How long does it take

[oldhead]

If there were any coral hitch hikers on my live rock how long will it take for them to show up?. The tank has just passed 1 month old. Ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate have been zero for 3 weeks. I have only added a few snails to help out the one that was on the live rock.
Plan on getting 2 fish this weekend which will go into my quarantine tank in the basement, I'll use the aquaclear I hung on the back of the DT 2 weeks ago for filtration.
The waiting game for a marine tank is killing me but I'm hanging in there

 

[kmbyrnes]

Welcome to reefing, where nothing good happens fast.
Hang in there. I know it seems to take forever. but just go slow.
Some hitchhikers will spread quickly - think pods - and other will take time to multiply to visible populations. Some you may never see.
All of it is part of watching our little pieces of the ocean come to life.
I am glad to see you will be using QT. It is the best insurance for a healthy tank.
Enjoy the journey.

 

[Flyfisherman]

It's going to take time, be patient. Once your tank becomes seasoned you will be able to grow anything depending on livestock. I would be looking for purple corraline algae on the glass to tell you that you're on your way.

 

[oldhead]

It's going to take time, be patient. Once your tank becomes seasoned you will be able to grow anything depending on livestock. I would be looking for purple corraline algae on the glass to tell you that you're on your way.

I was actually hoping this was a start of the corraline on the rock. It's little pink bumps they just don't look pink in the picture.

 

[Sk8r]

the pink is coralline. The green is algae of some sort. The white bits look like old sand stuck to the rock by calcium carbonate concretion.

 

[SLOreefer805]

As mentioned before, this is a hobby of patience. If you are an instant gratification person, then this is not for you. Your hitchhikers may take a while till you discover them. Some may be really small and some only come out when the lights are out. I started my tank with all dry rock, except a small quarter pound piece of live rock, and dry crushed coral substrate. Now I see tiny snails everywhere during the night, copepods now and then swimming around the rocks, small starfish on the rocks, and my sandbed has lots of worms inside it. As Ian Malcome says on Jurassic Park "Life Finds A Way". Your chance of bringing in hitchhikers will increase when you purchase corals for the future.

 

[oldhead]

As mentioned before, this is a hobby of patience. If you are an instant gratification person, then this is not for you. Your hitchhikers may take a while till you discover them. Some may be really small and some only come out when the lights are out. I started my tank with all dry rock, except a small quarter pound piece of live rock, and dry crushed coral substrate. Now I see tiny snails everywhere during the night, copepods now and then swimming around the rocks, small starfish on the rocks, and my sandbed has lots of worms inside it. As Ian Malcome says on Jurassic Park "Life Finds A Way". Your chance of bringing in hitchhikers will increase when you purchase corals for the future.

Well I feel I have been patient. Been looking at an empty tank for a little over a month except for a few snails. I do put on my reading glasses ( this happens when you are over 40) and scout the tank for critters but have yet to see any. It is going through its algae stages as you can see from the picture. I have my 4 other test kits coming tomorrow, alk, mag, cal, and phosphate. So the wait continues :twitch:

 

[T Haynes]

The only thing I see hitchhiker wise during the day is a section of band where the bristle worm isn't fully in the rock. You're likely not gonna much during the day. Get a black light flash light and use it at night should see a lot more

 

[SLOreefer805]

Well...on the bright side you didn't bring in any pests. Once your tank cycles and stabilizes I would suggest getting some live tiggerpods to put into the tank. Give them a chance to get some numbers up. Not the most exciting thing to see in the tank but adds some life.

 

[droog]

If there were any coral hitch hikers on my live rock how long will it take for them to show up?. The tank has just passed 1 month old. Ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate have been zero for 3 weeks. I have only added a few snails to help out the one that was on the live rock.
Plan on getting 2 fish this weekend which will go into my quarantine tank in the basement, I'll use the aquaclear I hung on the back of the DT 2 weeks ago for filtration.
The waiting game for a marine tank is killing me but I'm hanging in there

I found new hitchhikers from my initial LR about 18 months and 2 years in. A reclusive mantis shrimp, floral xanthid crab and some kind of sea cucumber. Live rock can be very much alive.

Try looking at the tank with a flashlight at night. Sometime you see more/different life. A red flashlight is helpful for this later too - doesn't startle life as much as other wavelengths.

Happy reefing!

-droog