adding rocks to existing aquarium

[ziggyziggy]

i am thinking there is not enough rocks in my aquarium. if i need to add more rocks, what can i add immediately? i dont have any live rock in my tank. can i buy some right now and put it in. can i put regualr dry rocks in? i think i really need to add more hiding palces for all my fish.

[TKOS]

You can add what ever kinds of rocks you like to an established tank. And LR is a great idea as it will help to filter the tank. But if you add live rock it must be cured first. Some places sell cured LR and that can basically be plunked into the tank. Uncured, or semi cured must be cured first. Basically it is the same as cycling a tank. Stick it in a bucket of the same water as is in your tank with an air pump and bubbler. There will be some die off causing a spike in ammonia which will lead to a spike in nitrites which will leaqd to a spike in nitrates. Once the ammonia and nitrites spike then go to zero the rock is cycled. Not usre how long it takes.

[ziggyziggy]

so if the live rock is cured, then i can just drop it in my tank? also, this places sells lie fiji rock inside a huge tank with water pump and filter and everything. is that cured?

[TKOS]

If it has sat there long enough it is probably cured. Are there fish with it as well? I guess you just have to ask if it is fully cured.

But if it is then yeah, just place it right in your tank and you get all that extra filtration right away. Do you have much of a current in your tank? LR should have a good current to be really effective, something like 10X tank turn over per hour.

[mogurnda]

Even if it's cured, it may be a good idea to monitor ammonia and nitrite for the first few weeks. Never know if something's going to decide to die after transport.