Best Live Rock????

[Guido]

I was just wondering what would be a good live rock to add to a 75g and about how many pounds would i need. (29g sump as well).

Also, i would like something with lots of colors (reds greens pinks purples blues anything like that, the more the better)

Also would need some crevices and holes for fish and inverts to hide.

[graphixx]

fiji or vanuatu is very pourous and has some nice colors. Marshall island also is nice. Tampa Bay Saltwater carries some very nice rock also teaming with life and very nice color. you can check out their site @ tampabaysaltwater.com

[graphixx]

Live Aquaria .com has some nice fiji rock that is like 90 bucks for 45 lbs. and that is some nice stuff.

[Guido]

Yes, i saw that fiji rock. Is it good stuff for corals (zoanthids and stuff like that)?

Also, is it good for filtration in my sump? If so ill get 90 pounds of it. 180 is much cheaper for 90 pounds then the 220 i was looking to spend on the alor live rock i believe it was.

Also, should i/can i get un-cured rock? My tank is not up or cycled yet so it would be put in during the cycle period. (Un-cured fiji from liveaquaria)

[jerryc]

Don't perches just for the color on the rock go for the shape you like. it
will eventual or mostly end up purple in the long run as purple
is dominate in most tanks

[Guido]

Well, as far as shape, I'm just looking for something that my zoanthids will be able to grow on, provide good filtration (in tank and in sump) and with holes and crevices for critters to hide or even make a home out of. If fiji has these characteristics, then I'll probably end up getting a box of that, maybe a box of something else just for some variety. (Besides, 90 for 45 pounds isn't a bad deal as far as other prices i've seen.)

[graphixx]

yes you want as much LR in your sump as you can it increases the surface that nitrobacter grows on and is excellent filtration. and like Jerry said you want the rock that appeals to your eye. most of the life that comes on those rocks are going to die off in the first year anyways.

[Guido]

OK. I was thinking of maybe a box of the tonga deepwater (large/show size), which is a 30lb box, and a box of the fiji which is a 45lb box.

Now my next question is, should i put about all of the LR mention above in my main tank and maybe buy another 20+ pounds for my refug?

Also, as far as substrate goes in my refug, i was looking into maybe buying some Kent Marine Biosediment. Do you think i should use this, or just stick with a good fine grain live sand?

[graphixx]

I would stick with just sand it will populate over time. when you set the tank up just seed the bed. I am sure I have mentioned this before. but if you know someone who has an allready extablished tank snag a cupfull of their sand and pour it into your tank this will introduce beneficial bacteria into the tank. The more cups you can score the better. You can even do base rock in your sump that is less money and will eventuall become overgrown with goodies. I did that in my 50 gallon I went 30 pounds live rock and 40pounds of base rock and you cannot tell which rock is which now.

[shovelhead91701]

Foster & Smith's has uncured Cariibean LR that is a good value if you want to take the time to cure it out......unlike me however DO NOT PUT IT IN YOUR DISPLAY TANK UNCURED!!!! :oops:

[jerryc]

Graphixx is right on i preach this continues the more diversity you can get in your sand the better. I look for someone to trade sand with at least one time a year
The more life you have in your sand the longer it will last with out causing a
tank failure. And it dose happen but with a little work you can maintain a
good sand bed for years.

[Guido]

What exactly is base rock? Also, do you suggest i go with a fine grade sand? I'm sure I can get maybe 4 or 5 different cups of sand from different tanks. One of my LFS has about 5+ reef tanks, so I'm sure i can get some from there, then theres a few jacks aquariums with small reef systems. That will be no problem. (even if i have to pay for it, and i know the one LFS is probably gonna charge me more then what its worth lol)

[graphixx]

base rock is reef rock that is completely devoid of life. it is completly dead live rock but in time it will re establish live and look just like live rock. I would go with a fine frade sand. you go crushed coral it tends to trap detrius and build nitrates

[Guido]

OK. I did a little looking around and think i decided on what i would like for LR. I would like your suggestions.

First off, I am thinking of getting 60+lbs of Kaelini Tonga Ultra Show LR un-cured. (about 3.99lb)

Then probably about 40-50 pounds of premium Fiji LR un-cured. (that's about 3.49lb)

Now, i saw that liveaquaria had a 45lb box for 90 or so dollars. But i am not sure if that is net weight or gross weight. Also, i read, that when they are selling live rock in 45lb boxes (or in those increments) for such a low price, it is LR that has been sitting around for a while and they are just trying to get rid of it. Now i am willing to spend the extra dollar to get much healthier, liver, more colorful (and newer) LR, but if you have any thoughts on Liveaquarias 45lb box of fiji (un-cured preferable so i can just cycle it with my tank), let me know.

Also, if you could suggest about how many lbs of LR i will need for a 75g tank with 29g sump, it would be much appreciated. (Either way I'll end up buying more Kaelini then the fiji because i feel the shapes, colors, and openness of it are all around better then fiji, the fiji is more of a filler and variety)

[shovelhead91701]

I bought 60lbs of LR from liveaquaria.com and while it did go through an extreme amount of die-off it was very nice looking lettuce coral rock and it also brought me a lot of green and red coraline algae to my tank. I feel like any mail order rock probably would have the same amount of die-off due to the shipping times. Also as this is an item that they offer consistently I doubt that it is "old stock" etc. I would recommend their rock anytime as long as you are willing to cure it out before introducing it to a healthy tank.

[graphixx]

you should be allright. live aquaria and tampa bay saltwater are really good companies to go through. the rock they caryy is pretty much taken from water to box in a very short period of time. you should be allright. I have dealth with tampa bay saltwater and my rock was literally only out of the ocean for like 8 hours then it was boxed and shipped directl y to me.

[Guido]

OK. I think I will give liveaquaria a go on their fiji. Not sure about the Kaelini Tonga though, i don't think they have that, might have to order that from somewhere else. As far as curing it, well, I'm just going to throw it into my tank when i start cycling it.