KP aquatics live rock

[alton]

I wish that is still looked that great but last May the cleaning people splashed water on my power strip tripping it. When I came in on Monday morning everything was dead. I have been fighting hair algae ever since. Hopefully I get it back to normal soon.

 

[Keithb22]

I wish that is still looked that great but last May the cleaning people splashed water on my power strip tripping it. When I came in on Monday morning everything was dead. I have been fighting hair algae ever since. Hopefully I get it back to normal soon.

that’s awful man, I had to leave my tank for 3 days and it was followed by absolute paranoia. I realized how particular and anal these tanks are when I was explaining the process to my sister in law lol

 

[Keithb22]

Update! Tested ammonia this morning and afternoon and got a reading of zero, nitrites 0 and nitrates 20. Tossed everything in the tank and re-measured. Nitrites .25 and ammonia ~.25 with the api test kit. Tossed in some fritz bacteria and other stuff and will retest in the morning to see how it is or do a water change. Overall very impressed w how long it took to cure, found a couple crabs, including one dead in a rock but got most of him out. Would definitely recommend checking KP aquatics out.

 

[alton]

I am guessing but the crabs you are finding are red mithrax?

 

[Keithb22]

Honestly I only found 3 total and all were dead. They didn’t make the trip. If I had to guess I would say yes.

 

[Keithb22]

Still finding things as I finally get them under some light. No idea what these are ( Orange things) but I also have spaghetti worms all over.

 

[vangvace]

those look like sponges.

 

[Keithb22]

For some reason when I upload pictures, it uploads at a lower resolution than my phone. But I appreciate the help, they’re definitely cool little guys.

 

[KJoFan]

I just placed my order the other day for 45 lbs of the uncured live rock (shipped wet but not submerged) and unfortunately UPS messed up and it will be delayed a day arriving.

I'm worried this is going to defeat the whole purpose of getting live rock to start with, with too much die off plus eliminate all hitchhikers, good and bad.

Unfortunate that I paid for the overnight shipping (those that have gone this route know it's not cheap!) only to not get what I paid for.

 

[Keithb22]

I mean you will definitely have more due off than normal but curing it in a tote would be a great idea. I did that and it allowed me to watch for any unwanted critters, and keep ammonia down through water changes which also helped minimize any additional dose off. The big thing is to get a good whiff of the rock and that’ll be a good sign of what shape the rock is in.

 

[KJoFan]

I mean you will definitely have more due off than normal but curing it in a tote would be a great idea. I did that and it allowed me to watch for any unwanted critters, and keep ammonia down through water changes which also helped minimize any additional dose off. The big thing is to get a good whiff of the rock and that’ll be a good sign of what shape the rock is in.

I'm sure I'll know more tomorrow after it arrives. I did plan all along to put it in a brute can for a couple weeks at least to let it cure and for observation before starting the tank. Just a bit of a bummer to drop some good coin on it and have it delayed. On the plus side, temps in the US shouldn't be too hot/cold generally speaking.

 

[Keithb22]

Not in the least, I ordered mine in the midst of winter And it came in great shape. I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised. I’m still getting encrusting coral pop up here and there. I’ve had my rock in and out of the water, the DT, the sump etc and it has held up great. My urchins are getting gigantic though, those came in as a hitchhike.

 

[Tamberav]

I just placed my order the other day for 45 lbs of the uncured live rock (shipped wet but not submerged) and unfortunately UPS messed up and it will be delayed a day arriving.

I'm worried this is going to defeat the whole purpose of getting live rock to start with, with too much die off plus eliminate all hitchhikers, good and bad.

Unfortunate that I paid for the overnight shipping (those that have gone this route know it's not cheap!) only to not get what I paid for.

It's not like when we got live rock from Indo or Pacific or wherever that it was shipped overnight...it was in transit for days...or more. It still came back to life and people still miss that rock like crazy.

Gulf live rock even ships priority which took 4 days when I lived in Duluth MN.

It's a bummer you didn't get what you paid for but it doesn't defeat the purpose. You will have a harsh cycle and die off if larger critters like crabs and some worms but bacteria and coralline and some worms and life will emerge again.

 

[fishface NJ]

@KJoFan Did you receive your delivery today? Excited to know how it survived

 

[KJoFan]

It's not like when we got live rock from Indo or Pacific or wherever that it was shipped overnight...it was in transit for days...or more. It still came back to life and people still miss that rock like crazy.

Gulf live rock even ships priority which took 4 days when I lived in Duluth MN.

It's a bummer you didn't get what you paid for but it doesn't defeat the purpose. You will have a harsh cycle and die off if larger critters like crabs and some worms but bacteria and coralline and some worms and life will emerge again.

I think you’re right. The important part, the diverse bacteria should still be in tact. That’sreally why I went this route after too many headaches with dry rock.

@KJoFan Did you receive your delivery today? Excited to know how it survived

It did arrive. It didn’t and doesn’t smell great but I’m hoping it will come through ok. I only saw a few dead crabs and one alive that looked interesting. I found a few live worms that I pulled out and that’s about it. Several dead urchins and brittle stars. I saw a few bivalves on the rock but unknown if they were alive or not.
One piece had some large macro algae on it, I’m not sure that will survive the cycle though.

Several pieces were pretty dry at least on the surface. The entire bottom of the box was soaked through so I don’t know if there should have been a little more moisture in the bottom or not.


a few Pics:

 

[Keithb22]

Hot dang man that sucks, sorry to hear the troubles. I think you’ll still have most of the beneficial bacteria intact and will notice things coming back and popping up a couple months down the road. Surprised the urchins bit the dust, mine have been relentless. Did you get a bunch off when you gavem a good shake in some water? @KJoFan

 

[KJoFan]

Hot dang man that sucks, sorry to hear the troubles. I think you’ll still have most of the beneficial bacteria intact and will notice things coming back and popping up a couple months down the road. Surprised the urchins bit the dust, mine have been relentless. Did you get a bunch off when you gavem a good shake in some water? @KJoFan

There could be some small ones hiding in there somewhere. I did find a larger one that was still alive. I didn't shake them profusely in water so hard to say what might be hiding in there yet.

I'm curing the rock in a Brute can first so will keep watch for anything still clinging to life. Ammonia is plaguing me already so I'll need to be on top of that for a few days for sure until things calm down a bit.

 

[Keithb22]

There could be some small ones hiding in there somewhere. I did find a larger one that was still alive. I didn't shake them profusely in water so hard to say what might be hiding in there yet.

I'm curing the rock in a Brute can first so will keep watch for anything still clinging to life. Ammonia is plaguing me already so I'll need to be on top of that for a few days for sure until things calm down a bit.

Honestly man I went to lfs and bought whatever they were mixing up and used that. I did 1-2 changes a day for like a week and then one day it just had enough and was great.

 

[KJoFan]

Honestly man I went to lfs and bought whatever they were mixing up and used that. I did 1-2 changes a day for like a week and then one day it just had enough and was great.

Yeah, there's only 10-15 gallons of water in the container, just enough to fully cover all the rock. I figure I'll need to change a couple times a day for sure at first. Nearest LFS is 70 miles away, so pretty sure I'll be mixing my own.

Going to take a little elbow grease, that's for sure. But hopeful for something nice at the other end.

 

[Keithb22]

Keep at it this first 7-10 days and you’ll start to see some of that magic! Keep us all updated, we look forward to hearing how it goes.