Live Rock

[slingham64]

I've got a 30 gallon aquarium, and I'm wondering what a good amount of live rock would be. I'm a college student so extra money is hard to come by, so I wanna get the most bang for my buck. Any suggestions and good sources?

[cocoa_pleco]

i use the 1 pound per gallon rule. I pay 8$ a lb for my live rock so my 10g cost 80$, but im sure you can find some for 5$ a pound. So, you need 30 lbs.

[Chrona]

http://www.liveaquaria.com/product/prod_Display.cfm?pCatId=2391

Dr. Foster and Smith carries a really nice selection of fairly cheap LR. This foundation rock will work just as well as the premium Fiji stuff in terms of filtration. Obviously, you won't be getting all the nice coraline algae and organisms that would come with the premium stuff, but it's much cheaper.

35lb box for 60 bucks. Shipping is like 40 bucks? If you buy live rock from a store, you'll end up spending close to 200.

[cocoa_pleco]

my store bought came loaded with goodies. Ive got like 10 anenomes, and tons of algae on 3lbs, though they gave me a 99% piece of rock that was 1lb and pure white, no organisms

[Fishguy2727]

I have heard that liveaquaria's premium stuff is really good though, and at $180 shipped if I remember right for 45 pounds (under $4 per pound) it is a steal. And it is better to have 1.5-2 pounds per gallon. One pound per gallon is kind of like following what a filter claims it can handle, you really need more.

[luckie8]

Sorry for being a noob but I couldnt find this answer anywhere.
Please help. Im trying to save some $$$ by skipping the canister filter.
Can I run a 40gal FOWLR with 45lb LR, skimmer and powerheads without a filter?

[Chrona]

Sorry for being a noob but I couldnt find this answer anywhere.
Please help. Im trying to save some $$$ by skipping the canister filter.
Can I run a 40gal FOWLR with 45lb LR, skimmer and powerheads without a filter?

Yes

Your mechanical filtration will kinda suck though, I think. And you would have to go easy on the fishload.

[Drumachine09]

I would add a decent sized hang on back, just to give you a little more mechanical filtration. you could get a cheapy walmart aquatech 20-40, or a 40-60 for fairly cheap. Theyre a little underpowered, but they definatly wont hurt anything.

[luckie8]

Yes

Your mechanical filtration will kinda suck though, I think. And you would have to go easy on the fishload.
By you saying mechanical filtration means the skimmer?
Anyway, I'm planning to cycle my 40gal tank with 45lb of pre-cured LR and 30lb of Aragamax sand. Should I leave the skimmer on or off during this time?
What about the powerheads?

[Chrona]

By you saying mechanical filtration means the skimmer?
Anyway, I'm planning to cycle my 40gal tank with 45lb of pre-cured LR and 30lb of Aragamax sand. Should I leave the skimmer on or off during this time?
What about the powerheads?

Not sure on that. By mechanical I meant the ability of a filter to get inert particle out of the water. Ie polishing the water.

[Fishguy2727]

Protein skimmer is not mechanical. I also think it would be good to add a HOB just to get some mechanical going in there. An AquaClear would be good. I wouldn't use carbon, just mechanical and biological. I would also include more LR, at least before too long.

[2manyfish]

Yeah, go with at least one pound per gallon. I also agree with getting a HOB filter just clean it regularly. I use carbon in mine but it isn't required.
As far as the rock goes, if my money was that tight, I'd go with the cheapest base rock I could find. Get maybe 20 to 25 pounds of it. The remaining rock go with the best you can afford. Tampabaysaltwater has aquacultured live rock which is amazing stuff! Tons of life on it! But no matter where you get it, get some of the good stuff. The life from that rock will eventually colonize the base rock. It just takes time.