New to reefs
- Thread starter therightcoast
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steelheader.262
Valuable Member
Welcome, Here in WI I pay anywhere from $3-8.50 per pound.
Any coral on them is just a bonus.
Any coral on them is just a bonus.
I would say those rocks that you have with the corals on them could sell for $20-$40. The Live rock I normally get will only have feather duster's and brittle starfish on or in it. $3-$8.50 sounds right to me.
Harold Green
Well-Known Member
I feel I should warn you about kenya trees. Most hobbyists who have kenya trees would be happy to have you come and take them out of their tanks. They fragment and once embedded in your live rock are very difficult to get rid of. Along with zenia's, yellow polyps, gsp's, anthelia's they can all overrun a tank in less than a year. The zoa rock I would say run's about twenty to thirty locally for something with that variety and size.
Helenareefer
Active Member
That tank looks pretty new...how long has it been running?
thehammer1985
Well-Known Member
If it's sold under live rock I wouldn't pay any more than 8.00 a lbs but if it's sold as corals with some basic corals and a Kenya tree maybe 20 for the Kenya and 15 for the zoas
It's about 2.5 weeks old. But I have 30 bucks in both rocks so the goodies were just extra on top of the price per pound. This is my fist go on a reef tank so I'm just going by trial and error. Been testing every day and every thing looks good just not adding any expensive livestock. This is how it looks now. Just bought the rock at a price per pound and everything that is in the tank other wise was just goodies or freebies.
Helenareefer
Active Member
So, did you cycle the tank?
Ahruk
Active Member
You may want to see if you can find a local reef club, they'll be a lot more helpful as far cost estimates as prices vary drastically from region to region based on availability of livestock and local fish-stores. Plus local reefers are often able to hook you up with the very best deals. Also your tank is really young, I'd wait at least another month before adding anything more. Four fish already is really pushing it....
Harold Green
Well-Known Member
With that many fish and corals in a tank that has yet to fully cycle you need to check ammonia and nitrate daily so you don't risk the livestock.
I just did what the lfs said to do. 4 damsels live sand live rock and a couple of pounds of his sand and stability. Had a brown algae bloom today on dead rocks. Should I do anything or just let it ride. No big spikes in all test calcium is about 470 to 500. Salinity is hanging around 1.027 to 1.028.
Harold Green
Well-Known Member
Salinity might be a bit high. It's OK but most of us run around 1.o24-1.026. The higher you have it the bigger issue it is to acclimate lfs purchases as some stores keep their salinity as low as 1.020. It's unfortunate but most lfs are in business to sell merchandise and don't always have employees who have your best interests at heart or the best knowledge. Most of us gave up on cycling tanks with damsels years ago and do it with dead shrimp or other ammonia sources. It's faster and doesn't put live animals through all the stress of swimming around in ammonia for weeks. At times it requires several water changes to keep animals alive and that actually slows down the cycling process. Generally it's a good idea to wait around six weeks for the tank to cycle prior to adding any fish or corals. This not only allows time for the ammonia and nitrite bacteria to multiply it also gives time for bacteria that consume nitrate to multiply and that takes months on average.
Harold Green
Well-Known Member
Unless you have another tank ready for those animals I'd suggest you let it ride and just monitor daily for the next month or so changing water anytime the amount of ammonia, nitrite, or nitrate comes up. I can't tell you how much rise because I really don't know what a safe level is for corals( they're normally pretty sensitive), however the damsels are pretty tough and can handle a lot. The lfs should not have suggested it was alright to add all those animals to a new uncycled tank. Back when it was common to cycle with damsels we normally used only one at a time as that produced enough ammonia to cycle.
