What are your thoughts on plastic live rock?

[deputydog95]

I have recently broken down my 180 reef tank. I just don't have the time or patience to really tend to it anymore.

Anyway, the tank was built into the wall, so it would be a shame to shut it completely down. My plan is to go back to a fish only setup, as it requires a lot less work.

So what do you think of the plastic live rock?

Here's a link:

http://www.aquariumbeauty.com/display_catalog.jsp?Category_ID=REEFROCK&Page_ID=1


The price is right, it looks great, seems like a no brainer for a fish only tank. I really like the shapes.

 

[Marinemom]

I have never heard of plastic rock being live rock. If that is what you want to do for a fish only set up then go for it but I think real live rock looks so much more real and natural. I'm assuming that you have live rock now as part of your filteration system in your present setup. What kind of filteration will be in the new system if you do not have real live rock?

Marinemom

 

[deputydog95]

i had live rock, but i sold it all due to the size of most of the pieces.

i am planning on doing mostly large fish and i didn't want to limit their room to swim. but i obviously need to decorate it somehow. the thought of spending a grand on new rock that would be better suited for a large fish only tank doesn't really thrill me.

the thing i like about these pieces is that they're shaped after the best looking live rock with lots of holes and unusual shapes. it's hard to find live rock these days that doesn't look like boulders or big chunks. not to mention i can pick this stuff up from a retailer for better than advertised prices.

here are a few shots:

 

[theatrus]

For a FO setup it should be fine. Best part is you can pull then from the tank and scrub them down if needed.

 

[TekCat]

Plastic is safe, however you'd have to check on what kind of paint they used (is it safe).

I think, you could downgrade to FO without LR, but you'd need some sort of bio-filtration then. Bio-balls in sump perhaps (wet/dry). Just watch out for nitrates. Fishes are quite tolerant to high nitrate levels, but too much would hurt them too.

 

[deputydog95]

here's a quote from their site:

A marine reef environment is vital to any aquarium to keep healthy fish. Corals and reefs give fish a natural-looking environment to congregate harmoniously in addition to making your tank look spectacular. Growing natural corals on reefs, or reef-keeping is primarily for marine saltwater, very difficult to maintain and is discouraging for most hobbyists because of its high costs (averaging thousands of dollars). The Coral Reef Builders are the perfect way to get that beautiful tropic look in your own home aquarium at a fraction of the cost. All fabricated reef sculptures we stock are 100% non-toxic and safe for all aquatic life whether in marine or freshwater and best of all require no maintenance. We carry a huge assortment of different coral reef styles to capture that perfect aquatic look â€"œ the sparkling of light reflecting off the reefs, your fish darting in and around the natural rock replicas, or the beautiful array of the colors of the many different corals.

All Coral Reef Builder products are:

» Environment friendly- Non-toxic & Non-Abrasive
» UV & Temperature Resistant
» Detailed Craftsmanship
» Durable - Will Not Harden, Crack, or Fracture.

 

[SirSmapty]

just make sure they are not hollow. Some of the things like these I've seen in stores is hollow and fish and other little critters can get in where you can and die. And a dead fish can be a big problem, especially when you can't find it.

 

[Shagsbeard]

It's a contradiction in terms. Note that they don't come out and say "will support the life (micro and macro) that will filter your tank maintaining a natural balance and keep the nitrogen cycle flowing smoothly."

You can't make plastic live rock, because the surface isn't going to support bacteria in the same manner as live rock. It's dead. It's plastic furnature made to look like live rock. Here's the thing though... we don't put live rock in our tank for how it looks, we put it in for what it does.

 

[onecrzyboi4u]

I wouldn't use the plastic.. whos to say later on down the road it causes serious issues such as decay. how would you manage to keep the plastic rock from floating? ( maybe i'm over reacting on that one but..).. last you would need alot of snails to keep it clean or youd be taking it out every 3 days to clean it..My opinion more trouble than it's worth. If your wanting live rock id buy base rock and a few lbs of liverock to seed it.. then there you go.

 

[deputydog95]

well, the rock sinks on it's own. it's designed to sit in the tank and not float.

i really can't imagine plastic is a bad material to use as my tank is made of acrylic, the sump is acrylic, and the plumbing is made of pvc. coralife makes a competitive product so i would imagine this stuff is safe to use. they've been using this same material for years with the coral reef replica pieces (which always looks to bright and cheesy IMO).

why would the plastic rock be harder to clean than live rock? the rock i had before was covered with stuff, both good and bad. at least with the plastic pieces, i can take them out and clean them up some where you're kind of stuck with whatever grows on your live rock. with the way coraline grows on plastic in my tank, i would imagine that i could probably grow in on plastic rocks as well. i can barely see in the front of my tank at this point due to coraline

my main problem with regular live rock is the shapes. i don't want a pile of small pieces and the bigger pieces tend to be boulder shaped and riddiculously heavy (and expensive). if i could get the porous rock with unique shapes that were not dense like bowling balls i would consider it. just seems like the rock industry has changed so much in the past few years that days of really nice rock are over.

as far as filtration goes, i'm going to get rid of bare sump and just swap it out for a wet dry. i'll keep one of my euroreefs to go with it. that should be plenty for filtration purposes.

 

[deputydog95]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8233446#post8233446 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Shagsbeard
It's a contradiction in terms. Note that they don't come out and say "will support the life (micro and macro) that will filter your tank maintaining a natural balance and keep the nitrogen cycle flowing smoothly."

You can't make plastic live rock, because the surface isn't going to support bacteria in the same manner as live rock. It's dead. It's plastic furnature made to look like live rock. Here's the thing though... we don't put live rock in our tank for how it looks, we put it in for what it does.

you're preaching to the choir on the functions of live rock

i just removed 500 pounds of giant pieces from my 180 reef setup. i am not trying to replicate the filtration. i don't need live rock to filter a fish only setup. apples and oranges....

and yes, poeple put live rock in their tanks for looks as well as filtration. it's a must, but it's also a cosmetic benefit as well. if you didn't use live rock, what would you put in there? a castle or a sunken chest with bubbles?

anyway, as i said, i'm going to use a wet dry and one of my skimmers for filtration. the requirements for a reef tank and a FO tank are completely different and what i have planned is more than adequate.

i am more concerned with decoration at this point. i was hoping for feedback from people that may have seen this product in person.

or from the same people that may be able to warn about pitfalls such as fish getting caught in a hollow spot. which frankly, is not a real concern for me with a 180 gallon tank. i could throw a dead mackerel in there and it really wouldn't change much in a tank that big. plenty of water volume to handle a small death or two

i am thinking about a large predator tank. maybe a shark or two, small stingray, eels, etc... i need something for decoration as well as some good places for them to hide out.

so, forget the filtration end of it. that's handled. are there any real reasons not to use this product? has anyone seen it in person or known anyone to use it? if so, does it look cheesy in person?

or, where can i get real rocks that looks like the rocks in the pics? so far most of the stuff i've seen in the local LFS looks like poo.

 

[suphew]

I had a similar product in an old fresh water tank (fake log) when I removed it to scrub off the algae all the piant/color came off as well. Maybe this product is better but I would think about buying 1 small cheap piece and having a go at it with a scrubbing brush and/or water blaster etc to mach sure it is ok.

 

[deputydog95]

i ordered two small pieces to test it out. i'll post some pics of it when it arrives.

hopefully it looks halfway decent. again, just shooting for decorative purposes here. the shapes are just awesome with this stuff.

i had a decorative piece of coral a long time and ran into a similar problem with the paint fading when cleaning it. from what i've learned since then, it's better to just let it sit in the sun for a bit and gently scrub with with a soft brush in water.

hopefully i can grow coraline on it. i haven't had any problems growning coraline on everything else

 

[chuckh]

some of that rock looks just as expensive as real rock.

 

[AdrianOB]

I have actually seen this stuff in a tank at my LFS.

Didn't even realise it was plastic until the owner told me. Actually looks like real rock and he had anemones and coral in the tank as well.

 

[CrystalAZ]

I personally wouldn't get it. For the same reason I wouldn't get a cubic zirconia ring. *I* would know it is "fake" even if nobody else could tell.

But - if you like it, that is what matters.

Getting a couple small pieces like you did is a smart idea. You can see what it looks like up close.

Post pics when you get it.

Crystal

 

[deputydog95]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8234524#post8234524 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by chuckh
some of that rock looks just as expensive as real rock.

depens on where you are buying your rock.

i know most of the rock i've looked at in your average size pieces 10x6x6 ends up weighing about 20 pounds. at about $6 per pound, that's $120 for a rock. most of the pieces on there site are around $30, and i can get them for substantially less than that through another retailer.

 

[deputydog95]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8235001#post8235001 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by CrystalAZ
I personally wouldn't get it. For the same reason I wouldn't get a cubic zirconia ring. *I* would know it is "fake" even if nobody else could tell.

But - if you like it, that is what matters.

Getting a couple small pieces like you did is a smart idea. You can see what it looks like up close.

Post pics when you get it.

Crystal

not sure if your ring anology is really applicable as it's not like i'm trying to fool anybody.

as long as it looks good then i'm happy

 

[J. Montgomery]

The plastic live rock would be just fine (thats what its made for), it sounds like you want to do it . . . so go for it, its your tank.

 

[deputydog95]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8234671#post8234671 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by AdrianOB
I have actually seen this stuff in a tank at my LFS.

Didn't even realise it was plastic until the owner told me. Actually looks like real rock and he had anemones and coral in the tank as well.

that's good to know. i hope i'll be as impressed as you when i get it. i'll be sure to post pics. i really like the way it looks in the pics online so far.

and i know this would be complete blasphemy, but some even some of the acro corals that plug into the rock that they sell look really really good. on the other hand, some of the fake corals look cheesy as hell. not sure if i want to go that far though