buying all live rock vs base rock? Also sump question

[Hightower]

I have had some experience with saltwater years ago, but things have changed. In particular live rock.

My question is this since there seems to be a rule of 1-1.5lbsLR/Gal and that gets bloody expensive.

If you start a new tank that obviously needs to be cycled, but base rock eventually becomes live rock, would it not be more cost effective to do a 50/50 or even a little live rock with live sand and and the rest base rock so that it becomes seeded?

What would be the disadvantages to doing it this way.

I see that the hobby is not cheap, and would like to make costs to have the most value without comprimising quality of life for a reef.

2nd question: I am reading everywhere that there is sump setups but they all have refugiums. Is a refugium absolutly necessary. Can you have a healthy aquarium without it?

Thanks for your time in advance.

[EmilyB]

Is a refugium absolutly necessary.

Absolutely not. It is another means of nutrient export that may or may not be necessary in your particular system. I have only ever used good skimming and water changes. I can't seem to grow anything green as a result.

[snaggle]

I started my tank with out the 1.5-2 lbs of LR per gallon and the only problem I have is having to clean the glass every day . I have added about 30 lbs to my 77 and 10 lbs of lava and tufa rock and I just keep adding more as I get it. I am setting a 55 that will be on the same sump I will be using all base rock on that tank to same money and stress on my system. I personaly use cycle when I set up my tanks and regular water changes. my main tank is now covered in coraline, pods and worms. you cant even see the lava rock through the coraling alge on most of the then . till I reaquasceped . I dont think you need to go 100% live rock but if you have the money go for it. and also keep an out for people selling off what they have.

hope I didnt ramble too much
Brad

[AJ_77]

Save up for as much live rock as you can afford (one box, for example). Use it to cycle your new tank, and cure the rock at the same time. After your tank is established -a few months- add as many nice pieces of cured LR as you budget for, slowly making your display into what you want.

Your tastes will change with time, and as you learn more about the needs of your own system, you will be able to hand-pick pieces according to these influences. It might be a year before you sit back and are satisfied with what you've created. Have fun, take it slow!

[Richer]

I started my 30 gallon tank off with about 30 lbs of baserock and added about 10 lbs of LR. Overtime, things changed, and I drilled the tank and added a sump/refugium to the whole system. The baserock is starting to look more and more like LR, and my system has been quite successful for a newbie like me . All of my fish are doing great, and my corals are all growing and doing quite well.

A refugium isn't needed on a tank. Quite a few people run very successful tanks without them. However, in my case, I wanted one for extra nutrient export via growing macro algae in my refugium because I felt that my skimmer wasn't cutting it. I also assume that the extra rock I put in there also helps with additional filtration in my tank and allows me to keep less rock in the main display area... which allows for my swimming room and more room for coral growth.

-Rich

[albert_dao]

Personally, I'm not a big fan of baserock. The stuff sold in stores is usually dense and uninteresting in shape. Volume-wise, you're not looking at a DRASTIC diffrence between $2.99/lb boulder base rock and $5.99/lb Fijiian liverock. I just can't justify the purchase of unattractive rock.

If we're talking tufa, that's a different story. While I'm not a big fan of it, I can think of several people I know who have used it as a cheap alternative to stacking pounds and pounds of liverock on the bottom of their tanks.

I guess in the end, it's up to you to decide what you want to do. If you're more for the open look, then go for the liverock. If you prefer the "wall" look, tufa or some other calcerous baserock is a cheap alternative.

[SeaHorse_Fanatic]

I personally don't like base rock either because most of the stuff LFS sell are really dense (ie. heavy) so although you save $ per lb, you might not save much by volume. Also, good LR is usually light because its porous, which increases their usefulness as biological filters. If the base rock is really dense, not much space for the good bacteria to grow, is there. I would buy what LR I could afford & leave space to add some nice pieces later since you'll most likely find some beautiful pieces available when people get out of the hobby or downsize.

My macroalgae grow inside my display tanks, not inside a refugium. The macro are great for nutrient export & I can sell or trade the excess halimenia/prolifera/other caulerpa; whereas, I have trouble selling the brown goop from a protein skimmer collection cup It also provides my pods & mysis shrimp lots of places to hide, eat & breed. Like Albert previously mentioned, it will depend on what you envision for your tank. If you're going for SPS or other corals that require pristine water conditions, then you might be better off investing in the best protein skimmer you can afford. If you resist the temptation to put in a lot of fish into a reef setup, your nutrient problems will be greatly limited. If you have the lighting for it, clams are also great biological filters. JME.

Anthony