Curing Live Rock help
- Thread starter Bojangles
- Start date
Bojangles":5zrgpiux said:
there are so many online options i don't know how to answer this.
you can buy show pieces online. they tend to be more expensive as as shipping is a bit more difficult.
i bought from LFSs and added a chunk at a time..like a quarter at a time.
this way i could get a wide diversity from different suppliers at different times.
but the bargain hunter will buy it online.
That is what I was advised to do by the better LFS in my area. The only thing is I'm not quite sure what type of rock to buy and all of the LFS rock looks pretty dull...no color or anything to it.
BTW thanks for that site, I'm checkin it out right now
BTW thanks for that site, I'm checkin it out right now
I like hand-picking everything because that way you get to visualize different aquascaping possibilities as you're picking -- "Ooooh, I really like that big round piece and I can put the big flat piece right on top of it." A few big pieces as a foundation with strategically placed smaller fill-in pieces will always look more natural IMO than a bunch of tiny stacked rubble. I looked at all of the past featured tanks on Advanced Aquarist for aquascaping ideas before I did my own tank.
I think the quality of life on the rock is ultimately more important than finding the exact right shapes. If your LFS has really good rock and a reasonable price then I'd suggest buying larger pieces at least from there and maybe supplementing with a case from online -- but that's just personal preference. I've seen lots of folks on the boards who were thrilled with their online purchases. Some people also advocate mixing and matching a bit from different sources to maximize diversity.
I bought my Marshall Island rock for my 90g uncured from the LFS and cured it directly in my tank (but didn't add any critters during this time, of course) while skimming, maintaining constant temperature and a reduced photoperiod... lots of stuff on the rock died during the ammonia and nitrite spikes, but i did daily 5% water changes and tons of good stuff lived and it cycled quickly. I'm now a month post-cure and I'm seeing halimeda and lots of other good macro algae, good bristle worms and brittle stars, and lots of pods and various sponges. I had a small reef tank briefly 5 years ago started with pre-cured live rock from the LFS and don't remember it being as densely populated.
Definitely keep the temp constant in your rubbermaids, skim and change the water if you go that route -- I don't believe lighting is the most critical piece of the puzzle while curing, it's more about temp and chemistry.
A few big pieces as a foundation with strategically placed smaller fill-in pieces will always look more natural IMO than a bunch of tiny stacked rubble. I looked at all of the past featured tanks on Advanced Aquarist for aquascaping ideas before I did my own tank.I think the quality of life on the rock is ultimately more important than finding the exact right shapes. If your LFS has really good rock and a reasonable price then I'd suggest buying larger pieces at least from there and maybe supplementing with a case from online -- but that's just personal preference. I've seen lots of folks on the boards who were thrilled with their online purchases. Some people also advocate mixing and matching a bit from different sources to maximize diversity.
I bought my Marshall Island rock for my 90g uncured from the LFS and cured it directly in my tank (but didn't add any critters during this time, of course) while skimming, maintaining constant temperature and a reduced photoperiod... lots of stuff on the rock died during the ammonia and nitrite spikes, but i did daily 5% water changes and tons of good stuff lived and it cycled quickly. I'm now a month post-cure and I'm seeing halimeda and lots of other good macro algae, good bristle worms and brittle stars, and lots of pods and various sponges. I had a small reef tank briefly 5 years ago started with pre-cured live rock from the LFS and don't remember it being as densely populated.
Definitely keep the temp constant in your rubbermaids, skim and change the water if you go that route -- I don't believe lighting is the most critical piece of the puzzle while curing, it's more about temp and chemistry.
I was going through the archives and heard of someone giving advise to dip your rock into 1.030 salinity after curing to get out alot of the critters. They said that it wouldn't kill anything and that it would give you a minute or two to get the things out and into 1.025 to be sorted.
It's not as bad, but it's still osmotic shock. I don't like these shock treatments although if you had to do one, I'd pick the 1.030 one versus the FW (1.000) one. The former is probably a lot less effective though, but the latter really isn't an option.
Personally, I don't think you should be as concerned as you are. Except for Mantis shrimps (which you'll be able to hear clicking in the curing tank), there isn't too much to fear that hypo or hypersalinity shock will get rid of.
Personally, I don't think you should be as concerned as you are. Except for Mantis shrimps (which you'll be able to hear clicking in the curing tank), there isn't too much to fear that hypo or hypersalinity shock will get rid of.
Thanks for all the replies! I probably am just alittle overexcited
I guess I want to get the uncured rock and have it be perfect, which just isn't going to happen unless I hand pick it and even then I'm pretty sure I wont reach my expectations.
Now its just the matter of Haitian, Marshall or Kaelini lol
Thanks again.
I guess I want to get the uncured rock and have it be perfect, which just isn't going to happen unless I hand pick it and even then I'm pretty sure I wont reach my expectations.
Now its just the matter of Haitian, Marshall or Kaelini lol
Thanks again.
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