Curing live rock...

[m3ntal]

This may be a stupid question but....

I have a 55 gallon tank and I'm curing 88lbs of fiji kaleni live rock in it right now.

While curing does it need the 12-14 hours of lighting a day? Or am i just wasting energy?

My logic is that it needs light so all the organisms and what not can live.:confused:

[tokitay]

I'd go ahead and start on a normal photo cycle. You are right. It will help with any organisms that will benefit from light.

Here's a good thread on live rock:http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=165224

[Red Serpent]

Some use light and some do not. I never had a light on any of the LR that I have cured and it always has come out fine. No light or little will slow down problem algea growth if it is present. Most micro life that survives curing should be fine with out light. Just keep up on water changes, tests and heating and every thing should come out ok. This is one of those time to try it your way and in the furture try it some else way.

[m3ntal]

Thanks for the link. It cleared up a ton of things.

[stingers81]

a lot of people wish they have cured their LR in darkness, high photoperiod during ammonia and nitrite spike will lead to higher cyano, hair algae problems
keep the lights as low as possible for the first month and then increase the lights

[coralights]

live rock is just like live fish ... treat the tank's lighting, water etc as you would any aquarium ..... the main difference is that your starting out with rock that is dying as opposed to fish that are alive ..... to keep it alive in essence you need to keep the water quality as high as you would to keep fish alive .... even as the rock is deteriating and in effect killing itself!!...... thus constant monitoring and klots of water changes ..... in lieu of having an extra large established tank that can absorb the organics

[PatMayo]

I dont agree. I think the rock will cure just fine without light of anytype. All you do is increase the chance for large algea outbreaks.

I would light the tank only when I got fish in there and only when I want to look at them. Fish don't need light either, but corals do.

Regards,

Pat

[coralights]

Sorry pat I have to respectfully disagree .... the word curing is a misnomer for starters ... we're talking about live rock not animal hides ..... then again I'll agree that eventually "curing" the live rock will in fact succeed

if saving money on lights & water changes is the goal ..... then fine ..... but live rock is as alive as any fish ..... only it contains zillions of organisms ... you wouldn't allow a dead fish to remain in a tank with a live one ....

So what are we trying to accomplish here? ...... letting the rock die off until the nitrite is dealth with by a new population of the same bacteria your allowing to "cure"? Some what self-defeating isn't it?

The water should be treated as if a live fish were in it imo ..... or follow the fallacy of conventional wisdom and wait until it happens.