Gulf LR in new tank- dark cycle in sump, or in brute can?

[WeberKettleGuy]

I’m curious to know your opinions on dark cycling gulf live rock either in the sump on a new tank, or to cycle in a brute trash can? Also, is there any benefits to cycling the dry rock with it that will also be in the display?

My goal is to buy 15 pounds of LR from KP Aquatics, and use some dry pukani for my aqua scape in a 40 breeder. Just not sure how to best go about dark cycling the rock to kill the photosynthetic stuff off.

I think I also want to make sure I don’t bring in any of the nasty hitch hikers if possible, but understand there is never a guarantee with ocean live rock. Thoughts?

 

[Sump Crab]

Kp I’ve had in the past didn’t really come with any photosynthetic macro algae or anything like that. Mostly coralline algae. Gulf rock has a lot more macro than keys rock IME

 

[Spare time]

If you are doing live rock, then don't dark cycle. It's a waste of money to kill off all of the coralline and fun algae. I believe that corraline algae and zooplankton is what prevents pest algae from growing, so the dark period may be counter productive

 

[MaxTremors]

I agree @Spare time , what’s the point of buying real live rock if you’re just going to kill most of the life on it?

 

[Tiki_Reef]

I concur throw it in the tank and let it ride, you paid for the benefits of live rock.

 

[Spare time]

I think a better alternative would be something like the rubble rock from aquabiomics if you are doing a dark cycle. However, as soon as the lights go on, algae is going to pop up regardless

 

[WeberKettleGuy]

If you are doing live rock, then don't dark cycle. It's a waste of money to kill off all of the coralline and fun algae. I believe that corraline algae and zooplankton is what prevents pest algae from growing, so the dark period may be counter productive

Thank you for your advice! In your opinion, is 15 lbs enough to start a 40 breeder? Can I just throw the LR in when I start my cycle with the rest of the dry rock display? I plan to use live sand as well.

 

[Lost in the Sauce]

Thank you for your advice! In your opinion, is 15 lbs enough to start a 40 breeder? Can I just throw the LR in when I start my cycle with the rest of the dry rock display? I plan to use live sand as well.

This is about 40 lb in a 40b and it's just thrown in there.

If you buy ocean live rock, you don't need to "cycle" your tank. The live rock is already ready already.

 

[wtdenk]

I have gulf rock in a separate observation tank right now. I started my main tank with dry rock and wanted to add life and diversity. I agree with the consensus on this thread so far that you shouldn't dark cycle gulf rock because it almost defeats the point. However your concern with bad hitch hikers is valid. There is no perfect answer here. Just like anything else there is risk involved. Part of the fun for me so far has been researching each new thing I find on the gulf rock. Currently I'm trying to trap a worm that we assume is predatory. Found a lightbulb anemone that I decided to keep. More brittle stars than I can count. The list keeps going.

If you decide to dip or dark cycle the rock out of fears of hitchhikers, you might avoid some headaches and hopefully keep some beneficial bacteria, but you will certainly lose a lot of life.

 

[MartinM]

IMO, live rock goes right into the tank after being overnight wet shipped! I always want to keep as much biodiversity alive as possible.

 

[Tired]

The best way to pull out potential bad hitchhikers is to put the rock into a tank so you can easily look through the sides, and monitor for awhile before adding other critters. Sneak up on it at night with a flashlight, preferably with red tissue paper over it so the light won't startle the critters, and grab anything you don't want in there with tongs. Crab traps made from soda bottles are also good ideas.

 

[WeberKettleGuy]

I have gulf rock in a separate observation tank right now. I started my main tank with dry rock and wanted to add life and diversity. I agree with the consensus on this thread so far that you shouldn't dark cycle gulf rock because it almost defeats the point. However your concern with bad hitch hikers is valid. There is no perfect answer here. Just like anything else there is risk involved. Part of the fun for me so far has been researching each new thing I find on the gulf rock. Currently I'm trying to trap a worm that we assume is predatory. Found a lightbulb anemone that I decided to keep. More brittle stars than I can count. The list keeps going.

If you decide to dip or dark cycle the rock out of fears of hitchhikers, you might avoid some headaches and hopefully keep some beneficial bacteria, but you will certainly lose a lot of life.

Dang, thanks for all the input! You all are awesome! I never thought about running a smaller tank temporarily just to see what’s on the rock before throwing it in the display tank. How long have you been running your display in cycle before you plan to add the live rock? I do like the idea of keeping as much life as possible, but horrified I’m gonna get a nasty hitch hiker that a rookie has no business having in his tank.

 

[WeberKettleGuy]

IMO, live rock goes right into the tank after being overnight wet shipped! I always want to keep as much biodiversity alive as possible.

So you just throw your live rock into your tank, hitch hikers and all? Do you go back and pull out the nasty stuff later? I think my biggest fear is bristleworms (lots of mixed opinions of them here), or a nasty crab and or shrimp.

 

[livinlifeinBKK]

What do you guys qualify as a bad hitchhiker? I'm just curious because I've always used live rock straight from the ocean (not maricultured even) and the worst I've ever had to deal with was some crabs I'd rather not have and I guess bristle worms...Ive never actually done anything about either though because they don't seem to hurt anything...

 

[Lost in the Sauce]

For the record, I am not saying to put it directly into the tank.. I removed a dozen Eunice worms from a 60 lb order of KP Rock before introduction.

Hyper salinity dips were very helpful.

 

[WeberKettleGuy]

For the record, I am not saying to put it directly into the tank.. I removed a dozen Eunice worms from a 60 lb order of KP Rock before introduction.

Hyper salinity dips were very helpful.

This is good to know! I need to do some reading up on hyper salinity I suppose. Thanks!

 

[Tired]

Bristleworms are beneficial detritivores that scare some people because they look creepy, and get blamed for eating dead corals sometimes. It's fireworms that are potentially destructive, and those are pretty rare. Bristleworms are also basically impossible to keep out of reef tanks by any reasonable means. Let 'em in, they're helpful.

Hyper or hypo salinity dips can scare a lot of critters off the rock, but they do run the risk of damaging beneficial organisms, especially ones that can't get away from the dip.

Mainly what you need to watch out for is parasitic isopods (uncommon but possible), crabs that will eventually grow to a large size, and mantis shrimp. Those can all be caught by watching for them at night, and setting traps in the tank. Putting the rock in a small holding tank with flow, light, and water changes can be a good way to get those critters out.

 

[Rtaylor]

The best way to pull out potential bad hitchhikers is to put the rock into a tank so you can easily look through the sides, and monitor for awhile before adding other critters. Sneak up on it at night with a flashlight, preferably with red tissue paper over it so the light won't startle the critters, and grab anything you don't want in there with tongs. Crab traps made from soda bottles are also good ideas.

They make red flashlights nowadays

 

[Lost in the Sauce]

This is a Small slice of what you can expect in KP rock. A dozen full size banded stars were already removed.

 

[Spare time]

Thank you for your advice! In your opinion, is 15 lbs enough to start a 40 breeder? Can I just throw the LR in when I start my cycle with the rest of the dry rock display? I plan to use live sand as well.

Yes and yes. You can use dry sand if you want to save money. Or, you can add a pinch of real ocean live sand too if you'd like.