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September 3rd, 2009
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| | Fish Lore Newbie
| what kind of live rock to get?
I know there are several types of live rock but what kind should i get? Are there any in particular that have more bio diversity than another? | 
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September 3rd, 2009
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| | Fish Master
| Hi weld dr...welcome to fishlore~!!...Im sorry you havent got many answers on your live rock questions...not sure where are salty members have been hiding but hopefully they will see this soon!!!! | |
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September 3rd, 2009
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| | Moderator
| I have the lalo (bought locally) and fiji (bought from Drsfostersmith.com) and I've been very happy with both. The premium rock is less dense and more porous and better at bio filtration. The base rock is used to build the base and is denser, less porous and not as good as the premium lighter rock for bio filtration.
You'll often hear recommendations on 1 to 2 pounds per gallon, but it seems the trend is to use less but make it look like a lot more by drilling the rock and using PVC pipes to shape the structure, rather than stacking it. And using less rock saves $$. You can make some really cool shapes/structures with pvc. If money wasn't an option I would go with all premium rock (fiji) for better bio filtration and life forms that come with the rock.
More info: Live Rock General Info Live Rock Comparison Chart Gulf of Mexico Live Rock
Mike | |
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September 4th, 2009
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| | Fish Keeper
| I've only had Fiji, and it seems to be good so far 
I haven't had too many hitch hikers... But nothing bad at all, only good stuff :]
I would reccommend it, but i haven't ever had anything else, so i cannot give a comparison! :P | |
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September 4th, 2009
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| | Fish Mentor
| I also have Lalo and Fiji, both from DFS, and have been happy with both. I'll 2nd Mike's comment...the more porous the rock the better the biofiltration. Base rock is not really intended to serve the filtration purpose, but rather gives you, as the name implies, a base of inexpensive rock to stack higher quality rock on top of as you aquascape. | |
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September 6th, 2009
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| | Fish Lore Newbie
| Thanks for the imput! So I now have my tank filled. Do I need to cycle the tank for a while before adding the live rock? | |
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September 6th, 2009
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| | Fish Master
| heres a super link for you to check out weld dr  Top 10 for Newbies | |
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September 6th, 2009
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| | Fish Mentor
| The live rock will help cycle your tank. Go ahead and add it...just no fish yet until your cycle is complete. | |
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September 6th, 2009
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| | Fish Keeper
| I used two premium pieces and whatever else my LFS had to offer. With enough live rock you won't really need a filter but good water circulation. That is what my filter is for. Once you see agae bloom you should add your clean up crew. It apparently helps. | |
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September 6th, 2009
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| | Fish Keeper
| ah thanks timekeeper, I didn't know that, Imma get my shrimpies soon | |
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September 6th, 2009
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| | Fish Keeper
| The clean up crew is the first thing you should have. Cleaner shrimp are great and so are snails and blue legged hermit crabs. I made the mistake of getting a coral banded shrimp which eats flakes. If you don't add the clean up crew you could have algae problems without good water circulation. All this info comes from member ATP. Is 75 uk gallons 75 liters? If so I would put in like 10 hermit crabs and 2-3 snails. Cleaner shrimp would prabably make up for hermits. Not sure. | |
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September 6th, 2009
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| | Fish Lore Newbie
| I added some sand today, about one inch for a start. I'm going to get a few pieces of live rock tomorrow and add to it gradually till I have the rock scape I want. Thanks for the post timekeeper, I'll deffinately be adding the cleaners first! I'm not really in much of a rush for the fish, all the other life that comes from the rock and the inverts are just as entertaining to me | |
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September 6th, 2009
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| | Fish Keeper
| Yeah me too! My Scarlet Hermit Crab which I think is a blue Legged hermit changed its shell into a beautiful white one I put in. I would add the fish in a month or less. It still goes through a cycle even if you bought prepared water. live sand is great and also helps with cycling. I have around 3 cm in my tank. Be sure to put the live rock directly on the glass and not on the sand. My fish try to dig under the rock for hiding spots and you wouldn't want the rock to fall on them ruining your aquascape. Fan worms are also great. I have one and they are really easy to take care of and a great addition to your tank. Thanks! I am glad I could help and good luck! I learned all this from the forum and my LFS. I am trying to spot some things in my biological science book but so far no luck. Good luck to you! Have fun arranging rocks! | |
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September 7th, 2009
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| | Fish Keeper
| Quote:
Originally Posted by Time Keeper  The clean up crew is the first thing you should have. Cleaner shrimp are great and so are snails and blue legged hermit crabs. I made the mistake of getting a coral banded shrimp which eats flakes. If you don't add the clean up crew you could have algae problems without good water circulation. All this info comes from member ATP. Is 75 uk gallons 75 liters? If so I would put in like 10 hermit crabs and 2-3 snails. Cleaner shrimp would prabably make up for hermits. Not sure. | 10 hermits and 10 snails is preferred as a start, but everything you else you said should be good. After a few months or two you should add another 5. (IMO, snails are better) I add 5 more snails and hermits every month in my 125. I think my watchman goby takes the hermits and place theme somewhere else . A few hermits went rock climbing and fell into my anemone. hehehe. | |
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September 7th, 2009
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| | Fish Keeper
| Quote:
Originally Posted by ATP 10 hermits and 10 snails is preferred as a start, but everything you else you said should be good. After a few months or two you should add another 5. (IMO, snails are better) I add 5 more snails and hermits every month in my 125. I think my watchman goby takes the hermits and place theme somewhere else . A few hermits went rock climbing and fell into my anemone. hehehe. |  Love the ending. My hermits allways go rock climbing on have fallen on everything except for my fish. Once I get the lights back up I will make a thread on my saltwater. poor hermits. My hermits aren't hermits because they live together. | |
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September 10th, 2009
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| | Fish Lore Newbie
| Got my live rock the other day. 55lbs of indo to start. It has been about 36 hours since i placed it in the tank and none of my water conditions have chaged. I want to get a peppermint shrimp to start with as it has aptasia now  How long would you suggest I wait? | |
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September 10th, 2009
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| | Fish Keeper
| haha my hermits (I only have common kind, the LFS said that blue legged ones are 'naughtier!' and they always climb up the side of the tank on the 'jelly stuff' that holds it together (sorry i don't know the name of it.. is it silcone or something) then when they get to the top and they've eaten all the algae off it they want, they simply launch themselves off and land noisley on the rocks whilst i'm trying to sleep!! | |
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September 11th, 2009
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| | Fish Helper
| I have rock from Fiji, which appears volcanic in nature, and also more recently purchased, and forgetting right now, where it's from, looks more like an old coral structure. Both seem great, bio diversity is probably negligible in difference. The micro organisms in the rock do help to filter the weater, but I recomend a good filtration system as well. I run a 110 gallon reef, with 100 pounds of live rock, and a 30 gallon sump with refugium and protien skimmer, worth the investment if you are going to invest in livestock. You can just add power heads for circulation. Great advice on the clean up crew, at least 1 snail per 10 gallons, and a couple of cleaner shrimp never hurt. Watch out for hermit crabs if you have small fish, corals or inverts! 
Last edited by beachcomber; September 11th, 2009 at 10:41 PM.
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