What is the best way to seed dry rock?

Karen00 · Apr 24, 2022

Hello fellow saltines,

The rock I originally got for my 5g is the CaribSea LifeRock. This rock comes seeded with bacteria. What I didn't realize at the time is that they have a couple different types. Solid and porous. Not knowing any better I got the solid and now want to switch to something more porous. Instead of getting the CaribSea again I just bought some Pukani type of rock. I only have two pieces of rock in my tank so planned to switch one piece at a time. What is the best way to seed the Pukani and how long should I let it sit? I'm a bit nervous doing this because I don't want to upset my tank's balance. I have a bucket ready to go and a small powerhead. Should I just add used tank water or should I also add some bottled bacteria? I could also add some of the sand from my tank.

blaxsun · Apr 24, 2022

Do you have room in your tank to add the new rock at the same time as the old rock?

Karen00 · Apr 24, 2022

blaxsun said:
Do you have room in your tank to add the new rock at the same time as the old rock?

I thought of this. I could sit it on top of the flatter rock I have in the tank but I'm concerned at how much water it might displace. I can try it. If it doesn't raise the water too high then I can keep the rock and all of my water and just run the level high for awhile.

Spare time · Apr 24, 2022

Is it "used" rock?

vetteguy53081 · Apr 24, 2022

I simply add Micro Bacter XLM at 2.5 ml per 10 gallons

Karen00 · Apr 24, 2022

Spare time said:
Is it "used" rock?

No... it's new dry rock. The very first thing I have to do is rinse it.

Karen00 · Apr 24, 2022

vetteguy53081 said:
I simply add Micro Bacter XLM at 2.5 ml per 10 gallons

Thanks for this! I have a bottle of that kicking around from when I started my tank that I never used because the CaribSea was already seeded and I used live sand. How long should I let it sit in the bucket with aeration so that I'm reasonably sure I can start to swap my rocks?

blaxsun · Apr 24, 2022

Adding some additional bacteria is a good suggestion. If you can add the new rock to the tank all you need to do is leave it for a few weeks and it should seed naturally.

Spare time · Apr 24, 2022

Karen00 said:
No... it's new dry rock. The very first thing I have to do is rinse it.

Ah ok. Yeah in this case just add something like pns subtrate sauce or some other bacterial cocktails. You can seed it with material from an established tank if you don't have pests in the old tank.

Karen00 · Apr 25, 2022

Spare time said:
Ah ok. Yeah in this case just add something like pns subtrate sauce or some other bacterial cocktails. You can seed it with material from an established tank if you don't have pests in the old tank.

Thanks! So far no pests so I might put some of my sand in a baggie and drop it in along with some bottle bac. I should've researched my rock better when I started. What a p.i.t.a. having to do this! LOL

Karen00 · Apr 25, 2022

blaxsun said:
Adding some additional bacteria is a good suggestion. If you can add the new rock to the tank all you need to do is leave it for a few weeks and it should seed naturally.

I'm going to see if I can fit one in my tank. That would be the easiest way. The other two pieces I will probably start in a bucket just to get them going. I hope I don't go through the uglies again! Ugh! I should've researched the different rock types better when I started. All rocks were definitely not created equal when it comes to reefing. LOL

Lbrdsoxfan · Apr 25, 2022

Im lucky that my LFS sells live rock out of a isolated system. I always use that along with a piece of rock out of my dads tank, its been running a few decades +, so lots of varied bacteria.

Admittedly the Brightwell microbacter 7 & XLM stuff has worked like a champ, when it comes to seeding/cycling out of a bottle! Im also a fan of fritz turbo start (the refrigerated stuff).

blaxsun · Apr 25, 2022

Karen00 said:
I'm going to see if I can fit one in my tank. That would be the easiest way. The other two pieces I will probably start in a bucket just to get them going. I hope I don't go through the uglies again! Ugh! I should've researched the different rock types better when I started. All rocks were definitely not created equal when it comes to reefing. LOL

It you do place them in a bucket, you can use saltwater from water changes, used filter floss and ghost feeding with Microbacter7 for a few days. A heater and small powerhead can also really help.

Karen00 · Apr 25, 2022

blaxsun said:
It you do place them in a bucket, you can use saltwater from water changes, used filter floss and ghost feeding with Microbacter7 for a few days. A heater and small powerhead can also really help.

Heater... I forgot about a heater. How could I forget a heater? LOL

blaxsun · Apr 25, 2022

Karen00 said:
Heater... I forgot about a heater. How could I forget a heater? LOL

It's summer - we're all transitioning to air conditioning...

Karen00 · Apr 25, 2022

Lbrdsoxfan said:
Im lucky that my LFS sells live rock out of a isolated system. I always use that along with a piece of rock out of my dads tank, its been running a few decades +, so lots of varied bacteria.

Admittedly the Brightwell microbacter 7 & XLM stuff has worked like a champ, when it comes to seeding/cycling out of a bottle! Im also a fan of fritz turbo start (the refrigerated stuff).

Thanks for these suggestions! That's cool that your LFS has an isolated system to get rock from plus your dad's tank (that's a bonus)!