Live vs Dry Rock

[JPCommenter]

Hi all,
As a newbie reefer, I have to ask the big question. Dry rock or live rock? I'm terrified of getting bad hitchhikers, but I understand the benefits of live rock. My tank is shipping as we speak, Innovative Marine Nuvo 20 gallon.

 

[vetteguy53081]

Hi all,
As a newbie reefer, I have to ask the big question. Dry rock or live rock? I'm terrified of getting bad hitchhikers, but I understand the benefits of live rock. My tank is shipping as we speak, Innovative Marine Nuvo 20 gallon.

Livee rock for the benefits it offers and you can add dry but try to place in tub with water movement and add some denitrifying bacteria such as micro bacter XLM to sort of seed the pores with bacteria

 

[EeyoreIsMySpiritAnimal]

Hi all,
As a newbie reefer, I have to ask the big question. Dry rock or live rock? I'm terrified of getting bad hitchhikers, but I understand the benefits of live rock. My tank is shipping as we speak, Innovative Marine Nuvo 20 gallon.

There is nothing inherently wrong with using dry rock. But live rock doesn't always come with a high risk; remember that the "live" part of live rock primarily refers to the presence of healthy colonies of nitrifying bacteria...

If you have other reefers in your community, ask 1 or 2 for a small piece of established rock from their system(s) and then build your aquascape with dry rock. Best of both worlds

 

[dlsorensen]

What Erin said! Save some money and use base rock and then "seed" with a few pieces of live.

 

[LeannaBanana]

I commented this same thing on another thread that I think you saw lol. If it was me, I'd be 100% live rock all day long in a new tank. BUT, my past three tanks have been a mix of live and dry and I've fared very well.

There's nothing wrong with how you choose to start your tank, no matter if it's dry only, live only, or some combo. There's no one size fits all correct answer. It's all about what your goals are and how you want to get there.

 

[EeyoreIsMySpiritAnimal]

I commented this same thing on another thread that I think you saw lol. If it was me, I'd be 100% live rock all day long in a new tank. BUT, my past three tanks have been a mix of live and dry and I've fared very well.

There's nothing wrong with how you choose to start your tank, no matter if it's dry only, live only, or some combo. There's no one size fits all correct answer. It's all about what your goals are and how you want to get there.

Agreed!
But the OP stated they are "terrified" of hitchhikers, so I offered what I feel is a happy medium.

 

[vaguelyreeflike]

Hi all,
As a newbie reefer, I have to ask the big question. Dry rock or live rock? I'm terrified of getting bad hitchhikers, but I understand the benefits of live rock. My tank is shipping as we speak, Innovative Marine Nuvo 20 gallon.

If you can, find a store selling live rock that started as dry. Our 125gal live rock tank is completely pest free (never even seen a bristleworm). We only use dry base rock and i start the rocks on one side of the tank, that side isnt for sale, and then I move them to the opposite side after 3-4 months of becoming nicely discoloured and seeded. I know not every LFS has our standards (seeing from some posts of peoples live rock tanks full of aiptasia), but I have to believe the majority do. Wont come with hitchhikers AND will jumpstart/move the cycle to your tank

 

[davidcalgary29]

Buying from people who are breaking down their tanks is also a great source. I bought a hundred and fifty pounds (and at a dollar a pound, too), from a very nice young woman who was moving to a different province. She had the live rock in giant totes for six months, with powerheads, and was unable to find a buyer for it. No pests, either.

 

[V A R I A N T]

Thread, meet thread. Same discussion happening elsewhere that might share additional viewpoints.

Dry vs live rock for new tank?

Hi all, One thing that seems to have changed since I was last in this hobby is the use of live vs dry rock and I’m really torn on what to choose for my tank setup. I scoped out some LFS and unfortunately most of the rock they had seemed to be full of aptasia already (boo). So if I go live rock...

www.reef2reef.com

 

[corand76]

Yes ,alot has changed , $40.00 - $60.00 corals you can hold in your hand , sand instead of crushed coral, VHO fluorescents in a canopy with a fan to LED lighting. The first tank I had back when was live rock using a berlin skimmer , h.o.b. filter box, dosing kalkwasser. Thinking about it now ,I really didn't realize what I was able to accomplish on a budget. Second tank, Dry rock,sand,and Leds, everything was ok about 7months started the algae cycles. Then got hit by the dreaded relentless white or grey snot algae. bought 5 nets, removed h.O.B filter box, removed the sand to get it under control. So I'm for live rock whether the natural greenery from Tampa or the clean look rock with coraline if you can find it.

 

[bushdoc]

For your size tank you can get 100% Live rock for example from Tampa Bay Saltwater and you will not have to brake the bank.
I understand your fear of bad hitchhikers. If you want dry rock I would follow vetteguy53081 advice. Most of people starting with dry rock will eventually get some pests like aiptasia from coral frags. Additionally with dry rock you will have "ugly faze", lasting possibly several months.

 

[kdxracer]

For your size tank you can get 100% Live rock for example from Tampa Bay Saltwater and you will not have to brake the bank.
I understand your fear of bad hitchhikers. If you want dry rock I would follow vetteguy53081 advice. Most of people starting with dry rock will eventually get some pests like aiptasia from coral frags. Additionally with dry rock you will have "ugly faze", lasting possibly several months.

If you do the dip on new coral frags wont that kill off aiptasia and other pests?
I am trying to build some knowledge to eventually convert my freshwater to salt and reading the dry vs live rock threads

 

[EeyoreIsMySpiritAnimal]

If you do the dip on new coral frags wont that kill off aiptasia and other pests?
I am trying to build some knowledge to eventually convert my freshwater to salt and reading the dry vs live rock threads

Coral dips don't reliably kill aiptasia. They are for worms, "bugs", etc.

 

[livinlifeinBKK]

If you can, find a store selling live rock that started as dry. Our 125gal live rock tank is completely pest free (never even seen a bristleworm). We only use dry base rock and i start the rocks on one side of the tank, that side isnt for sale, and then I move them to the opposite side after 3-4 months of becoming nicely discoloured and seeded. I know not every LFS has our standards (seeing from some posts of peoples live rock tanks full of aiptasia), but I have to believe the majority do. Wont come with hitchhikers AND will jumpstart/move the cycle to your tank

While it may come seeded bacteria, the mere several strains in bottled bacterial products are a far cry from the bacterial diversity on real live rock from the ocean

 

[Budman93]

I would say mostly dry with a couple pieces of live however in my new setup im doing completely dry rock for the first time and seeing how that works. With all dry you eliminate entry points for unwanted hitchikers however miss out on beneficial bacterias and good hitchhikers. Either or can work tbh and people have had success with both.