Too much live rock for my aquascape?

[Asian Hurricane]

Hi all,

I am starting a brand new nano Reef in a fluval Evo 13.5. I have never done a salt water tank so this is a new experience and I could definitely use any and all help. I would like to ask all of your opinions on the aquascape I made. It is about 11-12 lbs of live rock. I am wondering if it is too much as a family member said it was a little busy. I was wondering if I should remove the brown portion on the tail end on the right and just leave the arch? Thanks for any and all advice!

 

[Jseimo]

I’m in the belief that more is better. More bacteria that you can have the better your chances are at running a stable tank

 

[bsn_rn_cen]

Advise I would have liked to have my first go around is make sure you have enough room to easily clean between the rock and glass. As far as to busy. I don't think so. Try to think of what it will look like in a year covered in coral.

 

[lavoisier]

Welcome! I would agree with your family member. As your corals grow they take up space. Be sure to read through the sticky threads on the Aquascape forum. There is wisdom to be found there.

 

[Redfoxtang]

If it were me I also would as more rock. I think the more rock not only for bacteria reasons but also more caves for fish and more placement for corals. But this is also just a personal preference!! Good luck!!

 

[huckjai]

If you are doing a fish only tank, that looks perfectly fine. But if you plan on adding corals, they could use a bit more room for them to grow, depending on the corals of course.

It doesn't look busy at all. If they think this is busy, wait til they see it with coral, even if you remove a portion. Maybe it's just their personal preference. Go with what you think looks good while keeping in mind with what bsn said above. Make sure to leave room between the glass for easier maintenance.

 

[Auquanut]

First of all, Welcome to R2R! Secondly, I love your scape. The only thing I would change is to make sure you have room on that right side to clean the glass. Ultimately, you can get lots of advice, but you are the one looking at it every day. If you like it, it's great.

 

[Fishy212]

Hey man! Welcome to R2R. I would generally recommend 1-1.5 lbs of liverock per gallon. I have a 55 gallon tank and have about 85-90 lbs of liverock and 75-85 lbs of live sand

 

[arturoo1977]

I think it looks nice. Just be sure you have some clearance to glass in order to clean it.
Rockscape is just a personal taste. More rock =more room for bacteria, but also, less water and that could lead to fast chemistry changes.
So, is better to hace a good balance, but there is not a magic number...

 

[TheShrimpNibbler]

I like it. Doesn’t look too busy.

 

[Idoc]

I like your aquascape... the rock on the right breaks up the single arch. Just pick and place your corals not to overtake each other.

 

[Aqua Splendor]

It look balanced, keep mind also to leave space for cleaning the glass.

 

[flsalty]

I like a lot of rock so yours doesn't look busy to me at all. I think it looks pretty good.

Keep in mind that the rocks are there for more than just looks. They are also there for filtration.

 

[BeejReef]

Looks perfect to me.
filtration surface area is important, as noted above.

Also, you want area to mount your coral on. Generally, you try to keep frags at least 3" apart. You'll run out of room quick without much rock. Friends and family tend to look on it as a fish tank and see all the rock and such as "too many decorations." It's a coral reef Your patience and artistry will win them over in time.

 

[TheShrimpNibbler]

Friends and family tend to look on it as a fish tank and see all the rock and such as "too many decorations." It's a coral reef Your patience and artistry will win them over in time.

That was my thought too. Most people are so used to the betta tank with a fake plant and little castle in the middle.

 

[Salty Lemon]

I’m in the belief that more is better. More bacteria that you can have the better your chances are at running a stable tank

+1 on Jseimo's post. I think it looks great.

 

[Asian Hurricane]

Thanks everyone! The rock on the right actually has an arch as well that faces the side which I thought was cool. I think I will keep it like this based on all of the opinions here. The angle of the picture is a little tricky but there is a little clearance on the side of the tank for a magnetic cleaner, but It is a little closer to the glass than I'd have liked. But the rock would only fit like this so it couldn't be helped too much. Thanks again!