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Shakedown
03/29/2013, 09:50 AM
I'm setting up my very first marine aquarium and am now ready to purchase about 20kg of live rock :)
I found a place online (http://rockncritters.co.uk/) that is much cheaper and better stocked than my LFS however it comes by next day delivery.

I called them and they ship the rock in newspaper to keep it damp and told me that up to three days in transit is fine, but I'm dubious.
Can anyone advise me as to whether this is worth the risk?

Thanks!

surgy
03/30/2013, 09:18 AM
sounds weird to me. my live rock came in a styrofoam ice chest..... seams liek the paper would stick.... not to mention the ink cant be good for pods

bnumair
03/30/2013, 10:01 AM
its common practice for vendors to ship rock with wet news paper. 3 days is also fine with die offs. granted 1 day wil have less 2 a bit more and 3 chances are die off will be higher.
but either way once in correct water parameters it will cure and bacteria will grow over time. no need to worry.

Reefmedic79
03/30/2013, 10:03 AM
When I worked in a LFS all our LR came wrapped in wet newspaper. There is a lot of die off, but many things did survive.

If you get a good price then I would say it's worth it. You can rinse the rock really well in a bucket of fresh saltwater and take a stiff brush to them to remove most of the decaying sponges and the like, or you can just put them right in your tank and let the decay do it's part to contribute to the cycle. FYI, doing the later can result in a smelly tank for a week or so.

powdertang05
03/30/2013, 07:48 PM
Ive received it two ways. 1 in a styro foam tumb with rock in big bags with little water. 2. box with a big bag and rocks covered in news paper. Both worked out well. Have fun curing the rock. Its going to smell!!!

lyal
03/31/2013, 01:22 AM
Hadn't seen newspaper until I moved to California. Back in Vancouver most shipping seemed to be done w/wrapped bags.

But both shipments here have come fully wrapped. Cycling was fine, and LOTS of hitchhikers that survived.