Dry base rock question

Ok, so I can get my hands on some nice fiji dry base rock locally. It's basically the stuff that marcorocks sells, but up here in Ontario.

Question is this...how does using this rock affect the cycle process? I'll be using about 20-30lbs of live rock out of my current well established setup, and about 20-30lbs of the base rock. I will also be using about 30gal of seeded tank water. Will there still be a mini cycle? Or how does this work? Do the regular rules of cycling a tank apply?

 

Adding water from an established system does nothing for you, but the rocks do. Anytime you add LR, you run the risk of sending your system through a mini-cycle. It all depends how good of a filtration system you have. The more establish the system is the better the chance that you won't go through a mini-cycle. You can always add the LR in small parts. For ex. add 10lbs and wait 2-3 weeks before adding the next 10lbs and so on.


Luna

 

Adding 10lbs at a time, you are refering to the dry rock correct? I may just bite the bullet and set it all up, and let it go through a cycle. There won't be anything in it, as I can just leave it all in my current tank til the bigger one goes through the cycle. That, or forget the dry rock altogether, and go with all live rock from established systems.

If I do go with all live rock that I can buy from people tearing their systems down, then I don't really have to worry about any kind of cycle correct? As long as their system was running for quite some time to get the rock nice and aged?

 

If you dont have any livestock in your system, then you have nothing to worry about. I was under the assumption that you had livestock. Add it all if you want.
If your able to get all of your LR from established systems, thats a big "cycle-proof" way of doing it. Not a 100%, but close to it.


Luna

 

awesome. K+ for the quick help. I think I'll just spend the extra money and get all established live rock. Guys on kijiji are selling it for about $3.50-$4/lb, and I can pick the pieces.

cheers.

 

Add all the dry rock at once, it should not cause a cycle by itself if it has been properly cleaned and dried. It is basically biologically inert when you add it dry so adding the 20-30lbs from your existing setup on top of it will help colonize it in short order.
As long as your existing LR does not spend more than a few minutes out of the water there should not be any significant die off to cause a mini-cycle.

 

this thread is a little bit confusing :-/ so sorry if I misunderstand.

dry rock does NOTHING to a cycle. It wont cause one at all. You can put all the dry base rock in you want at any point and it will barely register with your params... until it becomes live - at which point it is just beneficial.

as far as triggering a cycle, there is no difference with dry rock.


If this is a new tank you are setting up - you will most likely have some level of cycle regardless of how much established rock you put in. But that will minimize it. But the dry base rock is irrelevant in that equation.

 

+1

Add the dried rock, if it has organics on it, wait for a cycle. Then add the LR so the cycling of that live rock isn't as harsh, (because of the bacteria on the dry rock that was added and cycled before) , and you will have successfully completed a "hard cycle" of the dry rock, and a "soft cycle" of the liverock. Soft cycles are used to preserve the life on the rock that you are paying for. In the case of dry rock it doesn't matter, so hard cycle away.

 

ohhhh, ok, so as long as the dry rock is clean of any old organic matter, then it will not harm anything or trigger a mini cycle. Ok, that's what had me confused. The live rock being used will never be out of water for more than 30 seconds. Out of tank into bucket, and bucket into new tank.

I think I'll still go with all good live rock, as getting it from people tearing down tanks is same price as the dry rock is sold for locally. ;D

 

so dry rock will eventually colonize and become live rock after being placed in a system? i'm a bit confused with dry rock.