Gulf live rock shipment in...and some ID ?

[Solga]

Probably a little further than I would like to drive but shipping to my door should be fine I think I’m about 10 hours away. Should stay wet for that long with minimal die off if any.

The live rock i ordered from them, made it just fine to eastern central Indiana. No bad smells, minimal die off, and overall great rock ! The original pictures I posted are of the rock I got from GLR.
The rock I got from TBS, was packaged in water, and was just as good !

 

[Gulf Live Rock]

If you guys get any quality pics of hitchhikers send them to me and Ill add them to my id page on my website. Thanks Dan

 

[OldRed1]

I’m setting up my first SW tank, and I am considering doing wet live rock as opposed to a dry build. That said, I’m uncertain if I have the chops to handle wet live rock. Do I have to “cure” it in a new tank if I do not yet have any fish or corals? Or can I pop it right in and start the cycling process?

 

[Gulf Live Rock]

I’m setting up my first SW tank, and I am considering doing wet live rock as opposed to a dry build. That said, I’m uncertain if I have the chops to handle wet live rock. Do I have to “cure” it in a new tank if I do not yet have any fish or corals? Or can I pop it right in and start the cycling process?

You can pop it right in and wait two weeks to cycle the tank. You will be curing and cycling at the same time.

 

[OldRed1]

You can pop it right in and wait two weeks to cycle the tank. You will be curing and cycling at the same time.

Awesome! Thank you for the tip!

 

[JoJosReef]

Awesome! Thank you for the tip!

Also, depending on how you receive the rocks, curing/cycling can be quicker. If you get it shipped freight in water, it will likely have almost no die-off. If you go so far as to pick it up at the airport like I did, you could have 2-3 days of very light ammonia readings and done. My alert badge never showed anything. Note: I also bought gulf sand with my rocks.

 

[happyhourhero]

Worst pest I got from the gulf rock were acro eating limpets. Love the rock though!

 

[Solga]

I’m setting up my first SW tank, and I am considering doing wet live rock as opposed to a dry build. That said, I’m uncertain if I have the chops to handle wet live rock. Do I have to “cure” it in a new tank if I do not yet have any fish or corals? Or can I pop it right in and start the cycling process?

The way I see it, no matter where you get your live rock from, there will be some kind of cycle that happens. When it comes right down to it, there are things that live in the ocean, that need that environment, and will not sustain in our little glass boxes. So there will be some kind of die off, no matter what.
Like others have said, if the rock is shipped in water, there will be a little less of that die off, but even shipped wet with soaked thick paper towels I had very minimal die off.
Some people wait a couple weeks to start putting anything in their aquarium, but I think it could be done right away. Everything is already there, that is needed for life. The benefit, to me, on waiting to add anything is that if there will be any undesirable creatures, it will be easier to deal with in an observation tank, rather than in a fully ready & stocked display tank. With that being said, the only thing "undesirable" that I have received so far, is aiptasia. But even at that, no matter how "clean" of an environment you create, you will deal with aiptasia sooner or later....no way to prevent it. It's not a matter of if, but when.

Best of luck to you !!

 

[2000se]

Worst pest I got from the gulf rock were acro eating limpets. Love the rock though!

Same - but they seemed to die out. Haven't seen any for over 2 years now in my tank.

 

[dvgyfresh]

If you guys get any quality pics of hitchhikers send them to me and Ill add them to my id page on my website. Thanks Dan

Everyone’s fav the mantis lol

 

[JoJosReef]

The way I see it, no matter where you get your live rock from, there will be some kind of cycle that happens. When it comes right down to it, there are things that live in the ocean, that need that environment, and will not sustain in our little glass boxes. So there will be some kind of die off, no matter what.
Like others have said, if the rock is shipped in water, there will be a little less of that die off, but even shipped wet with soaked thick paper towels I had very minimal die off.
Some people wait a couple weeks to start putting anything in their aquarium, but I think it could be done right away. Everything is already there, that is needed for life. The benefit, to me, on waiting to add anything is that if there will be any undesirable creatures, it will be easier to deal with in an observation tank, rather than in a fully ready & stocked display tank. With that being said, the only thing "undesirable" that I have received so far, is aiptasia. But even at that, no matter how "clean" of an environment you create, you will deal with aiptasia sooner or later....no way to prevent it. It's not a matter of if, but when.

Best of luck to you !!

I can see the value of QTing the rock for observation. I have lots of worms of various types in mine. Some Eunice that will be very difficult to rid if needed. But I wanted the spaghetti worms, fans, sponges and other beneficial/interesting hitchhikers, so it's a trade-off.

Funniest so far has been a sizeable gorilla crab showing up in the return pump chamber of my screen lidded Nuvo 10g AIO. How did it get there!? There us the inaccessible part of the return chamber that runs under the other two chambers, so impossible to fish him out. King of his own little chamber, I guess.

 

[OldRed1]

I can see the value of QTing the rock for observation. I have lots of worms of various types in mine. Some Eunice that will be very difficult to rid if needed. But I wanted the spaghetti worms, fans, sponges and other beneficial/interesting hitchhikers, so it's a trade-off.

Funniest so far has been a sizeable gorilla crab showing up in the return pump chamber of my screen lidded Nuvo 10g AIO. How did it get there!? There us the inaccessible part of the return chamber that runs under the other two chambers, so impossible to fish him out. King of his own little chamber, I guess.

We won't have room for a proper QT tank, unfortunately. So, the thinking was that, if we go with wet live rock, we will cycle it in the tank for 1 - 2 months before we consider adding any fish, inverts, or corals. Hopefully, if there are any unwanted hitchhikers we will have time to remove them before adding other life to the tank.

 

[BrianH]

I suggest a high salinity submersion before putting the rock in a display tank. This should give you the opportunity to view hitchhikers that fall out and determine if you want to add them to your display. IMO it's difficult to remove unwanted hitchhikers from a display.

 

[Bert47]

I have a question when you order from gulf live rock do you do the overnight to your door or the 1-3 day just curious if anyone has done both. Obviously overnight is ideal but a little expensive.

 

[OldRed1]

I suggest a high salinity submersion before putting the rock in a display tank. This should give you the opportunity to view hitchhikers that fall out and determine if you want to add them to your display. IMO it's difficult to remove unwanted hitchhikers from a display.

Do you mind if I ask a few follow up questions about this?

a) If I buy a bucket of saltwater from my LFS and bring it to the appropriate temperature, can I just 'dump' the rock into the bucket and allow it to sit? Is adding an air-stone advisable?

b) For how long would we need to keep the rock in the bucket?

c) When it comes to aquascaping, is it safe to keep this rock out of the bucket for 30 - 60 minutes at a time? Would breaking the rock apart (hammer + chisel) be okay?

 

[dvgyfresh]

I

I have a question when you order from gulf live rock do you do the overnight to your door or the 1-3 day just curious if anyone has done both. Obviously overnight is ideal but a little expensive.

I just paid the standard 3 day shipping , rocks arrived packed with newspaper/bag so still wet. Everything stayed alive pretty much besides corals/ some macro algae. Got a ton of bivalves /mantis shrimp/ aptasia / brittle star/ sun coral that all made it along with rocks covered in coraline

 

[JoJosReef]

Do you mind if I ask a few follow up questions about this?

a) If I buy a bucket of saltwater from my LFS and bring it to the appropriate temperature, can I just 'dump' the rock into the bucket and allow it to sit? Is adding an air-stone advisable?

b) For how long would we need to keep the rock in the bucket?

c) When it comes to aquascaping, is it safe to keep this rock out of the bucket for 30 - 60 minutes at a time? Would breaking the rock apart (hammer + chisel) be okay?

Exposure to air is pretty bad for sponges. I kept pouring tank water over the rocks as I aquascaped. I have a few sponges growing really well while some died off.

 

[BrianH]

Do you mind if I ask a few follow up questions about this?

a) If I buy a bucket of saltwater from my LFS and bring it to the appropriate temperature, can I just 'dump' the rock into the bucket and allow it to sit? Is adding an air-stone advisable? You can do this, but, you need a high salinity(140) that will force hitch hikers off the rock.

b) For how long would we need to keep the rock in the bucket? I would dip it in and shake around for a minute or so to see what comes out.

c) When it comes to aquascaping, is it safe to keep this rock out of the bucket for 30 - 60 minutes at a time? Would breaking the rock apart (hammer + chisel) be okay? IMO you want to keep the rock out of water for as little time as possible.

 

[OldRed1]

Do you mind if I ask a few follow up questions about this?

a) If I buy a bucket of saltwater from my LFS and bring it to the appropriate temperature, can I just 'dump' the rock into the bucket and allow it to sit? Is adding an air-stone advisable? You can do this, but, you need a high salinity(140) that will force hitch hikers off the rock.

b) For how long would we need to keep the rock in the bucket? I would dip it in and shake around for a minute or so to see what comes out.

c) When it comes to aquascaping, is it safe to keep this rock out of the bucket for 30 - 60 minutes at a time? Would breaking the rock apart (hammer + chisel) be okay? IMO you want to keep the rock out of water for as little time as possible.

Interesting! So, this is much more a "dip" than it is an acclimation. Great to know.

 

[Solga]

Another something new(ish). I have seen an orange colored (what I thought was) sponge on top of this one rock. This morning when the lights came on, I noticed it taking shape, rather than being an orange ... Blob.