Eco Rocks
 

I just bought the eco rocks from bulk reef supply and im wondering on if i should cure them for the recommended time or if i could rinse and scrub them and then just throw em in the display... my thinking on this is that they are just like decorations the have no living organisms on them and therefor aren't going to pollute the tank and so when i put them in the algae and growth of organisms will just grow rather than need time to go through a nitrogen cycle

This is not going to answer your question about curing it but if you dont mind how much did you order (lbs) and how many pieces did that work out to?, which type(s)? and how does it look ie. shelf's cave's and what not? Thanks.

Since eco-rocks are dried live rock and not man made they should be cured a couple days. Since they are a natural product you want to rinse them to get the dirt out from inside.

Any photos to share? I'm pretty interested in ordering these rocks myself.

As for your questions, rinse them well, then you can cure them/seed them however you please, in your tank if you'd like, or in a separate container. If you didn't buy too much you can put them in the back of your toilet to wash them for a week.

I'd be interested in seeing some pics as well...also was the duty only $10.00 as advertised? Thanks.

i will be posting some pics as soon as i can get my camera charged and i can put some photos onto my laptop

The $10 is just the brokerage/customs clearance fee that UPS charges. GST/PST/ and Duty if applicable, are charged on top of the brokerage fee AFAIK.

Also anxious to see some pics :)

to get the rocks shipped to my door they came up with a 73$ charge for duties and fees and i live in vernon BC so if that helps

Thank you.

here are some pics
http://s280.photobucket.com/albums/k...t=PICT0156.jpg
http://s280.photobucket.com/albums/k...t=PICT0155.jpg
http://s280.photobucket.com/albums/k...t=PICT0151.jpg
http://s280.photobucket.com/albums/k...t=PICT0150.jpg
http://s280.photobucket.com/albums/k...t=PICT0149.jpg

anyway if those pics don't work then you can see the rocks at photobucket.com/dobber_album

Hey Tom,

How much was your order in pounds of rock? I have been thinking on getting some of this myself so I wanted to know how much that duty/tax/etc. was spread over from a per pound perspective.

I'm not sure what the "recommended time" is...but it is possible that the rocks contain phosphates, nitrates, as well as other "stuff" since the rock was alive at some point, and is now dead. I'm going to be ordering some Eco Rox soon here, and I will be doing a full "cook" on them as well as seeding them with bacteria colonies, and ammonia.

Here are your pictures
http://i280.photobucket.com/albums/k...m/PICT0156.jpg

http://i280.photobucket.com/albums/k...m/PICT0155.jpg

http://i280.photobucket.com/albums/k...m/PICT0151.jpg

http://i280.photobucket.com/albums/k...m/PICT0150.jpg

http://i280.photobucket.com/albums/k...m/PICT0149.jpg

mseepman the order was for 100 pounds so it was 259$ plus 200 for shipping and other things then when it got to my door i was charged 73.50$ il say close to that give or take a few cents and yeah so all that and i can pm you if i find anything else

just wondering how is this rock eco friendly if its taken from the ocean and just dried ?

Unless i missed something Eco-friendly is about sustaining our ecosystem with a safe way of doing things. Is the rock put into the ocean for a length of time then removed ? cause that kinda looked like dead coral... hope it was dead before they pulled it out :(

i think its from reefs that are bleached and i don't think that they would be pulling live corals out of the ocean and then drying them if anything they would try and sell those corals

Yeah I believe the big point to these rocks is that they are free of pests and that they ship better than wet rock because of weight.

Rocks like these are lying all over the beach! They get wash up buy storms. There were pieces of "dead rock" on the beach in Maui big enough to aqua-scape one side of my aquarium. LOL I would stand there and imagine where I would mount corals if I could take it home.

thank you reefer rob be on our side lol

I bought 30 lbs. of this same rock about 3 months ago. I just gave them a scrub, rinsed them very well and added them straight into the tank on top of the 70 lbs of live rock that was already there. I tested for ammonia every day, and there was no spike at all. Phosphates and nitrates were also not detectable.

eco rox
 

Got mine today nice stuff, two kinds. Has anyone done a weight change from dried vs wet?

Very happy, good mix of pieces none really small, package well with almost no breakage!@!!!Yep 10 dollar brokerage, got two exactlly the same orders but paid two different amounts.

ya ok, at some point there gonna run out of "rock on the beach" which i might add is still alive acting as homes for different type of critters and crabs. At that point they will be pulling them out of somewhere.

Kyle

Its funny how we have to pay money for something mother nature makes for free. Talk about a no overhead buisness.

Wow, that's quite a bit. I was quoted $60 for shipping 50lbs. I'm surprised by the $73.50, what did they say that was for, it's definately higher than the 5% GST.

Myka, In response to your question, Tom ordered over $200 ($259) so he got wacked by all the brokerage fees. If you look at their site, they have samples and the sample without the break on brokerage is 6x the cost. Gotta keep it under $200 or these guys get too expensive to justify.

Ohhhhhhhhhhhh, I thought he made two separate orders. Bummer for him, that's an extra $50+. :(

When we ordered, did you just pay the $10, plus 5% GST at the door, or?

No...when we ordered I paid the $10, plus gst plus some duty. But that $10 would have been $40 - $45 if we went over $200

LOL, i guess rock " made in the states" isn't covered under NAFTA . I figured you'd get ding'd the taxes and brokerage, but kinda figured it would be duty free.
And yes, if you don't get the special $10 brokerage fee they've set up, UPS Ground is rediculus.
Sometimes the brokerage is so high that it ends up being the same price to ship it via one of their air freight services, which all INCLUDE the brokerage fee. Of course, you still pay taxes and any duties.

I thought "duties" was "GST"...?

I ordered 50 lb from them because of the shipping rules. I wanted 100 lb but it is cheaper to make 2 separate 50 lb orders than a single 100 lb order because of the brokerage fees.

Haha...it may feel like a "duty" but the Goods and Services tax is just one of the many ways they make us pay.:cry: