diver28

My 100 gallon SW tank should be set up in a week and I'm not sure what type of rock I should get. It is going to be a fish only mostly with fake corals but after reading I need the live rock and not sure which kind to go with. Fiji, Carribean etc. I was also thinking to have strong lighting in my sump tank underneath and putting the live rock in the sump. Thoughts?

Kyle

atmmachine816

Usually the more expensive it is the better quality it is or in other words less stuff dies off and more chances of getting coraline algae, corals, and other living things on it. I would definately dump the fake corals and put strong lighting in the tank. The sump you don't need all that much strong lighting and you can just put cheaper live rock in the sump. The main thing that it would do in the sump is provide extra filtration since it would probably be too strong to provide refuge to anything. Not real sure how much research you have done but definately do as much as possible and when your ready to purchase everything post it here, there's some good people here that can help.

diver28

Ok, well I've already bought almost everything except the live rock and fish. You want me to post what I have bought?

atmmachine816

Sure, post it in the saltwater board though, you can just start a new topic about what you plan to do with your tank and everything you have so far. Mike, agansoo, sgould, and a couple others can help suggest some things.

sgould

Pacific rocks seem to be best. Fiji is a good choice, and very common. I am not sure about Caribbean. I seem to recall reading somewhere that it is not as porous, which I believe would negatively affect its effectiveness as a biological filter. I put DFS "select lalo" rock in my tank, which is another pacific rock, and have been very happy with it so far.

bhcaaron

SGould,

I was just about to post a question on Lalo live rock. Do you have pic's of it? I want to see the coloration of it fully mature.

sgould

Heh...you don't want to judge by mine right now. I am working on a red slime problem, so you wouldn't get a true picture. I will say that when it doesn't have red slime on it, there are a variety of colors beyond the standard purple. Mine has purple, pink, green, and I THINK a touch of red...though at the moment I am questioning anything red.

Incidentally, this rock is about 3-4 months old. Not sure that it is truly "fully" mature yet.

sgould

Here are a couple of shots. The first one is a rock that hasn't been affected too badly by the slime. The 2nd one...well, just say no to slime.

Attached Images

	LaloRcok.JPG (99.4 KB, 22 views)
	SlimeRock.JPG (107.1 KB, 22 views)

bhcaaron

Slime? What happened? What causes it? And that doesn't look like the lalo pics they have on LiveAquaria. THEY LIE lol jk. I was liking the smallness of them.

leximommy

hey i found that if you want smallness....you can sometimes find rock packages that have like 20-30 lbs with pieces averageing about 3-6 inches....you just have to look....

stupid question....can you break big pieces into smaller pieces without hurting them?

bhcaaron

Like I said, you can drill them. They are only rocks after all. Its the bacteria that thrive in them we want. As for the difference in one rock being better than the other, like fiji over caribean, is that one is more porous than the other. The pores only help the bacteria stick to the rock better and therefore thrive easier and more plentiful. (Don't I just sound like I know what I'm talking about? lol Reading does help so much)

I would imagine having smaller pieces (although not all should be) would only provide more surface area.

leximommy

yea i know what you mean..... i can give advice from reading but not from actual experience yet....lol

well if i can get that lalo rock id love to, i think the saltwater store around here may have it.... they have a bunch of different ones.....

sgould

Several things can contribute. Excess nutrients in the water, usually from overfeeding. Nitrates and/or phosphates in the water. Also inadequate water circulation (slime and algae have an easier time growing in stagnant areas).

leximommy

thanks for the info...ive seen alot of people having problems getting rid of that and i would like to avoid it....

sgould

Me too!

bhcaaron

Even though I dont' even have a tank yet, I've been afraid of having too high a current with those powerhead for my future fishies. But, now, with that slime thing, I might just get a jet boat propeller thingy!

sgould

That may be overkill.

bhcaaron

Rotfl

leximommy

lol i plan on getting two...would that be too many and what would be good placement?

bhcaaron

On the dock. I have a river here if you need it too! (You were talking about a jet boat propeller thingy, right?)

leximommy

lol yea shure...if i had a 10000 gallon tank....do they make those?

bhcaaron

Yeah, they do. I think I saw one at Sea World. Comes complete with a trained orca! ahahahaha

leximommy

lol ok smart *ss

bhcaaron

I think you spell it Ozz ROTFL!

leximommy

lol
lol
lol