wal-mart play sand is only $2.47 for a 50 pound bag here in indiana. i used it when i switched from my UGF to a DSB.
ideal gal tank set up ?
- Thread starter Snarkys
- Start date
OK , got another question . say i do buy the best live rock that comes with all these great things growing on it. what do i need to keep them alive ? like lighting , calcium , nutrients ....... if i don't have super lighting like a MH with 2 VHO and calcium reactor will all the coral just die anyways ?
all i have right now is the two normal Fluorescent lights that came with the tank . can this maintain all the coral or fun things that come with the best live rock from say http://www.tampabaysaltwater.com/ (150 LBS for $900 plus shipping ) or am i just wasting my money and should buy the cheaper rock like http://www.marinedepotlive.com/ (140LBS for $650 shipping already included) or maybe http://www.liveaquaria.com/ ( 150 LBS for around $500 plus shipping ?
sorry i am just full of questions but one last one . do people normaly put only one type of rock in the tank or buy a few different kinds to make the tank a bit more colorful and have different types of life growing in the tank ?
thanks for all your help. i am really looking forward to gettign started on all this : )
all i have right now is the two normal Fluorescent lights that came with the tank . can this maintain all the coral or fun things that come with the best live rock from say http://www.tampabaysaltwater.com/ (150 LBS for $900 plus shipping ) or am i just wasting my money and should buy the cheaper rock like http://www.marinedepotlive.com/ (140LBS for $650 shipping already included) or maybe http://www.liveaquaria.com/ ( 150 LBS for around $500 plus shipping ?
sorry i am just full of questions but one last one . do people normaly put only one type of rock in the tank or buy a few different kinds to make the tank a bit more colorful and have different types of life growing in the tank ?
thanks for all your help. i am really looking forward to gettign started on all this : )
you keep missing the part about using 100 pounds of base rock and only 50 of LR. Yes, people mix different types all the time.
No you will not be wasting your money with the lights you have with TBS rockIMO. There is a lot of different life forms on it that do not require the brightest lights. Yes, you may get a coral or two that do. Trade them in at an LFS or with a friend if possible.
Ray
Snarky did make one mention of something I've been trying to figure out...
What are the purple blooms on some of these LR pictures (my assumption is algae), and where do they come from?
I've got the HI rock it seems, so that leaves the LR...
I'd need to find LR from what geo.?
What are the purple blooms on some of these LR pictures (my assumption is algae), and where do they come from?
I've got the HI rock it seems, so that leaves the LR...
I'd need to find LR from what geo.?
Usually fiji LR has some purple or pink on it, but there are no guaranties. Someone close who has it should be willing to trade or give you a starter.
Ray
I am not missing that part . i am just worried that it will take along time for the growth from the first 50 pounds to spread to the other 100.
that is why i was thinking about buying 50 of the good stuff and 100 of the cheaper LR rather than plain rock ... maybe this is a stupid idea ??? i just want to make sure there is enough growth in there to filter the tank.
with 50 lbs of lr you'll have some filtration for your tank. You probably wouldn't want to stock it to full capacity until your base rock has at least established a good sized baceterial colony. IME that takes from 3 to 6 months depending on other tank coditons like stocking etc. I wouldn't add all my live rock before the cycle though ,"especially if you get high quality stuff like tampa bay." The cycle will kill off some of your more sensative inverts so I'd do 50% before the cycle and 50% after the cycle.
hth
chris
hth
chris
