Curing LR

azreefgirl

azreefgirl

Member
Went to lfs to pick up LR. I had planned on getting some that was already cured. Of course the best looking stuff had already been picked over. The colorful coralline algae covered rock that caught my attention had just come in a day or two before and still needed to cure. Against my better judgement I decided to buy it anyway (I needed to put something in my tank--it wasn't very interesting with just water!). I'm not in too big of a hurry to put fish and coral in it, so I figured I can wait a few weeks for the LR to cure. I am slightly worried about my house smelling like dead

[hr]
, but fortunately I live in a part of the country where I can still keep my windows and doors open for a while if I need to.
Anyway, to the point of this whole thing. I decided to go ahead and start the aquascaping process and stack the LR in a somewhat aesthetically pleasing formation. Would everything cure faster if I just placed everything on the bottom of the tank to expose more surface area during the process, or does it really make a difference?

 
michaeltx

michaeltx

Moderator
Would everything cure faster if I just placed everything on the bottom of the tank to expose more surface area during the process, or does it really make a difference?
wont really amke a difference
as far as smell sometimes if there is a lot of dieoff then you may have a smellI have never really had a big problem with it though. just keep an eye on your readings the next few days and see what happens with the water parameters.
are you planning on a sunbstrate in the tank?
Mike
 
azreefgirl

azreefgirl

Member
Originally Posted by WHO DEY
u plan on putting a substrate in there??
Of course! I just wanted to get my LR initially situated before I added anything else.
 
zman1

zman1

Active Member
That's perfectly fine, you can cure your LR in the display tank since it looks like you just started and don't have any livestock.
Nice Rocks
 
michaeltx

michaeltx

Moderator
just remember if you bury any of the LR it will die so you might look and see if they have any dry base rock to put on the bottom of the tank where the sand is going to cover it.
Mike
 
azreefgirl

azreefgirl

Member
Originally Posted by MichaelTX
just remember if you bury any of the LR it will die so you might look and see if they have any dry base rock to put on the bottom of the tank where the sand is going to cover it.
Mike
Oooh, didn't think about that. Actually, you're the only person who has ever mentioned that to me. I love learning new things here! Thank you!
 
aw2x3

aw2x3

Active Member
In my opinion, it's best to go ahead and put the substrate in, while you're curing the rock.
If you have a friend that has a tank, get them to give you a few cup fulls of their sand...or, get some from the LFS (if you can). That already established sand will help populate the new sand/rock and will help cure the rock faster.
What I'd do is to go ahead and get the substrate (including the stuff from friend/LFS) and a few pieces of base rock. Remove the rock you're already put into the tank and add substrate, then base rock and restack your live rock on top of that.
The bacteria on the old/aquired substrate will help the cycle.
 
mr.bled

mr.bled

Member
how can you tell if the LR is cured or not, because I want to get more LR(cured) but I have inhabits in there already?
 
azreefgirl

azreefgirl

Member
Originally Posted by mr.bled
how can you tell if the LR is cured or not, because I want to get more LR(cured) but I have inhabits in there already?
Usually you can tell by the smell. If you're getting it from lfs, they should be able to sell you cured LR that you shouldn't have to do anything to. If you're ordering it online, even if it's cured, there's usually some die-off during shipping and the rock may still have to be cured.
I'm just relaying the info I've read, I can't speak from experience yet, so you may get a different answer from someone here who has vastly more experience than I do!
 
chuckcac

chuckcac

Member
AW2x3: What I'd do is to go ahead and get the substrate (including the stuff from friend/LFS) and a few pieces of base rock. Remove the rock you're already put into the tank and add substrate, then base rock and restack your live rock on top of that.[/QUOTE
it's probably a good idea NOT to put the base rock/LR on top of your substrate - burrowing -or- tunnelling critters may undermine the formation and cause a collape. this could kill your pets, cause an avalanche, and possibly scratch(acrylic) crack(glass) your tank!
I've read that some people use an eggcrate(available at most home goods stores) and place that directly on the glass. then stack your base rock & LR on top of that. This will both provide a stable foundation for your aquascape by preventing any undermining & lift your rock off the glass...
Click to expand...
 
azfishgal

azfishgal

Active Member
:cheer: You have LR in your tank! It's starting to take shape! I've also heard about the egg crate thing. Of course I have no personal experience so don't listen to me.
Can't wait to see more updates.
 
azreefgirl

azreefgirl

Member
chuckcac said:
AW2x3: What I'd do is to go ahead and get the substrate (including the stuff from friend/LFS) and a few pieces of base rock. Remove the rock you're already put into the tank and add substrate, then base rock and restack your live rock on top of that.[/QUOTE
it's probably a good idea NOT to put the base rock/LR on top of your substrate - burrowing -or- tunnelling critters may undermine the formation and cause a collape. this could kill your pets, cause an avalanche, and possibly scratch(acrylic) crack(glass) your tank!
I've read that some people use an eggcrate(available at most home goods stores) and place that directly on the glass. then stack your base rock & LR on top of that. This will both provide a stable foundation for your aquascape by preventing any undermining & lift your rock off the glass...

I, too, was told to put the LR in before the substrate for the same reason you listed.
Hey Chuck, did you get Mrs Claus something fabulous for Christmas yet?
Click to expand...
 
chuckcac

chuckcac

Member
AZReefGirl said:
Originally Posted by chuckcac
I, too, was told to put the LR in before the substrate for the same reason you listed.
Hey Chuck, did you get Mrs Claus something fabulous for Christmas yet?
I got her MANY fabulous things for Christmas
some sparkly, some usefull, and some fun stuff too!!!
Click to expand...
 
aw2x3

aw2x3

Active Member
Originally Posted by chuckcac
it's probably a good idea NOT to put the base rock/LR on top of your substrate - burrowing -or- tunnelling critters may undermine the formation and cause a collape. this could kill your pets, cause an avalanche, and possibly scratch(acrylic) crack(glass) your tank!
I've read that some people use an eggcrate(available at most home goods stores) and place that directly on the glass. then stack your base rock & LR on top of that. This will both provide a stable foundation for your aquascape by preventing any undermining & lift your rock off the glass...

As long as you press the rock down into the sand, you'll be fine. Or, you could go about it your way too...either way, it doesnt make much of a difference.
 
azreefgirl

azreefgirl

Member
Originally Posted by ROYAL GANG
i would put two more rocks in there JMO
:joy: ***)

I do want to add more. I just wasn't sure how much space those rocks would take up in my tank, and I didn't want to find out when I got home that I bought way too much rock. So...back to lfs I go!
 
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