Unexpected amount of live rock recommended

[rosealeedawn]

OK, well I have filled the tank with 90G from the outside hose and have added 45 cups of salt (1/2 cup per gallon). I've droped in a few powerheads to create some turbulence to help the salt dissolve. Protein skimmer is blubbling away nicely and the water temp is 80 degrees. The Emporer 400 seems a little noisy but will look into that more once I have the matrix to go in it and the biowheels.

I visited the LFS yesterday and was told that ideally I need 1lb of live rock per gallon of water. 90G tank + 10G sump = 100lb live rock = $500!! Is the LFS living up to it's notorious reputation and tryiong to squeeze as many notes from my pocket as is possible? I understand the benefits of live rock but 100Lbs seems a little (well, a lot) excessive.

My plan is to buy about 10lbs of live rock. I'll add that to some playsand substrate and the 100Lbs of dead coral that I have and then release a couple of Damsels and clownfish. Will then work on building the sump.

Would this be a workable FOWLR system? As mentioned I have an Emporer 400 and a bak-pak protein skimmer and the tank is 90G.

If it turns out that I need much more than 10lbs of the live rock, then I will probably do a fish only system WITHOUT live rock. I would then add the copper to help the health of the fish and never have any kind of invertebrate. Would be a shame because a few hermits and anenomes would be nice, but cest la vie.

 

[Henry22]

Yes, ideally you want about 1lb per gallon of water. I have 17.5 lbs in my twenty and I could use another 5-10lbs. Live rock is an expensive thing and I have already spent 115 on lr alone and want more but I think it is worth it.

 

[Yazoo1970]

It sounds to me like you are planing on a fish only tank in a 90 gallon tank 10 lbs of live rock will hardly be noticable and will do little to help filter the tank. What type of setup are you interested in having? The LFS store is right about a 100 lbs of live rock if you want something other than an all fish tank. Theres nothing wrong at all with an all fish tank but it just depends on your taste. But if you are looking for help with the filtering process you will probbly end up with 100 lbs of live rock. I have a 55 gallon tank with about 70 lbs of live rock and 60lbs of live sand so i would imagine 100 lbs would be about right for a 90 gallon. Unfortunatly saltwater is not cheap at all!

 

[supahtim]

the problem with copper is that even some fish cannot tolerate it.

what you could do to solve this expensive live rock problem, is buy a little bit of live rock and mostly base rock and eventually your base rock will become live.

the bak-pac skimmer is a little under-rated for a 90g. also, the media and bio-wheel in your emporer filter will eventually become nitrate factories.

you're lucky to be only spending $500 on 100lbs of live rock. it cost me $300 for a 30lbs peice of live rock.

 

[S.Reef]

Hmm...I have seen many fish only aquariums that didnt have live rock and were perfectly healthy. With that being said live rock is probably one of the best things for fish. It gives them a natural place to hide, has many beneficial algaes and other organisms fish can browse on, and it is an excellent biological filter.
I have a 110gallon FOWLR and there is only about 60-70lbs of live rock. I also purchased it in stages.

You have a few choices, forgo the rock, clownfish and damsels dont need it...but if you get tangs and angels they really should have some. Buy just a little bit, or in stages or just bite your tongue and go for it all in one shot...the last choice being the case liveaquaria.com has an excellent price on fiji live rock.

 

[wayne]

Not having live rock really limits you as you invariably have crappy diversity which might sound a minor problem. I would try to get at least 25% of my hundred pounds as live.

Yes live rock is expensive, I'd still buy as much as I could. The startup costs fpr this hobby are not cheap an to some extent you have to live with that. Money you pay upfront rewards you later when you keep all your fish alive. I am not a big fan of fish only setups you descibe - all tanks were like that before live rock, and the key feature was everything died after 3 or 6 months. That's the honest truth - for the one person who made it work , a hundred didn't.

See that nice chevron tank in your sig? No live rock = no fish like that. They need the live material to feed on. I think my salt tank is as easy to keep as my discus, if not easier, and a key feature of that setup is my LR, even more important than the skimmer

 

[SALTY WATERS]

I would first invest some more time in reaserching and learning about the SW hobby before you go any further with this! This is a very expensive hobby to start-up and it is one you should not cut corners on to try to save $ today... it will come back to haunt you later. Really think about what you want in the long term and have patience, it will pay off down the road. Even if you only want fish I would definitly spend the $ on LR you will be happy you did and so will your fish!

PS. I wouldn't be using Copper as a preventative suppliment, as it is a medication and it is not exactly health for the fish!