Live rock and sand or dry

[JacksonReef]

Which? Is better for a quicker setup but in the long run more successful.

 

[twilliard]

Tough one!
They both have their ups and downs.
Live rock for the quick end

 

[melypr1985]

It depends on your point of view. Live rock and sand will make for a faster startup and can be great in the long run. Dry will take longer to cycle and get started and can also be great in the long run. So, both are great- you just have to watch out for good quality live rock and sand... be as sure as you can about bad hitchhikers, algaes, aptasia ect. Of course those things can come in on frags and such so really... it's all about which you prefer, how fast you want it started, and how much money you have to invest in it. Live rock can cost double what dry can.

 

[JacksonReef]

It depends on your point of view. Live rock and sand will make for a faster startup and can be great in the long run. Dry will take longer to cycle and get started and can also be great in the long run. So, both are great- you just have to watch out for good quality live rock and sand... be as sure as you can about bad hitchhikers, algaes, aptasia ect. Of course those things can come in on frags and such so really... it's all about which you prefer, how fast you want it started, and how much money you have to invest in it. Live rock can cost double what dry can.

What do you look for in good quality live rock free of hitch hikers?

 

[melypr1985]

What do you look for in good quality live rock free of hitch hikers?

I look for coraline algae growth, sponges, pods, even corals or feather dusters = All good things

Then there's bad aglae like hair, cyano, turf. And aptasia, majanos, bad crabs and shrimp (might not see those) excessive bristleworms= all things bad

If you get live rock from another person's tank you can more easily see bad things before purchasing. Look for signs of mantis shrimp and gorilla crabs like dead bodies or ask about fish disappearances. All the other stuff should be easily spotted.

 

[JacksonReef]

Thanks

 

[Shep]

I usually do dry for both but you could do dry rock and like 3/4 dry sand with one small bag of live sand to seed the tank.

 

[JacksonReef]

I usually do dry for both but you could do dry rock and like 3/4 dry sand with one small bag of live sand to seed the tank.

How long would it take to cycle at 12 gallon tank with dry rock and live sand?

 

[Shep]

How long would it take to cycle at 12 gallon tank with dry rock and live sand?

Toss something in there to start the cycle (piece of shrimp or ammonia) and then I always let it go for 3-4 weeks but it really depends of the parameters that you detect with a testing kit.
Edit: if you are using live sand there is no need to necessarily doing anything to jump start the cycle.

 

[twilliard]

How long would it take to cycle at 12 gallon tank with dry rock and live sand?

Hard to determine time as that is dependant on bacterial growth

 

[JacksonReef]

Toss something in there to start the cycle (piece of shrimp or ammonia) and then I always let it go for 3-4 weeks but it really depends of the parameters that you detect with a testing kit.
Edit: if you are using live sand there is no need to necessarily doing anything to jump start the cycle.

Filters on lights on during cycling?

 

[Shep]

Filters on lights on during cycling?

Run it like you would a normal tank