Tonga vs Fiji vs Pukani

[mbuch21]

Hi All,
About 3 months ago my son and I took the leap from freshwater to saltwater and we love it! We introduced a few pieces of live rock and some clown fish and the 55 gallon tank is now almost done cycling as evidenced by the horrific amount of brown diadems on the sand (yuck). Now we are turning our attention to hardscaping. We know we want to do a rock hardscape rather than wood, and we know we want to use natural materials (purchased on the secondary market) rather than man-made. This has led us to Tonga, Fiji, and Pukani as the three dominant choices. We have looked at a few pieces (in person and online) but don’t yet have a very good handle for what makes one variety “better” than the others. Is it texture, aesthetics, or something else? We would love to hear from you, the experts, how you feel about these different types of rocks. Many thanks in advance!

 

[Idoc]

Pick the rock that you prefer for looks. If you are planning to have coral, the rock won't be very visible after awhile anyhow.

I have pukani, but I didn't think that was commercially available any longer due to a ban. But, this is nice looking rock, very light compared to others, but extremely "dirty" and requires to be cured prior to putting in your tank.

Also, your rock should have been in your tank during the cycle... or am i missing something here?

 

[CMMorgan]

Have you considered live rock available out of Florida? I'm referring to the aquacultured stuff from KP Aquatics or GulfLiveRock. Alas... Tampa Bay Saltwater is retiring.

 

[mbuch21]

Pick the rock that you prefer for looks. If you are planning to have coral, the rock won't be very visible after awhile anyhow.

I have pukani, but I didn't think that was commercially available any longer due to a ban. But, this is nice looking rock, very light compared to others, but extremely "dirty" and requires to be cured prior to putting in your tank.

Also, your rock should have been in your tank during the cycle... or am i missing something here?

Thanks so much. We put about 25 pounds of rock in for the cycling process, but the tank probably needs another 50 for the full hardscaping. Thought we can just add as we go... Is that not right?

 

[Idoc]

Thanks so much. We put about 25 pounds of rock in for the cycling process, but the tank probably needs another 50 for the full hardscaping. Thought we can just add as we go... Is that not right?

No, you can add it as you go. But each time you add some non-cycled rock, you may get a little mini-cycle to occur. Just watch your ammonia readings if you have livestock in the tank. But if you add un-cured pukani, expect a big cycle!

 

[mbuch21]

No, you can add it as you go. But each time you add some non-cycled rock, you may get a little mini-cycle to occur. Just watch your ammonia readings if you have livestock in the tank. But if you add un-cured pukani, expect a big cycle!

Thanks again. Why did you choose Pukani over Fiji? Texture and porousness seems similar. What’s the key decision factor between the two?

 

[Idoc]

Thanks again. Why did you choose Pukani over Fiji? Texture and porousness seems similar. What’s the key decision factor between the two?

I just liked the look of pukani... and it is a much lighter weight rock

 

[waterskiguy]

Basically, find a rock that you like the look of between Fiji and Tonga. Pukani is the "best" but hasn't been available for years and is really hard to find, if even possible. You can put a small piece of each of them in your hand and instantly tell which is the better rock. Fiji and Tonga are comparable, as far as rock that's available these days so that leave looks as the major factor.

 

[waterskiguy]

I just liked the look of pukani... and it is a much lighter weight rock

I've managed to acquire about 100 lbs of it over the last several years, since the ban. Every time it pops up, I jump right on it.

 

[BradB]

I have all 3. Probably not as big a difference as you think. I'd choose based on availability and price.

Pukani tends to be the lightest and most porous and comes in the largest pieces. For a huge tank, I'd do a few big Pukani pieces if I had it to do again.

Fiji is similar, but sometimes available 'live' with interesting life. I got a Fungia coral, Halimedia, Sargassum and a few other things.

Tonga is my least favorite and the most dense, but some people prefer branching or plating shapes you don't get elsewhere.

 

[mbuch21]

I have all 3. Probably not as big a difference as you think. I'd choose based on availability and price.

Pukani tends to be the lightest and most porous and comes in the largest pieces. For a huge tank, I'd do a few big Pukani pieces if I had it to do again.

Fiji is similar, but sometimes available 'live' with interesting life. I got a Fungia coral, Halimedia, Sargassum and a few other things.

Tonga is my least favorite and the most dense, but some people prefer branching or plating shapes you don't get elsewhere.

Hi all thanks for the feedback! I picked up a few pieces of Tonga and a few large pieces of Pukani. All dry as a bone. So now I’m going to do a scrub down and a few weeks curing with a heater and power head. The question I have is should I cure the Tonga and Pukani together or separate? Tonga, which is porous but solid, is quite clean. The Pukani is super cool and porous but very old and absolutely filthy and dry as a bone. I imagine the two will need different curing times. Any thoughts how to do this the right way? Thanks!