at a decent price)

Since you live in manhattan I assume you've been to New World Aquarium... I wouldn't recommend starting with LR from there. I got 2 pieces adding up to 7 lbs = $70 but i wanted to cycle my tank right away so thats the price i paid.

 

[Chiefmcfuz]

Check the for sale forum and the vendors forums, live rock is usually sold here by members and vendors on a daily basis and usually at a great price. The type of rock you use all depends on what look you are going for so take a look through the tank threads and the for sale threads and see what you like. You can also post a thread in the want to buy forum stating that you are looking for rock as well.

 

[KathyC]

Welcome to MR Stoneriff

Since you are looking to start up using cured live rock - you can put it right into your tank. Keep in mind that there usually is some die off just in the transporting of live rock, so you will want to watch for a cycle...an ammonia spike ..and succeeding changes to nitrite and then nitrate, before you add your cleaning crew.
Be sure to have your test kits on hand to be certain your cycle is finished before adding your clean up crew!

Patience is key when setting up a reef tank

 

[stoneriff]

Thank you very much. Good advice is always welcome, and appreciated. Jesse.

 

[wxl14]

WElcome to MR

 

[masterswimmer]

Hey Jesse, welcome to MR, a great place to learn about the hobby and meet new people.

Since your tank is empty right now, you unknowingly have the room to cure live rock. All you have to do is set your temperature (approx. 78 deg) and salinity (between 1.025-1.0265, use a refractometer for best accuracy) in your display tank and cure the LR right in there.

I like to skim very wet when curing LR. This acts as a beneficial water change in addition to removing DOC's (Dissolved Organic Compounds). Just make sure you replace the skimmed water with additional saltwater and your evaporation must be replaced with fresh water (RO/DI preferrably). Therefore it is very important to check your salinity frequently.

Good luck and once again, welcome to MR.

swimmer

 

[Lenny718]

Welcome to MR , you picked the right place to learn about keeping/maintaining a good reef tank. Lots of great people here and there not as judgmental as the rc bords can be.

 

[stoneriff]

Thank you very much. Any advice on cured live rock?

 

[reefman]

good live rock can come from many places n b in different forms sizes n shapes. each location usually conforms to a certain look. choose whatever suits your liking. u can even choose more than 1 location for a diverse look.
general rule of thumb:
porous
light (looks much heavier than it is)
not much stuff other than coraline on it (cure)
pick diff shapes n sizes for a nice landscape
even it claims to be cure, still need to monitor for died offs with test kit till its safe.

 

[stoneriff]

Thank you for the advice.

 

[stoneriff]

Thank you very much. I'm searching for a reputable dealer locally. Jesse.