Minimum rock in BB tanks

[IanJ]

Please post pics of your BB SPS tanks with minimum rock layouts.

I will soon start a new 4ft tank and looking for inspiration

 

[plyle02]

Here is mine, 75 rr/corner overflow.... I don't know about minimal rock, but here is my tank anyway at 48" too....

 

[dkh0331]

Here is about 140 lbs in a 110. This was taken right after 6 -7 months of cooking my rocks.

Not sure how minimal you're looking for.

 

[IanJ]

Thanks guys, keep them coming.

Looking to see how tanks look and the best way to place the rock to allow a very open reef structure for max water flow.

 

[dippin61]

from my experience with BB, you cant get by on minimal rock.. the more the better.

 

[OnlyCrimson]

I remember someone had a bb tank with very little rock in it. He also had a very large green stag in the tank. Can't remember who it was though.

 

[dkh0331]

Bomber has minimal rock in his bb tank. Unfortunately his pics in his massive 143 page thread are no longer around.

 

[Serioussnaps]

This is truly minimalist...although I am adding some bridge rock to this setup and starting a 120 that will have a DSB. Nonetheless here is the hardest ever tank to aquascape, particularly with BB where you have to worry about rocks falling.

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CHEERS

 

[naka]

160 lbs in my 180 gal. tank.

 

[dippin61]

unless you have a HUGE skimmer, the more rock the better.. i have only about 60 lbs in my 55g BB and think i need more. at least in the sump.

 

[jackson6745]

Not sure how many lbs in my 120G

 

[mboley1]

Just my two cents. But the more rock you have, the more places you have to put coral, and we all know what it is like when you get addicted.

You can have alot of rock but still get the open flow. Here is a tank I built that looked pretty good.

http://web.archive.org/web/20001029....com/fish2/aqfm/1998/nov/aquarium/default.asp

i would cherry pick from your local fish store and get some large irregular pieces. Avoid Round pieces.

Find some nice pieces that you can use as a base- meaning they have a sweet spot were they sit firmly on a flat surface with minimal contact points - use the fish stores floor. Use those pieces as the footprint of your reef. Spread them out . Then find BIG flatish/irregular pieces to bridge across your base pieces and go up from there, with some medium and smaller pieces. use Zip ties if you need to for temporary positioning, use Aquascape after you have it looking the way you want. the Rowa brand works great. Minimize contact points the whole way. Wella!Reef built

 

[drock59]

unless you have a HUGE skimmer, the more rock the better

Having a "huge" skimmer from what i have read, is a cornerstone of a bb tank. If you have such a skimmer you can get away with very little rock. The whole idea is nutrient export. Less rock=less places to trap nutrients.

 

[plyle02]

Yep, I couldn't agree more.... I skim heavy, but also have a remote dsb fuge, which aids in transport too. I am BB in display, and can't be more pleased....Good Luck

 

[TCU Reefer]

 

[rkl303]

TCU how did you get your rock to stand up like that...I am assuming some type of drilling/epoxy was involved.

 

[dots]

I got rid of all the sand piles......now I have coralline piles stacking up.......I need an Urchin I tell you, but just cant figure out the best that won't bore, carry off stuff and will just eat all that purple stuff up.

 

[dkh0331]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9609056#post9609056 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by dippin61
unless you have a HUGE skimmer, the more rock the better.. i have only about 60 lbs in my 55g BB and think i need more. at least in the sump.

To reiterate what drock and plyle have said, there really isn't a correlation between skimmer size and lbs of LR in a bb tank.

 

[prodman]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9609056#post9609056 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by dippin61
unless you have a HUGE skimmer, the more rock the better.. i have only about 60 lbs in my 55g BB and think i need more. at least in the sump.

The more rock the better that sounds like alot of rock. Im always taking rock out I could never imagine adding any. When I went BB I followed the exaples of Bomber and SeanT. And minimal rock was being used with BB tank also a Big skimmer and lots of fish. I have around 50lbs in my 120 and it perfect. It hard to get enough flow to keep the detritius suspended if theres alot of rock in the tank. And rock in the sump negates the benifits of a BB tank by trapping all the detritius down there it should be bare so to make it easier to siphon.

 

[kwl1763]

My 450G. Only 300 lbs of rock.

When I first set it up: