Opinion on TBS rock

sgallagher7

sgallagher7

Member
Im researching live rock and really like the TBS stuff, but from what I have read, they come with lots of mantis shrimp and things you dont want in a tank. Is the rock worth the hassle of trying to catch these critters? Can I get tube worms, feather dusters and some coral with other uncured rock, or is this rock the way to go. I have been patient with everything else, and dont want to cut corners just to have a living tank. My tank is new, and I will be doing all the cycling in the tank.
 
lol they are easy to catch, find what hole there in, and drop some fresh water in there they pop right out, then take them to your pet store for credit
 
well with any rock you run the risk of un wanted critters, ive only seen tbs once, very nice rock but i really didnt like the shape, was really round rocks, it did have nice hitchhiker corals though, i say while your curing the rockstry catching the trouble makers before hand, there s a soda bottle trap for instance, my fav rock is the indo from www.reefscience.com , which i got a few crabs with, but luckly they havnt hurt anything yet
 
My husband just picked up the first half of his TBS Package on Sunday. It is beautiful rock, and the sand is amazing. So far, the hitchhikers have been a whelk, 2 mantis shrimp (that we already got out ), like 3 serpent stars, a donkey dung sea cucumber, and some little decorator crabs. Since the rock has been in yesterday, the ammonia is only at .01. He was told that since the rock is so live, you really dont have a cycle since there is practically no die off. The rocks have lots of life on them, and there are beautiful orange sponges. Like 1pix4c said, the mantis shrimp are not hard to catch, as long as you can find what hole of which rock they are in. We both love it and highly recommend it.
 
Thanks. Never heard the freshwater trick. I like the idea that it is so alive. Was thinking of mixing the TBS with some Kaleini and poss. some fiji ultra. The TBS looks very round and dense, making for a good base. Would I loose a great deal by building ontop of the TBS?
 
The package comes in 2 shipments, and the first rock isnt even the rock that is incredibly full of life. So what you could do is order it for like 35 gallon tank, get the first shipment of baserock and sand, get the second shipment of the really good rock and the cleanup crew, and then get your other rock that you want to use. But since your tank wont have any ammonia or anything, you will have to fully cure the new rock before you add it so you dont kill your tbs rock.

This is what my husband's first half looks like. On the left side, though its hard to tell, there are 3 rocks.

March5th019.jpg
 
And this is one of the mantis that we got out just a few hours ago. He is only like 1 1/2 inces long and about as big around as a pencil eraser.
 
It sounds and looks like the second shipment would be better as a top to the aquascaping. I plan on doing all the curing in my tank, so the other types of rock will also be uncured.
 
From what Ive seen here on reef central, the second shipment of rock is much better. If you were going to use uncured rock, then I would advice curing it before you add the tbs rock. All because the tbs is fully alive, not cured, I mean fresh out of the sea, and you dont want to kill everything that comes on it. Good luck with your decision! :)
 
Thanks. Sounds like good advice. What im hearing is that there isnt a great deal of "curing" with the TBS because of the freshness and packaging in saltwater?
 
Yeah there is no curing. They take it out of the ocean, put it in bags of ocean water inside, that gets put in a cooler that is inside of a box, and then ship it to you. Its 100% fresh.
 
I am going to be the negative nelly. I bought a shipment of TBS 3 years ago and parted with it with in 6 months of having it. There are plenty of hitch hikers and that is a battle. There is also plenty of nice life on it but most of it WILL die off. It will cause a cycle if added to a new or established tank.
The rock is not porous and it is dense. That's not good for filtering the water. You want a rock that is very porous and light weight. The rock is not very interesting as far as shapes. They are more like boulders.
This was just my experience with the rock from TBS. As far as the company them selves, they were very easy to work with.
sgallagher7, Use the search function and search threads about TBS rock.
My 2 cents.
 
Thanks. Thats some of the information I was also looking for. The TBS thread is very informative, yet i think its very biased. When dropping 500 bucks and up on rock, you want to reassure yourself that you have made a good purchase. My hunch was that the rock starts off blowing you away and yet down the road ends up like all others. There are not a great deal of posts from people who have had TBS rock for an extended period of time.
 
I would go with the Kaleini LR. You can get it uncured or fully cured. No matter what, your tank will cycle with it. Hope this helps.
 
Everyone has their own opinions about the rock. Either they love it, or they hate it. Here's my personal opinion. If you dont like the rock shape, and you arent willing to fight with the hitch hikers, then the rock isnt for you. Personally, I like my fiji rock better. I like the different shapes and the density of it. BUT my husband likes the tbs rock better. Its a matter of taste, and what you like.
 
If you like the kaleni, then go with it. You dont want to hate the tbs rock later down the road and then have to start your tank over. Its like buying a house. You dont want to have to move again in a year, ya know? Go with your instincts, theyre usually right :D
 
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