Are all the rocks in the sea Live Rock??

symon_say · 10/27/2011, 06:43 AM

Hi

Maybe someone found this question weird, but are all the rocks in the sea live rock, or live rock have special characteristic??

I ask cause i'm going to the sea to look for my live rock and want to know what to look for.

Thanks

peasofme · 10/27/2011, 07:09 AM

yes

Dustin1300 · 10/27/2011, 07:12 AM

I'd make sure this is allowed in your area. You could seriously get penalized if this is not allowed!

Jocko · 10/27/2011, 07:20 AM

Wow that's a weird concept. Not something I could do up here in Boston. LOL.

Anyhow, assuming your plans are all legal and such... I would recommend starting with rocks that specifically do NOT have corals or things like that on them. Your tank will need time to cycle and stabilize. The longer the better. It would be a shame to take corals out of the wild and have them die in a new tank that doesn't have stable conditions yet. Even if it is legal for you to do so. So I would start with finding good "base rock" that you can use to get things going. That will introduce bacteria and other basic life to the tank so it can get established.

Although I'm tempted to make a joke about instead of setting up a tank, you can just go scuba diving a lot. Heh.

symon_say · 10/27/2011, 11:28 AM

I won't take rocks from the reef, i can take then from the beach away from the shore, and i'll make sure the rocks are free from corals and will try to keep then in water to see what critters i can save.

Dustin1300 · 10/27/2011, 11:42 AM

As far out as possible is going to be best so you can ensure it's not got so many contaminants!

xCry0x · 10/27/2011, 12:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by symon_say

I won't take rocks from the reef, i can take then from the beach away from the shore, and i'll make sure the rocks are free from corals and will try to keep then in water to see what critters i can save.

When you say beach away from the shore are you talking rocks in dry sand? Live rock is "Live" because it has de-nitrifying bacteria populating it.. which need to be submersed in water with nitrogen sources to live.

On a side note -- saying that everything will die when a tank cycles is absolutely false. If you are filling a tank with truly live rock you can avoid almost all if not all of the cycle.. that is one of the main perks to spending the extra money on live rock vs dry rock. Plenty of people throw live rocks into new tanks that have mushroom corals growing on them and everything survives. Heck I had 1 piece of live rock w/ a lot of dry rock in my new tank that I cycled by adding pure ammonia to, EVERY hitchhiker crab managed to survive the whole process.

ziyaadb · 10/27/2011, 01:07 PM

i gota disagree not all rock in the ocean is live rock, some rock is actually sandstone and that will do nothing for you. the rock that you want must be really porous and light, not have, should crumble easily, thats real live rock

symon_say · 10/27/2011, 01:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by xCry0x

When you say beach away from the shore are you talking rocks in dry sand? Live rock is "Live" because it has de-nitrifying bacteria populating it.. which need to be submersed in water with nitrogen sources to live.

On a side note -- saying that everything will die when a tank cycles is absolutely false. If you are filling a tank with truly live rock you can avoid almost all if not all of the cycle.. that is one of the main perks to spending the extra money on live rock vs dry rock. Plenty of people throw live rocks into new tanks that have mushroom corals growing on them and everything survives. Heck I had 1 piece of live rock w/ a lot of dry rock in my new tank that I cycled by adding pure ammonia to, EVERY hitchhiker crab managed to survive the whole process.

I'm talking about rocks underwater, not it the sand, but i have to agree with you, i know nothing about saltwater, but i presume the cycle is the same for saltwater and freshwater, if you have live rock your cycle is done, you just need a few days for the things that died from the rock been out of water clears and for the bacteria to take the ammonia the died produce, in my freshwater tank i have never cycle then, i just grab a piece of sponge from one of my filters and BANG! cycle done, the same should happen with live rock, bacterias are already in there.

Quote:

Originally Posted by ziyaadb

i gota disagree not all rock in the ocean is live rock, some rock is actually sandstone and that will do nothing for you. the rock that you want must be really porous and light, not have, should crumble easily, thats real live rock

This is the answer i was looking, cause a friend of mine went to the beach the weekend and bring me some rocks, most of then are coral skeleton, but the biggest one is a rock that might be live rock, it's not light, but is porous and filter some water, i just want to know how can i identify (live or base rock) don't care cause i'll let the cycle anyway (getting married next month and will take advantage of the time out of house), but i want to grab the correct rocks that can be colonized for the bacteria.

Zappo · 10/27/2011, 05:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ziyaadb

i gota disagree not all rock in the ocean is live rock, some rock is actually sandstone and that will do nothing for you. the rock that you want must be really porous and light, not have, should crumble easily, thats real live rock

"Live rock" is just normal rock with bacteria growing on it. Anything with a surface that isn't contaminated by toxins in the oceans could be called live, even non-porous rocks. Those just contain less life.

If you're going to collect rocks from the ocean, make sure you quarantine them for a while. There's no telling what sort of critters or algae you might be picking up and some can cause trouble. And while you're looking out for corals, also check for sponges. They frequently die in the move.

OregonReefer · 10/27/2011, 05:37 PM

Coral skeleton makes excellent live rock

As a side note... If the rock has gone dry it's not live rock anymore because the bacteria that makes rock "live" is now dead

SushiGirl · 10/27/2011, 06:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Zappo

"Live rock" is just normal rock with bacteria growing on it. Anything with a surface that isn't contaminated by toxins in the oceans could be called live, even non-porous rocks. Those just contain less life.

If you're going to collect rocks from the ocean, make sure you quarantine them for a while. There's no telling what sort of critters or algae you might be picking up and some can cause trouble. And while you're looking out for corals, also check for sponges. They frequently die in the move.

That ^^

symon_say · 10/27/2011, 08:59 PM

Thanks a lot, i'll be looking for the rocks this weekend to aquascape the tank and let it cycle.

alanbates12 · 10/27/2011, 09:31 PM

Post a photo of before/after of your tank

10/27/2011, 06:43 AM	#1
symon_say Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2011 Location: Dominican Republic Posts: 556	Are all the rocks in the sea Live Rock?? Hi Maybe someone found this question weird, but are all the rocks in the sea live rock, or live rock have special characteristic?? I ask cause i'm going to the sea to look for my live rock and want to know what to look for. Thanks

10/27/2011, 07:12 AM	#3
Dustin1300 Reefaholic Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: Carmel, IN Posts: 5,135	I'd make sure this is allowed in your area. You could seriously get penalized if this is not allowed! __________________ INDMAS President Check out my tank in the Large Tank Forums, "A Reefaholic's 1000+ Gallon Mixed Reef System Build"! Current Tank Info: 600 Gallon DT, 140 Gallon Grow Out Tank, 125 Gallon Sump, 90 Gallon Fuge, 200 Gallon Fish QT, 15 Gallon Frag QT

10/27/2011, 11:42 AM	#6
Dustin1300 Reefaholic Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: Carmel, IN Posts: 5,135	As far out as possible is going to be best so you can ensure it's not got so many contaminants! __________________ INDMAS President Check out my tank in the Large Tank Forums, "A Reefaholic's 1000+ Gallon Mixed Reef System Build"! Current Tank Info: 600 Gallon DT, 140 Gallon Grow Out Tank, 125 Gallon Sump, 90 Gallon Fuge, 200 Gallon Fish QT, 15 Gallon Frag QT

10/27/2011, 05:37 PM	#11
OregonReefer Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2010 Location: Portland, OR Posts: 629	Coral skeleton makes excellent live rock As a side note... If the rock has gone dry it's not live rock anymore because the bacteria that makes rock "live" is now dead __________________ 120g drilled, 30G sump, 20g Fuge, RO NWB200 Skimmer, Glass Holes Overflow, mag 12.0 return, Reeflo Dart closed loop, 6-bulb Sunlight Tek

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10/27/2011, 07:09 AM	#2
peasofme Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: usa Posts: 1,405	yes

10/27/2011, 07:20 AM	#4
Jocko Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Boston Posts: 595	Wow that's a weird concept. Not something I could do up here in Boston. LOL. Anyhow, assuming your plans are all legal and such... I would recommend starting with rocks that specifically do NOT have corals or things like that on them. Your tank will need time to cycle and stabilize. The longer the better. It would be a shame to take corals out of the wild and have them die in a new tank that doesn't have stable conditions yet. Even if it is legal for you to do so. So I would start with finding good "base rock" that you can use to get things going. That will introduce bacteria and other basic life to the tank so it can get established. Although I'm tempted to make a joke about instead of setting up a tank, you can just go scuba diving a lot. Heh.

10/27/2011, 11:28 AM	#5
symon_say Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2011 Location: Dominican Republic Posts: 556	I won't take rocks from the reef, i can take then from the beach away from the shore, and i'll make sure the rocks are free from corals and will try to keep then in water to see what critters i can save.

10/27/2011, 01:07 PM	#8
ziyaadb Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: South Africa - JHB Posts: 733	i gota disagree not all rock in the ocean is live rock, some rock is actually sandstone and that will do nothing for you. the rock that you want must be really porous and light, not have, should crumble easily, thats real live rock

10/27/2011, 08:59 PM	#13
symon_say Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2011 Location: Dominican Republic Posts: 556	Thanks a lot, i'll be looking for the rocks this weekend to aquascape the tank and let it cycle.

10/27/2011, 09:31 PM	#14
alanbates12 Registered Member. Join Date: Nov 2010 Location: Alabama Posts: 900	Post a photo of before/after of your tank