Lace Rock to Live Rock?

[Stormvillefish]

Hi all ... have a 135 gallon tank with African Cichlids looking to eventually switch over to marine. I have about 150lbs of great looking lace rock in this tank. Someone at an LFS told me that I could turn the lace rock into live rock by putting in some live rock when I switch over to a sw tank ... is this possible ... sounds too good to be true! Thanks.
- Mike

 

[crvz]

It's possible, but there are a few considerations. First, have you ever used medication in the tank? Many medications are toxic to inverts, and the rock would probably harbor remnants that could spell trouble. Second, though I'm not terrible certain what lace rock is, live rock is usually very porous, which creates a lot of surface area for bacteria to grow. Often rock used in FW is incredibly dense, and therefore does not make a good substrate in a marine tank.