How much live rock??

I've heard a rule of thumb of 1kg per 10L.
Very much a thumb suck - har har:lol:, would depend on quality of rock, stocking density etc.
 
I've heard a rule of thumb of 1kg per 10L.
Very much a thumb suck - har har:lol:, would depend on quality of rock, stocking density etc.


So I guess I'm almost spot on cos I added about 55kgs last night to the 15kgs I had... Sitting at 75kgs now including the LR that's in my sump.
?????
 
obviously its a lot dependable on the density. Denser rocks will be smaller, giving more swimming space. Very hollow and porous rock will be bigger, resulting in less swimming space.

But the more the better, but good swimming space must be open.
 
I still don't get the 1kg per 10L rule of thumb.

I have 370 liters of water tank, and about 230 Litre DT

That would mean that I need about 23 KG's of rock in my DT.

If I work according to that rule of thumb, my fish will have hardly any swimming room.

"Yes but it is used as filtration etc etc. etc..."

That is what the DSB and or Purigen is for.

As far as I am concerned, you need enough rock for your scaping and to to make your fish feel secure. That's it.

I may be wrong.
 
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Oh alright ... Asked cos I was afraid that by doing that I killed the flow over DSB where I placed those few rocks. . .
Also the smaller pieces I had I filled up in my filter camber of the sump with some filter floss on the top , will I need to remove all those rocks to rinse them out every now and then?
 
The rock I used were all VERY lite and porous... There's still a lot of swimming space for when I add fish also. . Is it fine having a little bit of rocks on the dsb ?

Oh alright ... Asked cos I was afraid that by doing that I killed the flow over DSB where I placed those few rocks. . .
Also the smaller pieces I had I filled up in my filter camber of the sump with some filter floss on the top , will I need to remove all those rocks to rinse them out every now and then?


mmmm If you could suspend the LR over the DSB will be better .... If it sits on the DSB it will create dead spots and that part of the DSB will not work .... Use a bit of egg crate and you will be sorted ....
 
Hi Guys and Gals,
Here is my 2 cents worth;
Over the last three months I have closely worked with a Marine Biologist and during this time I at times felt like such an idiot as I thought I have read so much and that I knew quite a bit....needless to say UHU, not nearly enough to keep my own when chatting to him.
Now, his take on Live Rock is that here in SA there is a HUGE misconception amongst many hobbyists and "specialists" in that most people believe rock with coreline on it is the best. He showed me umpteen times that coraline is just ONE type of algae and that it is not the begin all and end all to have a scape with tons of rock with just coreline on it.
He explained further that for Live Rock to be effective in any Marine tank it needs to have as much life forms on it as possible. What is the purpose of Live Rock in your tank? Just as a pleasing visual effect or do you want more? What does Live Rock do in nature? Are the hobbyist not trying to mimic nature as far as possible in his / her tank? Was his questions.
In going with that his opinion is that Live Rock in nature filters the water, IF, it has various Life Forms on it! (Makes sense doesn't it?) On any reef / Live rock in the sea there are numerous little critters all doing and having their own little jobs and niches. All of them breaking down and adding to the biological processes needed to keep the system healthy. Thus, with adding Live Rock with just one form of life on it to any system doesn't add much value in biological terms, you need to find rock with various forms of life on it to really be beneficial to a tank.
As far as a DSB goes; are there not bacteria that lives on the rock which will also benefit the DSB? Are sand beds completely void of rocks in nature?
In walking and talking with him I assure you I have seen plenty of tanks that he services and maintains and all of them are as individual as their owners.
Yes there are a few which have the purple-pink coreline all over it, but then they also have other things growing in there as well.
In my opinion from spending time with him, the question each and every one should ask is how many different life forms can I see on my Rock and then take it from there.
Can you see the following:
Copopods, Tube Worms, various forms of Chaulerpa, Sponges, Algae, Shrimps, Crabs, Corals, Snails, Anemones, Tunikets, Pollyps, etc, etc? Are these life forms growing and healthy? If you can see these small things in your tank doing well, then definitely your tank should be healthy and surely you should be well on your way.
When diving you will definitely notice that the ocean doesn't have just a purple-pink tint, it is alive with so much more and funnily enough, the purple-pink is by far outshone by greens, browns, and other colours.
SELA, use it don't use it, up to you and your common sense. LOL, just joking!
 
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