base rock questions

[melbfish20]

what is the base rock/live rock ratio that I can use in my 55g tank ? can I go 2/3 base rock ?

can any rock that is safe to place in a aquarium be used as base ?

cheers

[coachfraley]

The ratio is fine. The base rock will get "seeded" with goodies soon enough.

To function as live rock, the rock needs to be super porous. You will be better off getting rock that was meant for SW aquarium use.

[Tigerbarb]

The ratio is fine. The base rock will get "seeded" with goodies soon enough.

To function as live rock, the rock needs to be super porous. You will be better off getting rock that was meant for SW aquarium use.I'd highly reccomend using tufa rock or lace rock, as they are common and very porous. I'd go with the tufa, since it has a lighter coloring, which means you will more easily be able to see the 'goodies' slowly grow on your rock.
Dead live rock also works.

[melbfish20]

would you guys ever buy live rock over the internet ? it is cheaper on the net than my LFS shop but I am concerned about the quality

[labnjab]

It may be cheaper per pound, but they'll get you on shipping because it has to be overnighted, your best bet would be to look on craigslist for someone breaking down a tank. I got 40 lbs of live rock for $120 so that was $3 a lb

[ILuvMyGoldBarb]

I personally started my 125gal reef with 100lbs of dry rock and 10lbs of cured live rock. The ratio doesn't have to be as close as you might think. The idea of using dry rock is becoming much more popular since it is much easier on reef environments and the hobbyists budget.

[Tigerbarb]

It may be cheaper per pound, but they'll get you on shipping because it has to be overnighted, your best bet would be to look on craigslist for someone breaking down a tank. I got 40 lbs of live rock for $120 so that was $3 a lb Another downside to ordering live rock is that you won't be able to select which pieces you want, they'll just send you however many pounds of rock you ask for.

[melbfish20]

I personally started my 125gal reef with 100lbs of dry rock and 10lbs of cured live rock. The ratio doesn't have to be as close as you might think. The idea of using dry rock is becoming much more popular since it is much easier on reef environments and the hobbyists budget.

how long did it take for the dry rock to turn into live rock ?

as far as I am concerned the less live rock the better so what ratio of live/dry rock would you guys go with ?

[travie]

how long did it take for the dry rock to turn into live rock ?

That will vary from tank to tank. Turning the dry/dead rock into live rock is the same as cycling a freshwater tank, but to preserve the living creatures on the live rock, it is best to place a raw shrimp that can be bought at a local grocery store into the tank. Then just have to keep testing the water till ammonia and nitrite is at zero and you have a nitrate reading.

As far as what ratio; the more cured live rock you buy, the more diversity of living creatures you will get. I would personally go with the ratio 4:1 dry/dead:live rock if I'm on a budget. If you find some people on Craigslist or Kijiji that are tearing their tank down and selling all of it, you could possibly get all cured live rock just as cheap as buying dry/dead rock and live rock at an LFS.

[melbfish20]

How important is the type of live rock that I get.I just found a aquarium shop that will sell it for $10 per k which is very cheap in australia but it dosent have anywhere near as much colour on it as the live rocks at the other shops have .The colour dosent bother me its more the biological filtration

[travie]

The more porrous the rock, the better biological filtration it will do. It will also color up over time once your tank stabilizes and is setup for awhile.