Live Rock

Neoz

Neoz

New member
First I would like to apologize if I'm posting too many questions but i'm just trying to get things figured out here...

If I need around 200lbs of rock for my tank, what can I expect to pay for base rock per lb? I doubt I would find that much live rock but is there places to get live rock locally other then the pet stores? What can one expect to pay for live rock per lb?

And last roughly what kind of increase would I see in my electric bill running the following lights. $100 a month increase more or less?
4x 175w MH w/magnetic ballasts
2x 160w VHO w/Ice Cap 660 ballast


Just trying to factor in all my basic costs to get running with this tank I'm looking at.
 
Here is the simplest way to calculate electric use from a theoretical point of view.

First calculate the energy used:

POWER (watts) X TIME (hours) = ENERGY (watt-hours)

Convert to units used by the electric company:

ENERGY (watt-hours) / 1000 = ENERGY (kilowatt-hours)

Multiply that times the rate NYSEG (or whoever) charges per kW-hr including all usage, delivery, taxes, ...

ENERGY (kW-hr) X RATE ($/kW-hr) = COST ($)

For example a 250W light running for 8 hours at my local energy rate of $0.086/kW-hr.

250W X 8 hours = 2000 W-hr

2000 W-hr / 1000 = 2 kW-hr

2 kW-hr x $0.086/kW-hr = $0.1724 each day for each light

if you have 2 250W lights then double that to about 35 cents per day or about $10 month.

What you also need to include that can cost more than the lights are pumps, heater, powerheads that run 24/7.

For example a 100W pump running 24/7 would cost about $6. During the winter my 300W heater is pretty much on 24/7 that is $18 from mid November until April.

I estimate that my 90g and 30g together with a basement sump cost me about $100 month on average. I have central air and a basement sump in a well insulated house so I don't need a chiller.

Keep asking questions :D

Dave
 
I really hope no one would be spending an extra $100 on lighting thier tank! As for buying all live rock, if you take a trip to That Fish Place in Lancaster, PA you can pick up some rock for about $4-6 on average if you're buying a lot. I also thing buying the boxes of rock and just paying the shipping comes out to about this same price, so if you need alot there is really nothing cheaper. As for base rock i'm not sure about the price. I've only used live rock in my systems, and currently have about 90ish lbs i think.
 
$4 to $6 times 200lbs.. :eek: :eek: :eek: :eek: Gulp going to have fun explaining that one to the wife. We put a budget in place for the equipment and rocks of $1000 to $1200 going used. Thats wasn't for the water or the livestock. Although live rock is considered livestock correct? Maybe go that route.. :D But then she thought we were going to go 55 gallon. She now knows we can't really do that with a salt tank.

Quick funny story... My wife looked at some TOTM on here. She asked me "is our tank going to look like those"? I said sure hon... with fingers crossed and thinking to myself in about 5 years (hopefully)..LMAO :lol:

Man you can spend more on rock then the tank! :p Maybe I should just setup a rock tank and get growth to sell it :)

Thanks for that explanation daveverdo. I should be ok then...
 
I really hope no one would be spending an extra $100 on lighting thier tank!
Click to expand...

I estimate that I spend that much on two tanks including all the pumps, powerheads, heaters, lights, ...

I have been more concerned about it lately, not just because of the costs but because of the waste of energy. I spend a little more time looking at the wattage ratings of powerheads and pumps and try to find things that are more efficient. Pumping up stairs from the basement sump alone uses quite a bit of energy. My Mag 12 runs 24/7 at 110W. That alone costs about $7 months. The heater in winter is the big deal mainly because the sump is an unheated part of the basement.

Dave
 
$4 to $6 times 200lbs
Click to expand...

You can get base rock and dead rock for less. Then seed it with some live rock. Much depends on what your plans are for the tank. While all live rock might be the best overall plan there are cost considerations. Keep in mind that not all the rock has to be added right away. You can add more as your bioload increases. Starting out with half dead rock and half live rock should work out fine.

You can also make DIY rock and get shapes you like. I made some and after 6-8 months in the tank you can't tell the difference. I do not think it is as effective a biofilter as the real thing but it is better than nothing. Search online for aragocrete or ask here for recipes.

You can also get some from people downsizing or even just re-aquascaping.

Dave
 
I bought the $50/50Lb caribsea box of rocks and two boxes was plenty for my 120... I also used a small amount of live rock/sand to seed the tank. I'm sure people would be happy to give you some live sand and corlaline scrapings...
 
Yeah I'll be happy to take anything just to get the tank up and cycling. Tanks coming with 200lbs of sand. But no rock. But I can cycle it with just sand to get it going correct? Although some rock would be better.. Oh the tank is a 180RR...
 
If the sand hasn't been dried out you can cycle it with the sand, but if it's been drained and sitting for a while, you may want to rinse the sand before you get water in the tank. Yes you can seed dead rock with live rock, but i started in a 20gal and just kept adding live rock till that tank was full. Then when i moved into my 54gal, i got enough rock from my friends tank and LFS that i never had to put anything but live rock in my system
 
Dave - I too feel bad sometimes that i'm "wasting" all this energy on my tank, but it's worth the cost to me. If i was really that conserned with energy use, i'd probably have a Hybrid car already! HAHA! I know where your comming from though
 
Hello,

With live rock in the southern tier, most are going around 7.99 to 8.99lb. But If you are looking for a certain kind, it mat be more expensive, and remember, 1 piece of a good size rock can run you upwards of 50.00 or more, I have a lot of rock in my tank, and it took a while to get it all, I found best thing was to buy a bit at a time, unless you have the bucks to shell out all at once. Good Luck!!
 
neoz i would honestly start with about 100lbs of base rock that you can get pretty cheap! seed it with a couple small pieces of live rock. then cherry pick nice pieces that you see as your getting the tank going! pm me your phone # and ill call you about next weekend!
 
I got 100lbs of base rock from D&T for 205.00 shipped to the house. Also if anyone needs sand PETCO has a sale buy three bags or more get 30% off. Anthing over $50.00 is free shipping use the code SPRING. I got 300lbs of sand shipped to the house for $152.00. Just some options for you.
 
I can make diy base rock for alot less than what everybody else is selling there rock for Probably 1/2 the price if not even less and 6-7 months after being in the tank you won't be able to tell that its not fiji. If any body needs some or wants to see pics just shoot me a pm with an email address happy reefing everyone
 
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