Stupid question

Whats the difference between base rock and LR? I know the price is a huge difference but will base rock do the same things as LR?

 

base rock is bare dead rock

live rock has living organisms on it such as coraline and fan worms etc which u need as a biological filter for your fish tank

 

Base is dead and dry, live is alive and wet with coralline and hitchhikers!

I just added 50 pounds of base!

 

Base rock will eventually become live rock

What makes rock "live" is the bacteria etc. thats growing on it. Either way, base rock will become what you buy as "live rock," just takes a little more time. On the bright side with base rock you know exactly what your putting into you tank .

 

what they said

 

Ditto on the previous 2 post! Base rock will become alive with a little patience. If you have an established tank, LR is a big waste of money. Throw some base rock in there and after 6 mos. you won't know the difference, other than in your bank accout! If you are starting a new tank, you can still use base rock, however you decide to cycle (dead shrimp, damsel, etc.) will provide the bacteria for the rock to become alive.
Base rock is the only way to go IMO, no parasites!
By the way, there are no stupid questions in SW!!! (Unless you ask if Clorox is reef safe)

 

Or if the death star is....... lol, marty's avatar.......

 

haha yeah was just curious if there was something that would keep base rock from becoming live rock, IE a diff type of rock that wasnt capable of sustaining life or something stupid i have an established 20g so i was thinking of taking some of that water/rock and tossing it in a rubbermaid container with 45lbs of base rock to cure for my new tank for a month or so, cheapest LR i can get in town from the LFS is about $9 a lbs so when i found base rock for 3.85 a lbs after shipping i was thinking of ordreing that instead, any other suggestions on this or good sites to buy at better prices?

 

Base rock would stay as base rock if you never placed it in your tank. Hahahaha

 

I recently bought Caribsea South Seas Base Rock 40 lb. and it was great quality rock, most of the pieces were pretty light in comparison to size so you end up getting more rock per dollar spent. Full of holes and some great shapes, I personally would recommend it. As far as where to buy it from? I'd say shop around, I've seen the box on ebay a few times for pretty good prices so I'd start there. I soaked the rock in some baking soda/RO water before I added to my tank also, the rocks are covered in a powdery coating that I wanted to get rid of. There are different types of base rocks out there, but as I said I just bought this 40 lb box about 2 weeks ago and it really was great quality stuff!