Questions on Sources of Live Rock??

[salty in training]

I am picking up an Oceanic 175 bowfront with all the goodies to run it this weekend. I have read many books and am looking forward to getting started.
I am planning to have fish and invertes over time.
The questions I have are.
I want to order live rock and am looking for a good source. I am not sure if the moderators allow references.
1) The question as to cured or uncured. I don't mind waiting for the curing process but I am wondering about the smell. Will my wife move out of the house with a 175 gallon tank full of uncured rock? Would any of you recommend Cured or Uncured and what is your reasoning?
I realize that the marine life on uncured is pretty cool.
2) Quantities of live rock?
For a 175 gallon I am accepting any recommendaions on quantity of rock to order. What would be a good amount of base rock to order and what would be a good amount of reef rock? Since this will be my first tank I am clueless as to how much I should order on my first order.
3) Good Sorces for Cured and Uncured Live Rock.
Any great experiences with these topics would be appreciated.
Thanks

 

[ak_reefer]

Well to answer question number one. I would go with cured rock it is just a lot easier to deal with. But if you go for uncured rock I would not cure it in your main tank. Cure it in some Rubbermaid totes. It's a lot of work and for a first timer I would not recommend it. IMO
For question number two 1/2 to 1lb of LR to every gallon of your tank also you may also want to set up a 4 inch sand bed (DSB). And for question number 3: I Have heard a lot of good things about the LR from hear SWF.com and the price is great. HTH Oh yeah welcome aboard there are alot of very knowledgable people on this board who will give you lots of good advise.

 

[goofyreefer]

Flying Fish Express has Fiji cured LR for $99 a box (45lbs.) With 2nd day shipping it works out to be $3.43 a lb shipped. Check it out if your interested.

 

[kung fu]

You can also get 90lbs. of Fiji LR from fishsupply.com for ~$282.00 (about $3.13 per pound).
They have other size/quantities as well but the 90lber is the one I'm familiar with (ordered it about 6 weeks ago myself).
Peace...and luck with that 175!

 

[jimi]

Go with at least half live rock from wwwGulf-View.com you will not be disappointed. It is the best I have ever seen. The smell wont be too bad, just do partial water changes thoughout the curing process.

 

[bj]

I'll second "jimi"'s response, I have ordered twice from GulfView, as well as a few other places and Gulfview has great rock, especially their Premium Deco rock @ $5.99/lb. I would do at least 1/2 with that rock and buy some cheaper stuff elsewhere.

 

[nacl-h2o]

I will have to agree Gulf-view's deco and coral cluster LR is the best I've ever purchesed.

 

[jakob4001]

1-2 lbs per gallon & a DSB; get some cheap base rock; your premium LR shuld evenetually spread to base rock depending on lighting & chemicals you add; $99 for 45 lbs seems to be about average good price; w/ LFS you can pick exactly what you want & get it home quickly allowing for less die off; ordering online you get more for the $$$ DEPENDING ON S&H; few retailers may offer a set rate if you are lucky; best to get as much LR up front as possible; heavy skimming and water changes may be needed for first week or so though; odor may be noticable though

 

[blackdog]

I'm new, so I'm not sure if this would be a good way to do things -- maybe one of the sharks can comment -- but I'd be tempted next time around to do my rock in two stages when I first start.
I got all my rock from Gulf-View, which I highly recommend, but I think more died off of my nice deco rock than if I had some bacteria already established in the tank. I'm thinking it might make sense to cycle the tank with some uncured base rock, then add a second batch of rock using some high-quality aquacultured stuff. You'd have to wait out a second ammonia spike, so your startup period is going to be longer. However, the ammonia levels won't get as high, so your deco rock won't take such a pounding.
Again, this is not advice, but a pretty uninformed hypothesis. Anyone care to comment?

 

[fshhub]

if you MO it, you will have plenty of die off to start your cycle,a nd it would be shorter in the long run, adn you will have die off, but most of it will regrow, no matter where you order from i belive this to be a fact, and you will still get plenty of life
with MO, the only thing i do not like is that, as mentioned, the really get you with the shipping, so watch out for them(some places do not openly post the shipping), and another thing, you can choose the exact pieces you want size and shape from the lfs, so if you MO, also look for a place that offers you your choice of sizes, other wise you may end up with alot of itty bitty pieces
i myself would have 250 to 300 lbs, and you can use base rock for half if you want, i wouldn't but that is only my preference, but if that is what you do, i would get tufa rock(if you can find it) it is reef rock(just not live, from under the reef),and can be found at many landscaping suppliers for much less than lr(about 1$/lb), but if oyou do substitute, make sure that what you get is reef safe, stores will sell you anything, not knowingly often, like lava rock adn it is not always the best thing to be adding to an aquarium(sw anyway), even though many believe it is safe
i have heard of alot of people getting good rock from here, the prices are good, but i will not refer you elsewhere(personally)
and i definitely agree, you should consider a dsb too(deepsand bed, 4 to 6 inches of sand not coral pr shells)
lastly, WELCOME ABOARD, and good luck