shifty51008
12-5 Chiefs record
depends on what rock you like. some people like diff. rock than others. for me I love this rock.
also I went full LR for diversity
If you could start over: Live Rock or Dry?
- Thread starter joshbryer
- Start date
depends on what rock you like. some people like diff. rock than others. for me I love this rock.
also I went full LR for diversity
Wouldn't the Dry rock actually require more patience? Someone could go by a bunch of "cured" live rock from someone's tank, wait for their 1 week cycle and decide they're ready to go, no? With dry rock it seems the wait necessary for it to become colonized might force you to really take the time to let your tank seed.
Hi Manix-
Yes generally it was live in the ocean at one point but has been dried out.
See:
http://www.marcorocks.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWCATS&Category=14
and
http://www.bulkreefsupply.com/store/brs-fiji-dry-aquarium-eco-rock.html
Gary Majchrzak
Team RC
frightening or fascinating?
frightening or fascinating?
BOO!
frightening or fascinating?
BOO!
Venezzo
New member
Well... IMO of course LR gives more biodiversity... That includes good and bad things as well! 
As I already had 3 aquariums with LR and enjoyed the maturing process; for the next "big aquarium" I guess I will use DR; it's easier to handle and quick maturing if you do it well.
I have a friend that used for a 800L aquarium, all of DR. And actually IMO is one of the best aquascaping I've ever seen. Also we learned about the mature process with a big tank full of DR.
Definitly DR!
Greetings.
As I already had 3 aquariums with LR and enjoyed the maturing process; for the next "big aquarium" I guess I will use DR; it's easier to handle and quick maturing if you do it well.
I have a friend that used for a 800L aquarium, all of DR. And actually IMO is one of the best aquascaping I've ever seen. Also we learned about the mature process with a big tank full of DR.
Definitly DR!
Greetings.
Gary Majchrzak
Team RC
is either choice the "wrong" way? :lmao:
Biodiversity isn't overrated- it's underrated by most reefkeepers.
It's easy to see this after you "start over again" (ie: set up many aquariums) using different types of rock.
wakeboardgeek
New member
Just my opinion, dry rock for the following reasons:
1. cheaper
2. pest free (including some corals you may not want; e.g. mushrooms)
It does take longer to cycle though.
1. cheaper
2. pest free (including some corals you may not want; e.g. mushrooms)
It does take longer to cycle though.
Yeah like I thought we don't really get this in the UK. So even if you wanted to go that way you would find it hard to source. It's live rock cured/uncured that's your options over here.
TheDean
New member
I'm battling the vines of Caulerpa right now (damn plague if you ask me). I need a yellow tang or other proven ghrazer to take care of my problem. Wish my high-end zoas would grow this fast...
My opinion is you should start with dry, and QT some nice Live to seed. Just make sure there are zero parasites (is there such a thing?). Good luck!
My opinion is you should start with dry, and QT some nice Live to seed. Just make sure there are zero parasites (is there such a thing?). Good luck!
d0ughb0y
Active member
you only need one bad experience using live rock to realize its not a good option. I've never heard of anyone with bad experience using dry rock (not saying there isn't any). dry rock is now more popular than live rock for a reason. its probably one of the major milestones improvement in this hobby. times change.
Sounds like a comment from someone that hasn't bought quality liverock before to see what a diverse ecosystem can really be besides rocks and corals:hmm4:
Truly good liverock can not be beaten for the life it brings to a tank. Until you have purchased decent liverock and cured it patiently and watched what comes with it 6 months down the line, you have no idea what a diverse ecosytem can be. Now, most folks nowadays, many of them younger, impatient and not into the diversity aspect, just buy dry rock and start stocking away with LE coral frags and pricey fishes. In about a year their tank is full of frags with nowhere to grow because they are so crowded, then they get overrun with algae and other plagues because they didn't slowly build a system based on quality liverock. Somewhere in this timeframe they start selling off the system as a whole if they can, then when they realize they can't do that they piece it off at a huge loss and exit the hobby. For most folks this is the 1-2 year mark. Just looking at several of the posters on here swearing by dryrock with their herd mentality from what they have read the last couple of years, I rest my case.
Ultimately, it is a personal decision, but most of the folks I know with any longterm experience and success use quality liverock and not the dry stuff from inland sources.
Really good discussion.... So, I'll pose a couple of questions to the dry rock crowd.
If you are seeding your dry rock with live, aren't running introducing the same chance for nasties that would be present starting with all live. Even if you QT the live rock for a week or two to make sure that there's no visible bad hitchhikers, what about that small piece of bubble algae you missed?
I've read plenty of posts where people are using things like Prodibio BioDigest to kick start bacterial populations whith dry rock...but I would worry about a mono-culture. Are there more complete/diverse bacterial cultures available?
If you are seeding your dry rock with live, aren't running introducing the same chance for nasties that would be present starting with all live. Even if you QT the live rock for a week or two to make sure that there's no visible bad hitchhikers, what about that small piece of bubble algae you missed?
I've read plenty of posts where people are using things like Prodibio BioDigest to kick start bacterial populations whith dry rock...but I would worry about a mono-culture. Are there more complete/diverse bacterial cultures available?
d0ughb0y
Active member
I don't know if it is right to associate post count with experience. just read each post for its own merit, and not base on the number of posts of the poster.
I'm sure everyone has come across post from member with 1 post but has many years experience, and likewise post from member with thousands of posts with flawed logic.
I'm sure everyone has come across post from member with 1 post but has many years experience, and likewise post from member with thousands of posts with flawed logic.
This is very true.
whorulz1147
New member
I totally agree with Gary; I feel that the key to a successful system is biodiversity. The closer to a natural ecosystem you can create, the better your tank will fare. I think using live rock is worth the chance of pests initially -they can be dealt with during the curing process. In the long run, in my opinion/experience, the benefits outweigh the initial perceived inconvienence.
-al-
Biodiversity on liverock for me, at least, means much, much more than just bacteria. The crazy amount of various sponges alone makes it worth it for me to use all live rock.
FWIW, every pest I ever had in my tank came from generous donations from my fellow reefers, not the live rock
Algae never bothered me.. it all eventually dies away in a properly established system, IME (and trust me, I had it all, including, but not limited to giant bushes of sargassum :lol: ).
FWIW, every pest I ever had in my tank came from generous donations from my fellow reefers, not the live rock
Algae never bothered me.. it all eventually dies away in a properly established system, IME (and trust me, I had it all, including, but not limited to giant bushes of sargassum :lol: ).
