starting a reef tank and need advice!

[kgwklee]

I have a question about rock. I gathered about 160lbs of fossilized reef rock I was going to put in a 110gal and seed it with a few pieces of live rock. After reading the forums I'm not sure if it's a good idea. How important is it that I use only live or dead reef rock? I do plan on corals sometime in the future after I get the lighting up to par. The fossilized stuff I have is fairly dense and I don't think its really porous but it isn't limestone either.

Looking forward to reading some more here on the forum and appreciate already the wealth of knowledge available. I look forward to the day I'm answering some questions rather than asking them!

Thanks in advance!

[Europhyllia]

It really depends on how flexible you are in your expectations.
If you introduce liverock it can bring with it really good stuff as well as really bad stuff.

[tony]

welcome to maast!!!

i see no problem with your plan short of any hitchhikers

remember to take it slow, the only things that happen fast in this hobby is bad ones! keep us updated and take and post lots of pics.

[CoryDude]

I tried the same idea when I setup my first tank many years ago. You'll benefit more with using less dense rock. The little holes and crevices allow for better microfauna numbers and hiding places for fish. Provided the rock isn't something like limestone (like you mentioned) you may be able use a few pieces as base rock.

After battling different pests (ie byropsis, derbesia, acro eating flatworms, etc) I'll personally never use "live" rock ever again. Just buy a bunch of dry live rock and seed it with a piece of established live rock from a trusted source. You're tank will be ready to go in no time.

[kgwklee]

Well, I guess I need to find some dry live rock. Any good places in San Antonio to get some?

Thanks for the help everyone.

[FireWater]

Phenomenal used to carry dry rock. It has been a little while since I have been over there though.

[justahobby]

I don't know of any local places but there are several online venues.

[Roo&Lis]

Check out bulk reef supply. I've heard their pukani dry rock is awesome.

[kgwklee]

Thanks everyone! I'll check out all those places.

[Roo&Lis]

Looks like Louis at Elegant Reef in town now carries the dry rock from bulk reef supply.

[FireWater]

Looks like Louis at Elegant Reef in town now carries the dry rock from bulk reef supply.
I did not notice that he carried that now.

I ordered mine from Marco and was extremely happy with the purchase.

[FSU]

Just an FYI, I started with some of the more dense rock. Not all of it, but I had 2-3 bigger pieces in my tank and my sump was full of it instead of bio balls. It became one of those things that just stayed in my mind and bothered me quite a bit. After looking at it more thoroughly, I decided it was barely porous at all and have since replaced ALL of it. Again, maybe it was just me, I just feel better about not having it and knowing I have better quality rock that will be more beneficial for my tank as a whole.

[justahobby]

Keep in mind that getting the rock with the most pores won't matter if you don't keep them clean. Lots of flow and going over them with a powerhead or turkey baster will keep the rocks healthy.

[CoryDude]

Phenomenal had some oystercreet man made rock that was $3 a pound. It looked pretty good and had some nice shapes too.

[kgwklee]

I checked out the pukani rock and liked it. I decided to get what I need now instead of worrying about it later. Thanks everyone! If I hadn't got yall's advice I would of had a tank full of crappy rock and wondered why things weren't working right! I have a koralia 4 power head and a quiet one 1000gph pump so I think I have enough water movement. I had it set up for tropheus up till a week ago.