New Set Up. Choice Of Live Rock To Seed ?

[427HISS]

Which region's around the world would have the best bacteria's and other life to seed a new reef tank ?
My latest set-up is a 125g and either a 40g or 55g as a quarantine tank. I have a lot of Tonga Branch rock and the BRS dead white rock.

The live rock will be in it's own tank to Q/T for at least a month but probably two, to get rid of unwanted algae & critters etc.

The Tonga and BRS rock will be power washed and maybe,... bleached , don't know for sure yet.

Several years ago I started two small tanks with bottled bacteria and worked pretty well, so if wanted, I can also use it as well. ,

Anyway, where would you get your region rock ?
Buy from any of the well known businesses ?
From a local fish store ?

I'm a go slow reefer, so if this takes me 6 months before adding a number of corals & fish, that's fine.

But, I'm not going to spend a $1,000 (+) on live rock, it's not needed or wanted.

 

[Dbichler]

If your willing to wait that long buy 10 lbs or a little more of true live rock and add it to the stuff you already have and wait it out.

 

[jabberwock]

I started a 25 gallon system in the beginning of September. I got a pound of live wet rock from 1 LFS, and a pound from another LFS. Bought 2 pounds of ceramic media. Started the tank with Dr Tim's ammonia to get a cycle (you want a cycled tank to put your ocean live rock in). After 30 days periodically adding Dr Tim's ammonia and testing, I purchased 20 lbs of premium live ocean rock from Tampa Bay Saltwater (TBS). Really incredible stuff and great results. Using ocean live rock, You WILL get hitchhikers. Observe it, remove unfriendlies and embrace the biodiversity.

 

[Dbichler]

Yes don’t trust local fish stores for their supposed live rock it’s definitely not the same.

 

[427HISS]

I prefer to add all the live rock after it cures, so I can reef-scape it with the white rock. I'm having problems scaping with the three types & shapes of rock in my mind. I haven't seen any photo's or video how the Tonga branch coincides with the regular rock. I want it to look natural, not sticking our like a sore thumb.

With the 6' long tank, I could place the branch rock start up high on the left side and Slope it downwards and end it about 3' long. The use the live and BRS rock ? Or use the Tonga on both ends with the live in the middle, almost 3 islands.

What do you guys think ?

 

[427HISS]

Yes don’t trust local fish stores for their supposed live rock it’s definitely not the same.

I agree, most of the time the rock has no visible,... life, so I'd have to take a water sample home and test it. And they still,.. charge $7-$10 lb. Around here anyway.

 

[427HISS]

I started a 25 gallon system in the beginning of September. I got a pound of live wet rock from 1 LFS, and a pound from another LFS. Bought 2 pounds of ceramic media. Started the tank with Dr Tim's ammonia to get a cycle (you want a cycled tank to put your ocean live rock in). After 30 days periodically adding Dr Tim's ammonia and testing, I purchased 20 lbs of premium live ocean rock from Tampa Bay Saltwater (TBS). Really incredible stuff and great results. Using ocean live rock, You WILL get hitchhikers. Observe it, remove unfriendlies and embrace the biodiversity.

I used Dr Tim's product to start two 29g Biocubes and worked well. In three days the water parameter's were great, but I water 7 days to add a Clown and a host anemone. I was very impressed.

 

[427HISS]

I'll check out Tampa Bay Saltwater. With the coastal region's of Florida, are you concerned about the pollution and the effects on the rock ?

 

[jabberwock]

I'll check out Tampa Bay Saltwater. With the coastal region's of Florida, are you concerned about the pollution and the effects on the rock ?

I have been an environmental scientist for almost 20 years. I have no concerns about pollution effecting the rock.

 

[jabberwock]

Yes don’t trust local fish stores for their supposed live rock it’s definitely not the same.

But it does add different sources of bacterial biodiversity.

 

[jabberwock]

I prefer to add all the live rock after it cures, so I can reef-scape it with the white rock. I'm having problems scaping with the three types & shapes of rock in my mind. I haven't seen any photo's or video how the Tonga branch coincides with the regular rock. I want it to look natural, not sticking our like a sore thumb.

With the 6' long tank, I could place the branch rock start up high on the left side and Slope it downwards and end it about 3' long. The use the live and BRS rock ? Or use the Tonga on both ends with the live in the middle, almost 3 islands.

What do you guys think ?

You don't want to cure ocean live rock. Why pay for all that life just to nuke it?

 

[jabberwock]

I agree, most of the time the rock has no visible,... life, so I'd have to take a water sample home and test it. And they still,.. charge $7-$10 lb. Around here anyway.

My ocean live rock was (and still is) teaming with life and biodiversity! This is like day 7. Added my first fish. Bare bottom at this stage to aid in the capture of unfriendly hitchhikers.

 

[jabberwock]

I used Dr Tim's product to start two 29g Biocubes and worked well. In three days the water parameter's were great, but I water 7 days to add a Clown and a host anemone. I was very impressed.

To be clear, I did not use any bottled bacteria. Just the ammonia as fuel for the cycle.

 

[SpSDrew]

Some online liverock I picked up in the last few weeks.
Gulfliverock, KP Aquatics, Australian from unique

Can’t go wrong with TB either

 

[Neptune 555]

I purchased live rock from Tonga when I started reefing 20 years back... I cycled the rock and then started my tank. Fast forward 15 years when I purchased dead rock from BRS to start my dream 180 gallon reef. I did *think* the dead rock was more of an envirmentally friendly choice.

I mixed both rocks together ASSuming that my 15 year old tonga live rock would just seed the dead rock and in time they would be the same. NOT TRUE! The dead rock has a different weight to it... It has crusted over with coraline algae but it is still not as good. One interesting data point is that I have been battling a BTA explosion in my reef. As I decided to pull out the rocks and remove the BTA's I noticed that 99% of all the BTA's are attached to the original Tonga live rock!! The BTA's don't really want to attach to the dead rock even now 5 years later and the dead rock is covered in coraline algae!

I would never buy dead rock again!

 

[DeniseAndy]

I have used GulfLiveRock and it was really nice rock. Very happy with it. I have heard good things about Tampa Bay live rock too. Also, when some places get in the Australian stuff, but that is pricey.

 

[bushdoc]

"Which region's around the world would have the best bacteria's and other life to seed a new reef tank ?"
That's easy-Coral Triangle Area-Raja Ampat, Philippines, Indonesia. That is the area where marine life originated from according to many .
Since no Live rock is available from there, I would go with Tampa Bay Rock.
Aussie Rock is your next choice, but prices are prohibiting and pieces I got had undoubtedly lots of bacteria, but almost nothing else except some halimeda and corralling algae.