Question about this rock.. *PIC*

[Tomorleans]

First, my setup. I have a 30 gal long reef tank. The tank hasn't yet been through it's first cycle. I have two peices of Fiji LR in the tank and I was curious if it was ok to use these three peices of rock that my buddy had in his fresh water tank?

http://uploader.ws/upload/200705/DSC00771.jpg

[spleify]

Your link doesnt work, sorry.

[Shagsbeard]

There's no reason to even consider using rocks from a fresh water system. Buy some cheap base rock if you want to get more rock in your system. Lava rocks tend to leach metals into your tank which is fine for freshwater... they're used to it. Inverts and reef fish aren't. It will kill them.

I can't imagine anything from a freshwater system that I'd stick in my saltwater aquarium.

Oh... your link doesn't work.

[Tomorleans]

crap.. let me try and get another link for you. I was told this rock was meant for a saltwater tank. He used it for his fresh water tank.. brb

[Tomorleans]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9867211#post9867211 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Tomorleans
crap.. let me try and get another link for you. I was told this rock was meant for a saltwater tank. He used it for his fresh water tank.. brb

This is the rock I was thinking of using as filler.. http://i188.photobucket.com/albums/z96/Tomorleans/DSC00771.jpg

[Tomorleans]

anybody? :confused:

[snulma1]

if its been in his tank, then I wouldn't use it. If its fresh and clean, I'm not positive, but I doubt there would be a problem

[Tomorleans]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9868007#post9868007 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by snulma1
If its fresh and clean, I'm not positive, but I doubt there would be a problem

That's what I was thinking.. It was only in his tank for about one month. Maybe boil the rock before putting it in the tank? I only want to use the rock to take the place of a couple of pieces of live rock.

[onecrzyboi4u]

personally i wouldn't risk the chance with that rock.. i would go buy base rock as mention above ^^^^ you can get baserock 2bucks a pound.. then buy very little live rock to seed the base rock then your set..

[Tomorleans]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9868103#post9868103 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by onecrzyboi4u
personally i wouldn't risk the chance with that rock.. i would go buy base rock as mention above ^^^^ you can get baserock 2bucks a pound.. then buy very little live rock to seed the base rock then your set..

what chances would i be taking with this rock?

[onecrzyboi4u]

well.. the rock appears to be limestone ( i thinks this is wrong) the rock thats in the ocean is different.. it has many upsides to your tank.. helps your biological filtration if giving enough live rock for your tank. but you can use it for yours.. your choice...just me personally i wouldn't do it..

[danch]

Anything that colonized it in fresh water is unlikely to live in salt water.

Limestone isn't really a problem for salt water tanks, some varieties might not be as porous as you'd like (which would help with filtration), but I believe some of the aquacultured live rock starts as quarried limestone.

The only 'problem' from rock itself would be leaching of metals, as mentioned above. Limestone is actually not that good for most freshwater setups (barring some cichlid habitats), because it will increase the pH and harden the water.

[Tomorleans]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9869176#post9869176 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by danch
Anything that colonized it in fresh water is unlikely to live in salt water.

Limestone isn't really a problem for salt water tanks, some varieties might not be as porous as you'd like (which would help with filtration), but I believe some of the aquacultured live rock starts as quarried limestone.

The only 'problem' from rock itself would be leaching of metals, as mentioned above. Limestone is actually not that good for most freshwater setups (barring some cichlid habitats), because it will increase the pH and harden the water.

thanks! this is the answer I was looking for.

[tattooreef]

personaly i wouldnt use that particular rock for two reasons first being that it does look like limestone and thats definately not good in a reef. secondly if it has been in a freshwater system even for just a month there is no telling what kind of chemicals or whatever else your friend added to the system that have leeched into the rock that could be detrimental to your reef. personaly i see no problem with NEW lace rock in a reef as it makes great pieces for caverns or overhangs, but it must be new. i personaly have about 25lbs of lace in the reef at my work and it has been there for 5 years and now is some of the most colorful rock in the tank.

[danch]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9870082#post9870082 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by tattooreef
personaly i wouldnt use that particular rock for two reasons first being that it does look like limestone and thats definately not good in a reef.

Why not?

[tattooreef]

to answer danch limestone will slowly break down and leech into the water constantly changing the ph also hardening the water to the point where inverts cannot live and function therefor causing a build up of waste, ditritus and algaes wich will eventualy crash the tank. another reason is that the rock is so dense that even if coraline was to grow on it it would be way to dense to perform any significant filtration , and with the mass and weight of that rock u could double or triple the amount of lr or br wiich would be beneficial to the tank instead of having those big bulky rocks taking up useless space

[papagimp]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9876447#post9876447 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by tattooreef
to answer danch limestone will slowly break down and leech into the water

correct me if I"m wrong here, but doesn't aragonite based rock do the same thing? I was under the impression that limestone and aragonite are extremely similar in make up, both calcium based rock. Only difference is where they are mined. One from the ocean, the other as bedrock. But all that aside, I have lot's of limestone in my tanks, havn't had a problem yet because if it. In fact, my PH usually stays low 7.8 constantly. Been running for almost 2 years and after adding the limestone rock, hasn't changed to PH one bit. (been almost a year with the limestone.)

[tattooreef]

well t answer papagimp 7.8 is extremely low for ph in a reef tank 8.2 is optimum for corals and inverts 7.8 is ideal ph for freshwater. there are some chemical similarities between the 2 but there are alot of differences between the two also. and i can gaurentee u that if u took that limestone out and bumped your ph up to 8.2 you would notice a huge difference in polyp extension and coral growth and reproductrion from your corals

[papagimp]

7.8 is not ideal for freshwater by the way. It all depend on livestock, my last freshwater was a Discus tank, ideal there was 6.0. My current guppy tank does best at 7.0. Alot more variables as far as PH is concerned when it comes to freshwater tanks. Reef tanks are much easier that way, just aim for 8.3 across the board.

As for polyps extention, a lack of PE has never been an issue, growth rates and coloration are excellent in my tank. Just low PH that all, 7.8 is the minimum recommended PH I see for reeftanks, so it's far from optimal, but works fine if stable.

Also, I've started using B-Ionic recently, this did cause my PH to rise to more normal levels, hasn't made a difference in PE yet. I do have multiple setups throughout my house, and not all tanks are kept equal as far as water quality and parameters are concerned. My good looking specimens in my 7.8 tank look just as good when kept under different parameters.

But I do see what your saying and it's the same advice I would have stuck up for somebody else :D

Limestone: I may have been a tad fortunate that my limestone is actual coral bedrock from florida. Plenty of fossilized shells and whatnot in it, looks fabulous. But I do have some other limestone pieces as well. I also use Pavestone Pulverized Limestone as a substrate in two of my tanks, no problems rising there either, in fact, I'm quite happy with the results I'm getting with it.

[saltpeter]

Looks like a chicken to me,is your tank a crockpot? lol.

[Reefmack]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9877523#post9877523 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by saltpeter
Looks like a chicken to me,is your tank a crockpot? lol.

Off topic, but my goodness - now that I look at the picture again it does indeed look a lot like a raw chicken. Sitting here laughing! :D

[seapug]

Live Rock IS limestone and it's fine to use. In fact, all the base rock in reef aquarium at Atlantis Marine World in Long Island is mined limestone from Minnesota or something like that. Despite this, I wouldn't recommend using THIS rock because it's been in a FW tank. Any medications or chemicals used in the FW tank could be deep inside the rock and slowly leach out into your water.

[greenbean36191]

Calcite (the main component of limestone) and aragonite are both calcium carbonate, just different crystal structures. Both forms are extremely common in marine environments and many animals use both forms (oysters for example). Calcite is less soluble than aragonite in seawater. Using limestone shouldn't cause you any more concern for water quality than having corals, snails, and sand in the tank.

That said, I wouldn't use rocks that were kept in a FW tank out of fear of medications that might have been used. Base rock is cheap, livestock isn't.

[drummereef]

I agree. Copper would be the area of concern for me. ;)

[scengineer]

If it was a planted tank he could have been keeping very high phosphate and nitrate levels too.

..... copper treatments are the biggest worry.