Hi! Extremely new reefer here!

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Welcome Macie! I think your plan to cure your rock is a good one. You can cure your rock in the garage with a circulation pump and heater, just keep an eye on your temp. As long as the temp stays in the 70's it'll be fine (covered). I'd add the bacteria right away with an ammonia source. You can use ammonia, but fish food or salad shrimp works fine. You my want to do a water change periodically to drain off excess nitrates and phosphates, depending on how long it cures. In my opinion, the longer it cooks, the better. It'll give you a chance to get comfortable testing ammonia, nitrate, phosphate, etc... Good luck!
 
Meeggles said:
I did not cure my Marcos dry rock I just put it in the tank and filled with water and then added ammonia and waited for it to cycle. Lights off, wave maker on, and skimmer on (to break it in). I could be wrong but I thought curing rock was for live rock although I did see that BRS do a video on curing the same rocks. So...?
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You aren’t entirely wrong typically dry rock is ‘cycled’ not ‘cured’

When ‘real’ live rock was more prevalent ‘curing’ was simply allowing the organics from the rock to die off and the ammonia spike to subside, causing a lot of smell but avoiding fish from dying while the rock went through this cycle.

my 0.02 for the OP, if this is brand new marco rock there will be little to no smell as there isnt any organic material to die off. You would still cycle the rock to establish the bacteria on the rock nonetheless.

i soaked mine in RO for like a month because this rock often has heavy phosphates bound to the rock, i was hoping that would help and then i started the cycle ‘in tank’ with fresh saltwater, some microbacter7 and a shrimp (or any ammonia source)

my other suggestion would be get the rock ‘scaped’ exactly how you want it before having it touch water. There are many disadvantages to dry rock one of the biggest advantages though is taking your time with scaping it.
 
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I have my entire sump, mix station, etc. in my garage. I keep everything covered as best as I can. Whether that is a good idea is subjective. I am in Florida, so no heater for me. That said, my husband loves to do stupid things like paint, glue and cut wood without checking to see if my sump is closed up. I've also rusted half his tools and the air conditioning handler. Oops.
I agree with many of the comments here. 1- you have a solid plan, move with confidence 2 - you could just wait and cycle the whole tank later but this scratches your reef itch NOW 3- watch the BRS videos - they are addicting... depending on where you live... keep checking back here. People sell off tanks frequently.
 
ReefBot Lab, Automated Water Tester
Greetings, and welcome aboard. I can’t answer because I like you am still asking questions but will be starting my build soon. As you can see lots of answers here on how others have done it. I agree with the comment of watching the BRS videos on set up, aquascape, etc. Then decide what works best for your situation.
 
Top Shelf Aquatics
Macie said:
Hey Guys!
I am an extremely new reefer who has found herself overwhelmed recently!
I would like to start my process now by starting the curing of the rock (dry) now, since it does take a few weeks to months, and I will purchase my tank at the beginning of the year.
I can't seem to find clear cut answers, directions, or steps on curing dry rock.
Here is my plan and please let me know what I am missing.
I plan on having a 60 gallon tank so..
50-60lbs of Marco's dry rock
Brute trash can
I need RO/DI system for my water
Salt
Mix the salt with the RO/DI filtered water
Put the rock into the mix with a heater and a pump for circulation..
Cover the trash can with a lid? or don't cover?
I plan on putting this in the garage since it will be stinky..
Will that be ok as there will be a heater in the water (and it is now winter)
Some people say to change out the water when it becomes stinky (do i do this)
Then once levels are tested and ready, I can add live bacteria and continue the curing cycle?

Please let me know, I am extremely open to feedback. I just want to do it right.
Thanks for reading and your advice!
Click to expand...

Hello and welcome to the channel. glad you joined.
 
Macie said:
Hey Guys!
I am an extremely new reefer who has found herself overwhelmed recently!
I would like to start my process now by starting the curing of the rock (dry) now, since it does take a few weeks to months, and I will purchase my tank at the beginning of the year.
I can't seem to find clear cut answers, directions, or steps on curing dry rock.
Here is my plan and please let me know what I am missing.
I plan on having a 60 gallon tank so..
50-60lbs of Marco's dry rock
Brute trash can
I need RO/DI system for my water
Salt
Mix the salt with the RO/DI filtered water
Put the rock into the mix with a heater and a pump for circulation..
Cover the trash can with a lid? or don't cover?
I plan on putting this in the garage since it will be stinky..
Will that be ok as there will be a heater in the water (and it is now winter)
Some people say to change out the water when it becomes stinky (do i do this)
Then once levels are tested and ready, I can add live bacteria and continue the curing cycle?

Please let me know, I am extremely open to feedback. I just want to do it right.
Thanks for reading and your advice!
Click to expand...
Honestly, when I ordered live rock, as long as it was from a reputable source I literally threw it in my tank... just my experience no issues no problems. One regret I have is finding them off maybe 5-10 minutes for the dust but I hear curing works also. Personally I think less is more and a bottle of Dr.Tim’s works great :)
 
PBnJOnWheat said:
Honestly, when I ordered live rock, as long as it was from a reputable source I literally threw it in my tank... just my experience no issues no problems. One regret I have is finding them off maybe 5-10 minutes for the dust but I hear curing works also. Personally I think less is more and a bottle of Dr.Tim’s works great :)
Click to expand...
And welcome :) to R2R
 
i've always just cycled with fish... some sand some rock.. throw some fish food in with everything on (filters, lights, heaters, etc.. like a normal tank. water changes...like normal after a few weeks throw in a damsel or two... go a few weeks... done.

if marcos has high phosphates then i'd suggest GFO to pull those out, but I haven't used marcos rock.
 
sunken3 said:
i've always just cycled with fish... some sand some rock.. throw some fish food in with everything on (filters, lights, heaters, etc.. like a normal tank. water changes...like normal after a few weeks throw in a damsel or two... go a few weeks... done.

if marcos has high phosphates then i'd suggest GFO to pull those out, but I haven't used marcos rock.
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The phosphates should decrease with time as the tank balances out. Even if the rocks have high phosphates you can always keep a 16:1 ratio to stabilize algae growth and still promote healthy coral and fish health. I don’t like GFO personally but it does do it’s job! I cycled with a frozen shrimp lol mix it up but a bottle of MB7, DrTims should be plenty, never failed. Gosh ready no risk.
 
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