Live "Boulder", break in half?

[Daimyo68]

Ok wasn't sure where to post this, so it's in this forum cause I'm gonna Do it Myself... Maybe

I have a rock in my tank that I got a few weeks ago from a running system. When I picked it up, it stuck 5-6" out of the top of a 5g bucket and the bucket was oblonged.. It weighs somewhere around 25lbs.
So I'm thinking about breaking the rock in half, its big and bulky.

It has good coraline growth on it, and some other small life.

What are your thoughts about breaking the rock in half, and good/bad about it?

Don't be shy

/D

 

[scarolina01]

I'm still a bit new around here, but from what I've read and my judgement, it would be fine. I don't see why there would be any problems. But I'm going to guess it'll take some work to get that rock broken into two pieces.

 

[Acrylics]

No crime in busting it in half, but I always liked a couple of those huge pieces in my tanks.

James

 

[der_wille_zur_macht]

IMHO it depends on how much control you want to have over the sizes/shapes of the resulting pieces. If you want to split it in a specific manner, drill some holes along the intended "fault line" and then give it a few whacks with a cold chisel and a small sledge. I've split 40 - 50 lb rocks this way with good accuracy, but other times the whole thing just crumbles.

I'd agree with the others that it's a careful decision to consider. Huge chunks of rock can really make a tank look like a "realistic" reef mountain instead of looking like a pile of rubble.

 

[phuzzykins]

IMHO, your best bet is to score a line with an angle grinder as deeply as possible all the way around where you want it to break, and then cold chisel it. It will give you somewhat better control over the edge than drilling.

 

[Purelife]

Bust i should be no problem grab a long screw driver and hammer it in a few times it should split on the line, done it a few times myself

 

[Chris27]

I've broken them in half on the curb outside my house - not very accurate, but it is effective. Wear some safety glasses by the way...it can get messy.

 

[HUNGER]

should be fine i had to with a few pieces that just didnt sit right hammer and scew driver works wonders

 

[coralnut99]

The whole thing depends on the type of rock. Keys rock out of the gulf is super dense. That's the type you want to score VERY deeply before taking a hammer and mason's brick chisel to it. Don't be shy about the type of tool you use to score it as long as the blade and tool are clean and free of grease, etc.

Lighter stuff like Marshalls, should doo well with holes drilled in a line where you want it to break as suggested. But in the end, you really need to be sure you're OK with it ending up in 3 or more pieces.

 

[baondayko]

What size tank?....if it would make the tank look bad, I guess you could break it, otherwise, large live rock is difficult to find. I would not break it if I had the room.

 

[Daimyo68]

I figured the same as many responses, scoring, drilling and a cold chisel.

The rock is in a temp tank along with other rock and fish while my 70g comes together (36x18x24).

I guess I will wait till the rock is actually in the tank. It just looked so big in my 46BF tank. If needed I will break it, I just wanted to get one more thing off my mind.

If I do end up cutting/breaking the rock, I'm gonna do my best in planning, so that I can try to create "shelves". I know that means more work and planning.

Last question, how long can the rock be out of water before I cause major die off?

Thanks everyone!

 

[hebygb]

tyou should be able to keep it wet while breaking it... should only take a couple of mins at most. Other than that, use a turkey baster. There will be some die off no matter what.

 

[vwmike]

I broke some when I started my last tank and it was out of the water for about 30 minutes. One of the keys is to touch it as little as possible because every contact removes beneficial bacteria from it.