20 Long nano reef build with life rock

[znorris502]

I am starting a  20 gallon long reef build and want to use the caribsea life rock instead of live rock. I have had issues in the past with live rock from my local shop and wanted to start off clean with this one. I am using 20 lbs of that and 20 lbs of caribsea live sand. Has anyone used this rock before and if so what is the cycle like? Do I need to add any bacteria or is the "painted on" bacteria good enough?

 

Below is the equipment I have purchased. Please let me know if you have any suggestions on something I am missing. If I do a hang on the back protein skimmer do you have any suggestions?

 

20 long tank

fluval aquaclear 50

(2) Koralia nano 425

Heater

24-36" current usa orbit marine LED

20 lbs life rock

20 lbs live sand

[seabass]

Some bacteria will come on the rock, so it isn't absolutely necessary to add more.  However, you could if you wanted to.  Instead of bacteria, you might choose to dose ammonium chloride.

 

There isn't other non-bacterial life, so you could safely dose ammonia (up to 2 ppm, following the fishless cycling guide).  I would do this unless you plan on adding livestock very slowly.

[znorris502]

52 minutes ago, seabass said:

Some bacteria will come on the rock, so it isn't absolutely necessary to add more.  However, you could if you wanted to.  Instead of bacteria, you might choose to dose ammonium chloride.

 

There isn't other non-bacterial life, so you could safely dose ammonia (up to 2 ppm, following the fishless cycling guide).  I would do this unless you plan on adding livestock very slowly.

Thank you for the info! Do you know if all of the ammonium chloride are the same? Or are some better than others?

[seabass]

DrTim's Ammonium Chloride is a known clean ammonia source.  Some people will even use a bottle of ACE ammonia (but I'm not sure it would save you that much money).

[znorris502]

6 hours ago, seabass said:

DrTim's Ammonium Chloride is a known clean ammonia source.  Some people will even use a bottle of ACE ammonia (but I'm not sure it would save you that much money).

Just ordered some thanks!

[Clown79]

Liferock is aragonite rock, coloured purple and injected with bacteria.

 

It is safe to use in an established tank, I've used it numerous times in established tanks and it doesn't cause a spike.

(I still recommend testing it for a week regardless for use in an existing tank)

 

Using it in a new tank, I would cycle it with Dr Tim's products because the amount of bacteria spores in it, I don't believe would be enough.

LIFEROCK™

Real aragonitic base rock, not cement, no curing. Extensive macro and micro-porosity infused with spored bacteria for outstanding biological performance. Clean and safe for all fish and inverts, environmentally responsible each piece being very unique.

 

[znorris502]

16 hours ago, Clown79 said:

Liferock is aragonite rock, coloured purple and injected with bacteria.

 

It is safe to use in an established tank, I've used it numerous times in established tanks and it doesn't cause a spike.

(I still recommend testing it for a week regardless for use in an existing tank)

 

Using it in a new tank, I would cycle it with Dr Tim's products because the amount of bacteria spores in it, I don't believe would be enough.

LIFEROCK™

Real aragonitic base rock, not cement, no curing. Extensive macro and micro-porosity infused with spored bacteria for outstanding biological performance. Clean and safe for all fish and inverts, environmentally responsible each piece being very unique.

 

Thanks for the info!