Replacing all my LR in my tank......good idea?

[gnashty]

When I started I bought all kinds of rock from all kinds of people - about 250 lb in all. well, it looks like 4 different kinds of rock in my tank and its killing me to look at it everyday.

Im thinking of just gutting all the rock and starting over with base rock.....any suggestions on how to do this?

Im thinking of getting 50# of base rock, keep it in the garage in a bin with PH and heater and some LR to seed with and when its ready removing half of my current rock and replacing it with my new. then repeat the process until all the rock is replaced. Is there a better way?


Anyone used this at all? Im thinking of starting with 50# to try it out.
http://www.bulkreefsupply.com/store/...-eco-rock.html

Any suggestions on other places to find good base rock cheap? I really like the look of the rock above...

EDIT: what about this stuff? http://www.marcorocks.com/index.asp?...ROD&ProdID=100

[Dakota9]

I wouldn't do that, but then again, I'm cheap.......

Maybe a re-aquascaping is all you need?

Do you have pests you're trying to rid yourself of?

If you have a DSB I definitely wouldn't do it.... you'd stir up all sorts of nasties!

[SnowManSnow]

is this an established tank?

how long has the rock been in there?

If it has built up a good bacterial colony you'll probably cycle again

B

[hhughes]

I wouldn't do it because it's a lot of work and money.... just pile enough corals in there and you won't be able to see the rock anyway '-)

But I suppose....if you cured/cycled the new LR in a holding tank...and maybe replaced only a portion at a time....you might avoid too nasty a cycle in the display.

Is it really that bad looking?

[gnashty]

Originally Posted by Dakota9

I wouldn't do that, but then again, I'm cheap.......

Maybe a re-aquascaping is all you need?

Do you have pests you're trying to rid yourself of?

If you have a DSB I definitely wouldn't do it.... you'd stir up all sorts of nasties!

I have re-aquascaped numerous times and im just not happy with the outcome. I do not have a DSB.

With the amount of rock I do have all purpled up and some pretty decent (but heavy peices) I think I can come out without spending too much once I sell of the old..it may take 6-8 months to recoop but thats ok.

I dont have any pests to speak of really -except maybe an aptaisa here or there

Originally Posted by SnowManSnow

is this an established tank?

how long has the rock been in there?

If it has built up a good bacterial colony you'll probably cycle again

B

The rock has been in for about a year and was all established before i bought it. Thats why I kind of planned to do it in stages - I have 2 "bommies" in my tank and want to replace one at a time.

would I cause a cycle even if I cured the base rock for several weeks in the garage?

[gnashty]

Originally Posted by hhughes

I wouldn't do it because it's a lot of work and money.... just pile enough corals in there and you won't be able to see the rock anyway '-)

But I suppose....if you cured/cycled the new LR in a holding tank...and maybe replaced only a portion at a time....you might avoid too nasty a cycle in the display.

Is it really that bad looking?

I hate it....I want to go much higher but this rock is too heavy for safe stacking

Im not worried about the amount of work, and not so much worried about the money aspect of it either...I just want it to look TOTM worthy

current.jpg

[misu]

can you cure the new rock in your sump? Get some marco and add it gradually after you keep it in the sump a month or so

You can also drill and use pvc rods to build it higher, I have a masonry bit if you're interested

[gnashty]

Originally Posted by misu

can you cure the new rock in your sump? Get some marco and add it gradually after you keep it in the sump a month or so

You can also drill and use pvc rods to build it higher, I have a masonry bit if you're interested

I dont have any room in the sump but I do have about 40 lb of rock in my fuge I could swap out...Ill most likely just leave it in a big tub in my garage and use my discard water from WC's to fill it.

I drilled a bunch of rock during one of my rescapes before and it works well if you are using the right rock but mine didnt look very natural at all.

Who has experience with both marco and the BRS base rock? the price is about the same...

[Dakota9]

Originally Posted by misu

can you cure the new rock in your sump? Get some marco and add it gradually after you keep it in the sump a month or so

You can also drill and use pvc rods to build it higher, I have a masonry bit if you're interested

This is a good idea!

I think your tank looks great! Other than the rock having a slight "flapjack" look on the right hand side. You could try to stand it up a bit on that end.

Really, replacing that rock would be over-kill, rather than adding a few interesting pieces here and there....

[misu]

I also used pvc pipe to build supports for the rock, that will lift the entire rockwork a bit and give it some stability.
I went with the big drain size one 6" (?) cut slices about the size of my sandbed then drilled the sides in several places to allow for critters to go in and out

[gnashty]

ok, so you guys are getting thru to me a little bit here...

how about just going higher with the base rock and leaving most of what you see there? with some re-arragements...some of those peices are just massive and very heavy

[gnashty]

Originally Posted by misu

I also used pvc pipe to build supports for the rock, that will lift the entire rockwork a bit and give it some stability.
I went with the big drain size one 6" (?) cut slices about the size of my sandbed then drilled the sides in several places to allow for critters to go in and out

How thick were your slices?

I used some 3" PVC rings too but ultimately abandoned them thru my scaping resets

[RaisedOnNintendo]

I'll tell u what I do I got 3 separate piles o rock n my tank like 3 islands. 1 pile is all tonga branch, 1 is all tonga base, the other is dead birdsnests n coral heads. It looks neat I think separated like that

[misu]

I can see some of those large pieces flipped on the side and built up a bit. Get some corals in there and in half a year you won't see much of the rock anyway.

[JeF4y]

Marco & the BRS rock are identical as far as I can tell. The Marco stuff comes from a quarry in FL. BRS may very well get their stuff at the same place. I have both and they are great rocks. Good shapes, fit together nicely, very porous, able to drill, etc.

If you are going to do this, curing & slowly adding would be the best way. Or adding a piece or two at a time to the DT. Doing it right (IMHO) will take a long time (think like 1 year), but could be done with minimal impact. Too much too fast will cause a cycle and be fairly unpleasant. It's a matter of determining where that line is based on your system.

[misu]

Originally Posted by gnashty

How thick were your slices?

I used some 3" PVC rings too but ultimately abandoned them thru my scaping resets

about 2" but it was the larger pipe so it has more stability. And under large pieces I used more than one pvc support. If you cut them too high you can always add sand around the base of the rock

[gnashty]

Originally Posted by misu

I can see some of those large pieces flipped on the side and built up a bit. Get some corals in there and in half a year you won't see much of the rock anyway.

Yes, with some care - a couple of those rocks can be turned to give more height

Originally Posted by JeF4y

Marco & the BRS rock are identical as far as I can tell. The Marco stuff comes from a quarry in FL. BRS may very well get their stuff at the same place. I have both and they are great rocks. Good shapes, fit together nicely, very porous, able to drill, etc.

If you are going to do this, curing & slowly adding would be the best way. Or adding a piece or two at a time to the DT. Doing it right (IMHO) will take a long time (think like 1 year), but could be done with minimal impact. Too much too fast will cause a cycle and be fairly unpleasant. It's a matter of determining where that line is based on your system.

Im glad you said that - I order from BRS all the time and am pretty loyal to them for certain things, had 3 deliveries just in the last 2 weeks....all things local sponsors dont carry.

I could actually move all of the rock you see on the right to the left...creatively to make it all fit. Then I could start my new rock on that right side...? I think I would still cycle the base rock for several weeks in a tub before I did this...thoughts? Then slowly remove unwanted rock from the left once the new rock is fully cycled?

[gnashty]

Originally Posted by RaisedOnNintendo

I'll tell u what I do I got 3 separate piles o rock n my tank like 3 islands. 1 pile is all tonga branch, 1 is all tonga base, the other is dead birdsnests n coral heads. It looks neat I think separated like that

Not a bad idea to try to organize some of my rock by type too..

[misu]

Originally Posted by gnashty

I could actually move all of the rock you see on the right to the left...creatively to make it all fit. Then I could start my new rock on that right side...? I think I would still cycle the base rock for several weeks in a tub before I did this...thoughts? Then slowly remove unwanted rock from the left once the new rock is fully cycled?

that sounds like a good plan, I think another 40 lbs of marco/brs would do the trick. Maybe left the 2 piles separate like the post above suggested

[gnashty]

ok, good plan...feeling good about it

Here are a couple of rock choices, help me decide

BRS - Reef Saver Rock - most economical
http://www.bulkreefsupply.com/store/...-eco-rock.html

or

BRS - Pukani Rock - more expensive but the reviews on this stuff are awesome - more yield than the Saver rock
http://www.bulkreefsupply.com/store/...-eco-rock.html