Rocking this weekend...

[hunggi74]

Hi everyone. I'm thinking of rearranging the rockscape in the DT this weekend. 57gallon tank with half Marco 1/4 Fiji 1/4 Bali rock. Over 60lbs. in the DT and I was wondering if I could put 1/3 of the rock in the sump as long as I have the room? Filtration is filtration and it shouldn't matter whether the rock is in the DT or sump, correct? Also, most of the Marco pieces are big chunks 10-15lbs. Can I take a hammer to these to break them up? Would the smaller pieces mean more surface area for filtration? Do I place the rock in a heated tub of saltwater with a powerhead going while I rework the scape? I'm not going to be killing anything, starting another cycle am I? Thanks all!

[mrhasan]

You can have live rock in DT or the sump. Some people use less rocks in DT (for negative and open spaces) and put the rest in the sump; no difference And you can break them into smaller chucks for greater surface area. You can place the live rock in any tub with saltwater, shouldn't be any problem. Bacteria are not as finicky as fishes/corals; they are bacterias after all :P Just make sure the salinity is above 1.018.

Just a word of caution (which you might already know), those LR are phosphate factories

[fishytime]

your right, it doesnt matter if the rock is in the sump or display, it filters just the same......anytime live rock is exposed to the air, it will cause die-off of the bacteria....its the main reason a tank cycles when you bring your rock home....you can minimize this by keeping the rock in saltwater while you are working on the tank, but there will be a cycle of some sort....might be small and barely noticeable, might be larger and troublesome......kinda the risk you take when you mess with the tank....just try not to doddle too much and get er done as quick as you can