[fjoseph72269]

how long does it take to seed base rock. is there a % ratio recomended, like 70% lr to 30% br. whats the least amount of lr needed to seed a maximum amount of br. with everything i'v bought for a 180 build, i'm allmost tapped out and still need 200 lb of lr. thanks for your help.

 

[theplatypus]

You can seed it with a single piece. I've never seen a ratio of sorts. But, I have seen very solid arguments as to how we're wasting our money buying such large quantities of lr. Eventually all base rock, sand etc will become live its a matter of time.

/edit

I didn't answer your question. Your best bet is too find someone local that is breaking down a tank. That way you'll get cured live rock for the same money as br.

 

[fjoseph72269]

are there specific rocks that i can or can't use. anything from lowes, home depot or a local quarry. it's the whole shipping thing that kills me when looking at lr or br on line.

 

[theplatypus]

See if you can't find reef bones by caribsea. As far as I know you don't want anything from lowes or HD in your tank.

 

[is_that_a_fish]

if you use rocks from hd and lowes chances are they are loaded with minerals which could kill everything in your tank or anything you will be adding to your tank. Just my 2 cents

 

[wharyat]

Ive heard this is a good place for BR/dead rock; seemingly good shipping prices too. Someone will probably comment more specficially on them.

Dead rock usually takes around 3 months to fully colinize with bacteria and become live. I've had cinderblocks that I have broken up and used for one of my tanks with no problems; anything that has the porosity can become live "rock," just be careful on the other trace elements some non-reef rocks and such contain.

 

[fjoseph72269]

thanks for the input. much appreciated . hey wharyat, didn't see a link in your reply?

 

[BGJ223]

This is my take on the whole br / lr thing. It is all about patience. A tank with 99lbs br and 1lb lr just doesn't look as pretty as 99lbs lr. The br will look pretty several months down the road, just not right out of the gates. My suggestion would be to just cycle your tank the same way that Geoff did, with a few poinds of rocks and some amonia. That way you have some time to save up a couple bucks and buy the stuff that you really want. My suggestion for that would be http://www.tbsaltwater.com

well that is my 2 bits.

 

[wharyat]

thanks for the input. much appreciated . hey wharyat, didn't see a link in your reply?

I forgot to put in the link. :doh:

This place: http://www.hirocks.com/

 

[the raz]

in my 65 gal. i did 50 /50 br/lr 60 lbs of both and in 6 months you cant really tell the difference thats just my 2 cents . i have red ,purple, and green coraline algae all over my base rock and tons of tube worms as well . check out HIrocks .com for good base rock for cheap

 

[Tim224DT]

Personaly i say save your money on LR and get all base rock then seed with a few lbs of LR. That is what i did with my tank.


Tim

 

[hng]

I plan on using mostly base rock on my 30 gal as well. I got a bunch of aragocrete from Mojo and plan on using that for my base.

 

[Hardhead Cat]

I was too afraid to try any base rock, worried that something might find its way in to the tank and kill every thing - so I save until I can afford lr - - and add it little by little.

HHC

 

[Geoff]

so far i am running on 99% dead LR and 1% heavily cured LR.

unfortunately i do not know of any rocks at HD or Lowe's that would be suitable. do none of the LFS near you have any BR? if you lived closer i could give you a decent amount of dead LR (it was sitting outside on my deck for the 7 months i was in Ireland).

i actually prefer this method of tank setup. harder to get those bugger nuisance critters like aiptasia and mojano anemones. really hard to get hitchhiker crabs also.

G~

 

[theplatypus]

Why didn't I think of this earlier? You can make your own br. There are lots of recipes out here.

 

[fjoseph72269]

i just checked out HIROCKS.COM and couldn't believe a 30 lb box was only $50 WITH SHIPPING INCLUDED. thats $250 for 150 lb. perfect. i can seed it with the 50 lb lr that i have. you people just saved me a whole bunch of $$$$. by the way, i looked at TAMPABAYSALTWATER and all i can say is wow to those packages, but only a dream right now.

:banana: :banana: