Pet Forum / Aquaria / Marine Reef / August 2006

I've bought livestock from them and been satisfied. Keep in mind that their live
rock is uncured, which means that you will not only be cycling your tank; you
will be curing the rock as well. Emmens offers this advice -
"Put it into a tank with a filter after cleaning off any dead or decaying stuff,
perhaps any large sponges, but no more. Shake out and search out small crabs and
mantis shrimps. [get rid of them] Circulate the water briskly for a week or two
with frequent partial water changes until no smell, clouding, or dying off
occurs. Use a low light level, say around 10,000 lux."

You can expect the stuff to stink up your house for a while; Fenner states that
curing rock in your house may be an experience that you will not easily forget.
Emmens implies that this curing should be done somewhere other than your main tank.

Emmens suggests buying only 1/4 to 1/3 your rock at one time, adding each batch
after the preceding batch has completely cured. The general idea is to put in
the first batch of cured rock and wait on the nitrite levels to peak. When they
start to fall, add the next batch of cured rock. That would be difficult for
you, since F&S ships 30 pounds or so at a time. Perhaps you could build your
reef in two stages.

I've been thinking of buying some Caribbean rock from F&S and curing it in my
quarantine tank. You can bet your butt that I will clear this with my wife
before placing the order. :-) I can buy cured live rock of indeterminant origin
from my favorite LFS, but I've not been entirely happy with the quality and
quantity of hitchhikers; that's why I'm leaning towards mail order.

You might also be interested in this special
http://www.marinedepotlive.com/fiji-premium-quality-un-cured-live-rock-.html
Note that the price includes shipping, which makes it a better deal than F&S.

George Patterson
     Coffee is only a way of stealing time that should by rights belong to
     your slightly older self.