Live rock question

dilbert

dilbert

AC Members
Oct 8, 2007
83
0
0
Yorkshire (UK)
Hi everybody,

I have a general question about live rock and it's use in something else than the generic reef tank.

When I would use live rock in a tank that is high-end brackish or in a marine tank with sub-tropical temperatures, my guess is that the nitrifying bacteria would adapt if the change is done slowly or cycled completely again and only the marine live, i.e. hitchhikers, would suffer on that live rock.

So, I could use the live rock as a host for nitrifying bacteria?

I am asking because a live rock seems to be more practical than an artificial filter as there is nothing to clean or to replace. Only thing still needed would be a powerhead.
 
Everything I've read/heard indicates that liverock doesn't stay "live" in SG much lower than about 1.020-1.022. If you were keeping it in mid-brackish, I guess with enough flow it would work as biological media inside the tank, but my perception is that there are a lot of other microorganisms in liverock other than nitrifying bacteria that make it "live", which you would lose with a lower SG. But, at $5-10/lb, it seems like inordinately expensive biomedia.
 
live rock isnt actually alive, it is rock reseeded with bactiria, in a mid brackish tank it will be fine, but the coraline (prurple encrusting algae) will die, as will any inverts that are on it (mostly sponges, feather dusters and any hitchhiking corals).
 
srry, meat to say preseedea not reseeded.
 
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