What's your view on Live Rock in 2022? What's changed or hasn't changed?

Has your personal view on LIVE ROCK in a reef tank changed over the years?

  • YES (please tell us how)

    Votes: 123 33.5%
  • NO

    Votes: 235 64.0%
  • Other (please explain)

    Votes: 9 2.5%

  • Total voters
    367

tharbin

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Still waiting on the results of the Biome investigation @Bulk Reef Supply is conducting. The most recent update on facebook made it seem like live rock doesn't provide as diverse a biome as other options...
I will never buy that one. It may be true of maricultered rock but not live rock. What makes live rock unique is that some of the organisms settle on live coral and become part of the actual structure as it is built. Putting a dead rock or a manufactured rock into the ocean is not the same thing.
 

stephydawn

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I would love to try real live rock! The hitchhiker’s would be fun! I just got my first tank last December and used well cycled live rock from my fish stores sump. $8-$10 a pound though, so I added a couple dry pieces as well. (Small town, only two fish stores, one 20 min away and one 40. Also a petco an hour away. Next closed maybe a 4 hour drive, so I have high prices here) Ended up with a couple aiptasia that were eaten by shrimp and various snails, bristle worms and sponges of some sort. They already had some coralline starting on them too. Tank was cycled in no time. Second one I went cheap and did mostly dry with a couple live rocks to seed the tank. It also cycled quickly and so far has not had any ugly stage either. If I ever get a large tank I will definitely try and get all the live rock I can afford.
 

Pyrat80

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I chose other because I am way to new and know way to little to be able to form any kind of educated opinion.
 

NeedAReef

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To me the live rock from the ocean maricultured is what we need more of. The no hitchhiker "perfect tank" folks and 0 TDS lovers can have their perfectionbut the ocean isn't 0tds, it's a polluted mess and in that polluted mess this thing of beauty, this live ecosystem survives and even thrives. That's my utopia, one where the animals in there have what they need to survive and thrive good and bad, but they survive and it looks beautiful.
 

tylo92

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I would highly recommend live rock still. Yes, there are hitchhikers that I am still finding months later but the rock alone is amazing to look at. This is also my first saltwater tank, so I have been frustrated at times, but worth it in the end. I wanted a piece of the ocean. Plus the live rock is colorful under all lights.
 

Glenner’sreef

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With oceans covering much of the earth, and why mariculture live rock in a growing industry and hobby isn’t a priority…. I think someone is missing a huge opportunity. Start and continue your reef tank as close to natural as you possibly can. But, I guess some people just like a good challenge.
 

jcolliii

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My view has definitely changed. LR is absolutely unnecessary. Find your favorite dry rock, build your favorite scape, seed it with one (or more) of the excellent bacterial additives available, add some nutrients and a week later, add some fish and corals. Minimal cycle, the rockscape of your dreams, and excellent biological filtration that will only get better as it ages. I have since started adding some bacterial additive onto the rock when dry so it can really suck it in, and also using a coral feeding tube to 'baste' some bacterial additive into the sand. No worrisome hitchhikers to speak of. LR literally forms the base of the reefs - we should not be using it in our tanks when there are perfectly legit alternative options. Last rescape, using these techniques (and 3/4 of the water from the previous scape and a 1 liter bag of mature Seachem Matrix in the rear chamber) and absolutely no ugly phase, ammonia, or nutrient spikes at all. I have to dose nitrate (and sometimes phosphate as well) to keep it where I want it. Plus, I cannot recall a single time using actual live rock back in the day that I have been happy with the shapes that I got - even when I could dig through a bin when that was a thing.
 

MinnieMouse2

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I had the easiest tank starts with mined reef rock. No pests. I added in what I wanted. I will never go back to live rock.
 

MaxTremors

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I'm of the opinion that LR is best for new tanks, but that option is very rare these days.

I'm currently "making" Live Rock by cycling about 30-40 lbs in an extra aquarium for use in my soon-to-be-filled 150g. I've seeded with sand from a 16 year old tank. I'm also dosing bacteria just to be sure I have a variety in case my current tank isn't diverse enough.
I think it’s important to note the difference between bacterially alive rock, and true live rock. True or real live rock is completely colonized and inhabited by a multitude of organisms and microfauna, encrusting algaes, and bacteria. IMO, bacteria alone does not make rock ‘live’.
 

jkapit

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I believe live rock is unnecessary. I rebooted my tank after 10 years which was seeded with lots of expensive live rock. Being new to the hobby, never had much success with most corals and wound up having a tank full of Dinos and Aptasia.

When rebooting the tank, took the existing rock, killed everything with bleach. Sun dried it, then removed the leaching phosphates over a period of about 8 weeks using Agent Green. I highly recommend this step.

So essentially started out with dead phosphate free rock. Seeded the tank with microbacter and some sand from the local fish store with some nice coralline algae on it. The tank simply flourished. Keeping a mixed reef tank with beautiful coralline covered rocks.


Here is a pic..
64BAEC1F-67F0-48CB-826D-AF76E7446441.jpeg
 

lubeck

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I’m a huge fan of live rock, the real stuff from the ocean. My current tank started with it and is my only means of filtration. No skimmer. The amount of biodiversity seems immeasurable.

I think the jump start that true live rock gives you is worth it. Especially for sps tanks


my tank before was macro rock which was great but it took months/years. And after a couple years it had good biodiversity but still not as much as my current tank does.which is three months old
 

bruno3047

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Over the years I’ve learned that the drawbacks of live rock far outweigh the benefits. The rock that’s in my current tank is dry rock and dry rock rubble that I paid about $1.25 a pound for. It looks exactly like live rock but without the pests. (See avatar). I’ll be starting up a 315 soon and I’ll be using the same $1.25/pound dry rock on that tank that I used on my current tank. I’ll be adding about 80 additional pounds (presently soaking in fresh water) to the 80 I have. I’m done with live rock.
 

Kmst80

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I started my tank in October last year and before I got it I had to make a decision what rock to put in. After reading a lot about good and bad hitchhikers and worrying about the bad ones for a few days I went for live rock and it was the best decision ever. Cost me a fortune to buy 50 kg in Australia but man was it worth it, no curing needed coz the whole of rocks was filled with life. So don't worry about the bad coz the good of live rock outweighs it.
 

ReefRxSWFL

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You can build a reef scape out of nothing but Legos if you wish. Bacteria grow on any surface in the tank, including the glass, plumbing and gear.

Nothing beats real live rock for instant success, but it doesn’t matter what you use if you know what you are doing, weather using live, dry or artificial.

Also, most people forget one huge source of biological diversity and nitrifying bacteria. Corals! Also, no need for a bottle of mystery “bacteria” (no…. Trust us….. they’re in there, and alive! Lol) The last 3 tanks I started, had corals day one. No fish for a few weeks, and if there is ammonia in the tank…… no bigs. The corals will use it.
 

ReefRxSWFL

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Also, I dont know how or when this overblown paranoid “pest” fear came from. I assume someone who sells dry rock. It also gets propagated when some “expert” on a forum or youtube channel repeats what they read or heard someone else say, so if repeated enough times, it somehow becomes irrefutable scientific fact.

f you chose dry rock for that reason, then dont treat all your fish with copper and prazi, cut off all your frag plugs, dip and qt all your corals at 78degrees for 74 days (and dont bother with LPS, because their base is a non removable frag plug), qt all your inverts for 74 days……pests as a reason for dry rock was an exercise in futility.

Dry rock is great, because you no longer need to stack rocks up against the back glass, and ive been able to make scapes that improve flow and habitat. Also, the flat bottom rocks are awesome for the foundation.

Once, i found aptasia in the tank of my toilet, so good luck with that one. Managing pests is a better plan, because they are gonna show up, so you should have a plan to address them all on an ongoing basis. Same way nature addresses it. Predation.

Currently, all my tanks started from Tampa Bay rock acquired 14 years ago, then added to dry rock in all new tank setups. Ive used live rock for everything before that, so ive had plenty of hitchhikers, but they have never become an issue. I was also fortunate to get healthy populations of stomatella snails and bristle worms, which i wouldnt have otherwise, and you can’t buy a better clean up crew.
 

ReefRxSWFL

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Using dry rock or not enough of it is causing a lot of reefers to leave the hobby because of the problems it causes.
I think a lot of that has to do with bad advice as well, but starting with dry rock and bacteria in a bottle is way harder, and
snt provide the biological diversity needed in a tank.

BRS videos are a great example. When Ryan tried to start up the tank in his house using all the gear and magic potions, and the “old school cycle”, it was a disaster in a public forum.

Then contrast that with any tank Jake Adams set up in his studio. Heck, he has no rock in his coral flats, and those tanks look amazing.

So i dont think its just dry rock. I think its dry rock and how its being done. The only thing it has in common with live rock is the name “rock” is in the name.
 

Screwgunner

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Well, the reefs are getting hit hard and we seem to be losing some. So I say if we can mimic it with dry or what ever other kind of rock that will work . Leave the live rock alone . There's anoph live rock with corals you can buy. Back in the 70's it was plentiful and in the 80's still it was 7 dollars a pound. If you are into projects look up bullet proof reef the tell you how to make your own rock with Portland cement. I say save the reefs .
 

NDIrish

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Back in 70's and 80's used all live rock. Now live rock is hard to get and has gotten expensive.
This time around I used dry rock but have mixed in some live rock.
Think using dry rock is ok but takes longer for tank to mature, but differently need to add some live rock for diversity.
 

A worm with high fashion and practical utility: Have you ever kept feather dusters in your reef aquarium?

  • I currently have feather dusters in my tank.

    Votes: 73 37.8%
  • Not currently, but I have had feather dusters in my tank in the past.

    Votes: 66 34.2%
  • I have not had feather dusters, but I hope to in the future.

    Votes: 25 13.0%
  • I have no plans to have feather dusters in my tank.

    Votes: 28 14.5%
  • Other.

    Votes: 1 0.5%
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