Hello all,
After spending what feels like the last few months researching as much as I can about Reef Aquariums, I've decided it's finally time to take the plunge and start one for myself. However, I'm unsure whether I should use Live or Dry rock. I understand that dry rock is cheaper and doesn't contain any pests and that live rock is more expensive, will cycle your tank faster but you risk having unwanted pests.
I am leaning towards live rock at this point and am planning on picking it up at my LFS and immediately putting it into my tank. The dry rock from my LFS looks like this (). I'm not sure if there is a way to tell whether or not it is good quality or if it is currently curing or will need to cure when I get it home.
I am leaning towards going with live rock but have a few questions:
1) The tank I have is the Fluval Sea Evo 13.5g, so I will need about 13-15lbs of live rock. Is it likely that I will have some pests or is it hard to say?
2) Can I transport the live rock from my LFS and directly place it into my tank with live sand and water to start the cycle? Do I need to do any curing?
3) At what point do you know that the rock has no pests and you can safely add fish to the aquarium?
Thanks
After spending what feels like the last few months researching as much as I can about Reef Aquariums, I've decided it's finally time to take the plunge and start one for myself. However, I'm unsure whether I should use Live or Dry rock. I understand that dry rock is cheaper and doesn't contain any pests and that live rock is more expensive, will cycle your tank faster but you risk having unwanted pests.
I am leaning towards live rock at this point and am planning on picking it up at my LFS and immediately putting it into my tank. The dry rock from my LFS looks like this (). I'm not sure if there is a way to tell whether or not it is good quality or if it is currently curing or will need to cure when I get it home.
I am leaning towards going with live rock but have a few questions:
1) The tank I have is the Fluval Sea Evo 13.5g, so I will need about 13-15lbs of live rock. Is it likely that I will have some pests or is it hard to say?
2) Can I transport the live rock from my LFS and directly place it into my tank with live sand and water to start the cycle? Do I need to do any curing?
3) At what point do you know that the rock has no pests and you can safely add fish to the aquarium?
Thanks