zoomonster
Valuable Member
This is primarily a discussion about Aussie live rock and not targeted at liverockandreef. Being they are not a sponsor maybe we can have an actual discussion without it getting hidden away in a vendor complaint thread.
So… Australian live rock. I want to share my experience and see others experiences getting it. I have plenty of rock but decided to get 25 pounds to add new flavor to my tank. I ended up ordering from liverockandreef in Tampa and in the end, it ended up being $25.38 a pound with UPS Priority Overnight shipped from NY. The guy called me and was pretty adamant about not buying the rock for its color, because it wouldn’t last, which made me a little uneasy. I had seen a review of his where someone got a box of white rock. However, he said I would be getting part of a 6000 pound fresh shipment around the first week of May. He also explained the rock was very light and I would get almost a full box. That’s not what happened. Anyway, I guess about a week ago I got the box. The rock was pretty well wrapped and packed with bubble wrap but still some breakage. My biggest problem was they threw in 10lb+ piece that felt like a chunk of concrete which is likely what broke up some of the other rock and racked up the weight. The remaining pieces were ok and I got chunk and shelf rock and little to no branch as I requested. So, on what I got (other than the mostly white boulder) the colors were pretty nice but mostly pink coralline. Perhaps the best part was the rock really was very fresh, maybe a day off the plane from Aussie. Interestingly enough there were no hitchhikers to be found in the box. However other than pink much of the rock was black with what I thought was sponge but rather some sort of sheet like algae. There were some plants but not much other than some grassy like stuff and some bushy asparagopsis that will bind up a pump instantly.
It was very fresh, but I cured it close to a week to be sure. It went into a 44g Brute with fresh saltwater, pump, heater and lights along with a small bottle of Dr Tims starter. Midpoint I even added a tiny amount of Redsea Reef Energy + to help save anything alive. No problem, no stench but true to his word the rock mostly whited out in a matter of days. There were some traces of coral on the boulder but it remains to be seen what survives or what eventually pops out. The rock is in tank now and fortunately most of the black and brown came off in curing. Interesting enough no hitchhikers were found in the Brute when I emptied it.
I know there are not many options to get real live rock other than Gulf grown and a lot of the people want real Pacific rock which has become somewhat unobtainium in recent years. IMO the Aussie rock is not worth the typical going (exorbitant) price of $25 a pound. In fairness though Aussie is the one place you can get live branch rock from. After looking at a variety of sites I can pretty much guarantee the pieces pictured are cherry picked and photographed still fresh and you won’t see anything near as nice and it won’t last in your tank. Not a one including my vendor mentions the coralline won’t survive part on web page. Other than a disclaimer something like PIECES OF ROCK CAN VARY IN SIZE AND AMOUNT OF COLOR AND GROWTH ON THEM, NOT ALL PIECES WILL HAVE THE SAME AMOUNT OF COLOR OR GROWTH. THERE IS NO REFUNDS OR CREDIT GIVEN ON THIS LIVE ROCK.
Still rearranging but a sneak peek of the end product. In reality mostly glaring white but as close as I could get with a picture. Some hint of coralline left but time will tell assuming the aggressive red (on overflow in back) I have doesn't take over. If nothing else the boulder in the center will make a nice home for a bunch of hammers.
So… Australian live rock. I want to share my experience and see others experiences getting it. I have plenty of rock but decided to get 25 pounds to add new flavor to my tank. I ended up ordering from liverockandreef in Tampa and in the end, it ended up being $25.38 a pound with UPS Priority Overnight shipped from NY. The guy called me and was pretty adamant about not buying the rock for its color, because it wouldn’t last, which made me a little uneasy. I had seen a review of his where someone got a box of white rock. However, he said I would be getting part of a 6000 pound fresh shipment around the first week of May. He also explained the rock was very light and I would get almost a full box. That’s not what happened. Anyway, I guess about a week ago I got the box. The rock was pretty well wrapped and packed with bubble wrap but still some breakage. My biggest problem was they threw in 10lb+ piece that felt like a chunk of concrete which is likely what broke up some of the other rock and racked up the weight. The remaining pieces were ok and I got chunk and shelf rock and little to no branch as I requested. So, on what I got (other than the mostly white boulder) the colors were pretty nice but mostly pink coralline. Perhaps the best part was the rock really was very fresh, maybe a day off the plane from Aussie. Interestingly enough there were no hitchhikers to be found in the box. However other than pink much of the rock was black with what I thought was sponge but rather some sort of sheet like algae. There were some plants but not much other than some grassy like stuff and some bushy asparagopsis that will bind up a pump instantly.
It was very fresh, but I cured it close to a week to be sure. It went into a 44g Brute with fresh saltwater, pump, heater and lights along with a small bottle of Dr Tims starter. Midpoint I even added a tiny amount of Redsea Reef Energy + to help save anything alive. No problem, no stench but true to his word the rock mostly whited out in a matter of days. There were some traces of coral on the boulder but it remains to be seen what survives or what eventually pops out. The rock is in tank now and fortunately most of the black and brown came off in curing. Interesting enough no hitchhikers were found in the Brute when I emptied it.
I know there are not many options to get real live rock other than Gulf grown and a lot of the people want real Pacific rock which has become somewhat unobtainium in recent years. IMO the Aussie rock is not worth the typical going (exorbitant) price of $25 a pound. In fairness though Aussie is the one place you can get live branch rock from. After looking at a variety of sites I can pretty much guarantee the pieces pictured are cherry picked and photographed still fresh and you won’t see anything near as nice and it won’t last in your tank. Not a one including my vendor mentions the coralline won’t survive part on web page. Other than a disclaimer something like PIECES OF ROCK CAN VARY IN SIZE AND AMOUNT OF COLOR AND GROWTH ON THEM, NOT ALL PIECES WILL HAVE THE SAME AMOUNT OF COLOR OR GROWTH. THERE IS NO REFUNDS OR CREDIT GIVEN ON THIS LIVE ROCK.
Still rearranging but a sneak peek of the end product. In reality mostly glaring white but as close as I could get with a picture. Some hint of coralline left but time will tell assuming the aggressive red (on overflow in back) I have doesn't take over. If nothing else the boulder in the center will make a nice home for a bunch of hammers.
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