You cannot just start with a few pieces of live rock if the rest of your stuff is full of terrestrial bound phosphate with the pores filled with organics. There is more to live rock than just the fauna on the surface.
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All Walt smith premium Fiji live rock 15 years old
You referenced people failing with dry rock. Were they adding dry rock to an already established aquarium? likely not. It would seem to me dry rock is a no brainer in your situation if you already have an established system. Why risk introducing pests and breaking something that does not need fixed. Live rock doesn't filter anything BTW. That's a misnomer. It cant remove nitrates. It cant remove phosphates. If these people you speak of were expecting it, perhaps lack of knowledge is why their tanks failed. In terms of "filtration", Rock just hosts nitrifying bacteria that converts Ammonia to nitrates. A plie of Legos in the aquarium could achieve that, so the "failures" you mention have nothing to do with the fact that they started with dry rock unless they failed to allow the tank to cycle before adding fish, or increased the bio load too quickly. I see association that does not translate to causation in your reference and I don't see how it relates to your situation.Really not my situation and I am discussing adding a few pieces to a fairly stable established Algae free tank. I might talk to KP Aquatics by phone and see what they have to say.
You cannot just start with a few pieces of live rock if the rest of your stuff is full of terrestrial bound phosphate with the pores filled with organics. There is more to live rock than just the fauna on the surface.
most of this list aren’t even available to the consumer any more. i chose florida’s gulf rock cause it’s the only legit ocean live rock left that i could find.
BRS killed the live rock industry. it was an LFS staple money maker and no one would order it from them and their dry rock rarely sold so they made a fear based propaganda video about how horrible it is. ryan told me it didn’t sell for them. managing lfs for years i know it always sold awesome for us and was profitable to the point it helped us keep in business over other items.
really sucks because live rock makes reef keeping way easier and natural. i’ll never deal with dry rock again. twice nothing but dinos and cyano issues. hope this hobby gets back around to culture ocean rock. many people got frustrated and gave up after their tanks were failing. thanks brs.
Not interested in your suggestions. You just pulled those percentages out of your rear. Dinos are not a phase and never were part of it until dry rock became prevalent.The cyano and dinos you speak of are just phases that tend to pass. Patience is key. I've never had dynos, but the cyano was never a big deal.
You are correct, the failure rate is likely much lower than 10% and there are way more than 1000 people who have been successful. It was obviously a hypothetical. Being more experienced at failure dose not make you my better. Tone it down. Forums are not for people with closed minds. And just because this particular tank is only a year old, it does not mean I only have a year of experience in the hobby.Not interested in your suggestions. You just pulled those percentages out of your rear. Dinos are not a phase and never were part of it until dry rock became prevalent.
I never said it was the only way to go. I said it’s the best way, because it is, and I know this from my long and vast experience in the hobby.
You’ve been around one year and your going to lecture me? Go away.
Dinos are not a phase and never were part of it until dry rock became prevalent.
The failures I am speaking of were advanced aquarists as I mentioned. The guests on the youtube channel were Sanjay Gupta and Mike Palleta. They both had a failed tank that would not grow SPS they attributed to dead rock. They added bacteria and finally took down both tanks and restarted with live rock.You referenced people failing with dry rock. Were they adding dry rock to an already established aquarium? likely not. It would seem to me dry rock is a no brainer in your situation if you already have an established system. Why risk introducing pests and breaking something that does not need fixed. Live rock doesn't filter anything BTW. That's a misnomer. It cant remove nitrates. It cant remove phosphates. If these people you speak of were expecting it, perhaps lack of knowledge is why their tanks failed. In terms of "filtration", Rock just hosts nitrifying bacteria that converts Ammonia to nitrates. A plie of Legos in the aquarium could achieve that, so the "failures" you mention have nothing to do with the fact that they started with dry rock unless they failed to allow the tank to cycle before adding fish, or increased the bio load too quickly. I see association that does not translate to causation in your reference and I don't see how it relates to your situation.
Dinos and all other phases can happen with old tank rock, dead rock, and live rock. It is a certainty. It really comes down to if you accept being forced to use dead rock and LEDs long term. My experiences is it is a lot easier with live rock and metal halides. You need to expect a new aquarist to accept mediocre results. for a year.You are correct, the failure rate is likely much lower than 10% and there are way more than 1000 people who have been successful. It was obviously a hypothetical. Being more experienced at failure dose not make you my better. Tone it down. Forums are not for people with closed minds. And just because this particular tank is only a year old, it does not mean I only have a year of experience in the hobby.
Interesting, that would suck. I had a 120 in Texas that I started with dead rock and sand. Most successful tank I ever had. Not an algae bloom or pest as far as the eye could see. I did a mixed reef in that tank, but I also let it cycle for 1 year before I added anything alive. My success is why I started my new tank with the same concept. I’d be interested to hear what they did. Now I’m a little unnerved at my decision to do it again. .The failures I am speaking of were advanced aquarists as I mentioned. The guests on the youtube channel were Sanjay Gupta and Mike Palleta. They both had a failed tank that would not grow SPS they attributed to dead rock. They added bacteria and finally took down both tanks and restarted with live rock.
Mine is working but hardly impressive compared to past results as I mentioned with actual live rock. I will try legos next instead?
My favorite is lava rocks. I got mine at a landscape supply company for 17 cents a pound. Oddly enough, I couldn't get it as live rock.
3 years later.
Interested. I’ve only ever seen lava rock in freshwater tanks. Not sure why.Whats the general consensus on lava rock? Ive heard some say it has too much iron (if I recall correctly) in it and is a risk. Obviously this tank looks great - but perhaps it was just a low metal batch?
It sounds like a great option, but perhaps a bit risky.