Final Live rock formation. What do you guys think.

[alanwest09872]

Well my live rock has all finished curing. So I spent the last 2 hours setting up my rocks. Please let me know what you think. Its about 22lbs in a 14gallon biocube ( I know a bit much but I like the extra rock its very pleasing to the eyes.

 

If you look deadcenter you will see 2 clownfish in that hole. Theres basically a large network of holes back there for everyone to play in.

 

fyi. The clown came with the tank. So I have been doing tons of water changes to keep the ammonia and Nitrites down. So my little buddies dont die.

 

Full clean up crew will be added in about 6 days. Lights 14 days. Sump in about a week, Phosphate/carbon reactor in about a week better skimmer in about a week.

[ninjamyst]

I like the minimal look so IMO that's too much rock. But aquascape is very subjective so as long as you like it, that's all that matters =). If it was up to me though, I would either ditch the huge left rock in the back or break it up.

[plainrt]

Too much rock imo. Rock should never be close to glass or touch it. Makes very hard to keep clean

[Admonition]

Just remember, corals grow! Ultimately it's what you like, but don't forget that the more room your rocks fill up takes away room where corals could be.

[alanwest09872]

Oh I know. Im not going to go completely nuts on the corals. a few really nice corals a carpet anenome and a bleeding apple. Is all I really want. (plus the 2 clowns and a great cleanup crew)

[Allathlete5]

If you like it, than that's all that matters. I think you might run into some issues keeping the glass clean on the sides, though. Maybe you could pull the rock from the glass so you'll be able to keep it clean!

[alanwest09872]

I really cant. I need it to hold up the rocks. I tried all I could to stack them but there were stack proof lol. I have 2 big pieces and the rest are really small.

 

The one thing that I do like is the rocks create a cave that they can go back into if there stressed. and If I wanna see them I just look in from the sides.

[blazerino]

Way too much rock IMO. Personally I would use about 1/3 of that amount, but it would look so much better if you just cut it in half.

 

The tank will be more interesting visually if you have more open (negative) space and varied heights. There are some basic design principles that you can use such as the rule of thirds or golden ratio that will help a lot.

 

Here are some quick reads to give you an idea what I'm talking about:

 

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2217633

 

http://www.reefsmagazine.com/forum/reefs-magazine/100520-aesthetics-aquascaping.html

[DocReef]

Too much rock.

[ajmckay]

Oh I know. Im not going to go completely nuts on the corals. a few really nice corals a carpet anenome and a bleeding apple. Is all I really want. (plus the 2 clowns and a great cleanup crew)

 

I think you should take what has been said into consideration a bit more... I realize you know the best what looks good to you, but as mentioned having so much rock can cause issues... Plus you're the one who asked for thoughts... It's annoying when someone creates a thread asking for opinions and doesn't take any of it into consideration. That's cool you only want a few corals, but even those grow out (plus "a few" usually turns into a lot more than that after some time.

 

Issues I see with the rock formation as you have it (others have said most of this also):

- Not enough flow causes poop, excess food, and other forms of waste to accumulate. Even if the return line is pointed back there you'll certainly have some dead spots.

- What are you going to do if/when algae starts growing on the glass? Since you can't get a scraper or mag cleaner back there it'll grow all over and you may have to take all the rocks out to clean - huge pain.

- Coral placement locations looks okay, though you don't have much room for growth...

 

Additionally:

- Carpet anemone's get too large for this tank. Do you mean Stichodactyla tapetum (mini carpet anemone)?

- The capacity of your biological filtration is not determined solely by how much rock you have. It's primarily determined by the bio-load of the aquarium, with a certain amount of rock needed (the amount needed varies widely based on multiple factors - another topic).

- It's kind of strange to see the clowns hiding in the rock... Clowns will sometimes swim under something but the vast majority of the time - even when stressed - seems to be in the open water. Interesting is all.

- Maybe put the thermometer lower behind something so it isn't seen?

 

That said looks like a nice setup wish the best for your success and enjoyment of the hobby.

[alanwest09872]

I think you should take what has been said into consideration a bit more... I realize you know the best what looks good to you, but as mentioned having so much rock can cause issues... Plus you're the one who asked for thoughts... It's annoying when someone creates a thread asking for opinions and doesn't take any of it into consideration. That's cool you only want a few corals, but even those grow out (plus "a few" usually turns into a lot more than that after some time.

 

Issues I see with the rock formation as you have it (others have said most of this also):

- Not enough flow causes poop, excess food, and other forms of waste to accumulate. Even if the return line is pointed back there you'll certainly have some dead spots.

- What are you going to do if/when algae starts growing on the glass? Since you can't get a scraper or mag cleaner back there it'll grow all over and you may have to take all the rocks out to clean - huge pain.

- Coral placement locations looks okay, though you don't have much room for growth...

 

Additionally:

- Carpet anemone's get too large for this tank. Do you mean Stichodactyla tapetum (mini carpet anemone)?

- The capacity of your biological filtration is not determined solely by how much rock you have. It's primarily determined by the bio-load of the aquarium, with a certain amount of rock needed (the amount needed varies widely based on multiple factors - another topic).

- It's kind of strange to see the clowns hiding in the rock... Clowns will sometimes swim under something but the vast majority of the time - even when stressed - seems to be in the open water. Interesting is all.

- Maybe put the thermometer lower behind something so it isn't seen?

 

That said looks like a nice setup wish the best for your success and enjoyment of the hobby.

 

1. I did mean Mini carpet anemone thanks lol

2. I may end up removing the 2 rocks in the front and just keeping the rocks in the back for now. (I have to wait thou since my bristleworms are only in those 2 rocks currently

3. I shouldnt say hide. the swim up and around the rocks quite a bit. Sometimes they stay underneath for a few minutes but they always come right back out.

4. The thermometer isnt down lower right now because it wont stay stuck to the wall lol. Every Time I stick it to the side 20 mins later it just comes right off. I will be getting a new one very soon.

 

 

Thanks for the good info guys.

 

I have to ask how do I stack the Live Rock without leaning it on the glass for support. I worked on it for quite some time yesterday and couldnt get anything else to work?

[blazerino]

I have to ask how do I stack the Live Rock without leaning it on the glass for support. I worked on it for quite some time yesterday and couldnt get anything else to work?

 

I think you will have a much easier time with this if you have less rock in the tank so that you can focus more on positioning the rocks in the proper place with good support rather than just trying to fit it all in.

 

Is your rock sitting on the sand or on the bottom with the sand filled in around it? If it's sitting on the sand then you may have problems with collapses in the future, especially if you end up with any burrowing fish (some gobies, jawfish, ect).

 

I would recommend trying to make an L shape out of the rockwork (when looked at from above). Try removing the front left rock and the center rock over the "cave" and the top right rock. Then use some smaller rocks to bridge the gap in the back between the rockwork.

This will leave you with a high point in the back upper right third of the tank that slopes down and around to a low point in the front lower right third as well as some open sand in the front left.

 

Next time you do a water change take out the clowns and put them in a bucket with the water you just removed. Then you can really work on the scape without terrorizing your clownfish or even worse, crushing them.

 

Then again that's just my opinion, it's your tank!

[ajmckay]

I think you'll be much happier with the overall functionality of the tank with those large rocks taken out!

 

As for your dilemma with leaning the rock - you can either rotate the rocks differently so that they supports themselves, or you could modify the rock to stand how you want it. A lot of people take chisels and hack saws to their rock with great results.

 

To be honest I only recently started doing this... I used to think it was sacreligious or whatever to modify the "natural" rocks that I got. But after doing it I'm soooo glad I did!

 

Suggestions:

- If you want a rock to stand up, take it out and use a hack saw to make one side flat. Most likely a hack saw will grind right through the rock... If for some reason it doesn't you could pick up a carbide grit blade for a few $ at a hardware store like this designed for ceramic or masonry. http://www.amazon.com/Stanley-15-410-Rod-Saw-Carbide/dp/B000FK5DH0 You can do the same thing with an angle grinder and masonry disc if you have one.

- If you want to modify the rock to look more natural use a chisel and hammer (this helps avoid flat spots). If you can though, use the saw for the bottom because nobody will see it.

- If you just need to shave off small pieces to get the rocks to interlock better you can also use a dremel or angle grinder, or the hack saw if it's not too curvy.

- Have some epoxy putty on hand to mend anything if you accidentally take off too much or to help stabilize the rocks when stacking. Epoxy putty cures underwater.

- Try to move the sand and place the rock directly on the glass as much as possible. This helps stability. Sand can shift too easily over time so rocks that are sturdy could become less so over time. Not always an issue, but something that may help if you want a piece to be more stable and you don't think you'll be messing with it too much.

[alanwest09872]

This may not matter much lol There is a really good deal on found for a much larger tank stand and sump. So I may be upgrading to that shortly

[reefernanoman]

Too much rock imo. Rock should never be close to glass or touch it. Makes very hard to keep clean

I agree. Both of my tanks have enough room for me to clean the sides.

[LongDoggy]

I think it is possible to find a way to make a smaller tank look larger. Have a look at my tank build in my signature. I have the same 14g as you and have gone through many 'scapes. Overloaded with big rocks, minimalist, to my latest which is somewhere in the middle. I did take the hammer to my big rocks and so glad that I did. I created my 'scape by drilling holes through the rocks and mounting together with plastic hanger parts. I used this to create the towers as well as the arms of the towers. These created great areas to develop perspective, stock corals, and create shade to give the illusion it is a larger tank and also to stock corals who don't like my bright LEDs as much as say my clam or SPS.