Live Rock

[Micro-Reefs Aquariums]

Been out of the hobby for 6 years, where did all the live rock go?  

 

What is this purple spray on for the rock?

 

What happened to real live rock you could buy at LFS?

[ReefGoat]

Indo ban happened that's where the good good stuff went. Thank eco fascist and the government. We also just lost arguably the best supplier (tampa bay saltwater) not fiji rock though. Theres still gulf live rock and kp aquatics also not fiji rock. Kp aquatics being showcased here in multiple tanks on nano reef. Probably who I'm going to use in my new build. There are a few others.....but other than them most "live rock" now is just man made aged stuff. I get that we can't just rape the oceans for our glass boxes. But I still feel like we could find a balance without an all out ban. Oh well what can we do 

[Tamberav]

KPA is my go to with indo gone. I didn’t realize we lost Tampa bay? That sucks. 

 

Once people retire I believe that is it... no more live rock. The suppliers are grandfathered in I believe? 
 

So hold on to your live rock and enjoy the cool hitchhikers while you can.

 

Edit: went to Tampa bay website and it says due to COVID so hopefully that means they will one day return.

[ReefGoat]

He made a post on another forum were he was selling his lease. It appears the leases can be transferred and sold. 

[Micro-Reefs Aquariums]

What is KPA?  What is INDO ban?  What is Tampa Bay Salt Water?  Is this new man made purple spray good?  Will it grow purple coraline?  What are the pros and cons?

 

Why did this happen?  Why now?  Why did it not happen during my administration as a reefer?

 

I loved the smell of my live rock when I brought home the box full of either cured or uncured live rock.

 

 

[geekreef_05]

Hello Micro-Reefs, 

 

Hi there old timer. Im in the same spot. Just got back in after nearly a decade out of the hobby. The stark white dry rock in my tank is so ....dead looking! Its amazing how much has changed. As we both know hitchhikers can be a nightmare. The toss up between live rock and dry and is debatable. Live rock will definitely get you to a mature tank way way faster. Ive been up and running for 3 weeks now and I dont even a strand of algae anywhere - its crazy! I totally attribute this to the dry rock. Zero pests, but also zero life! 

 

Wait until you see the price of coral and fish today. It kinda blew my mind. Also check out new products and stores like Bulk Reef Supply and Algae Barn. Both I found very useful to get restarted. 

 

Also I picked up things I was 'used to' in the past, I kinda regret my purchase of instant ocean. Apparently there are better salts out there now! 

 

And finally check out All-For-Reef, my first bottle is suppose to arrive today. Looks like a dosing pump saving miracle! haha. 

 

Goodluck dude! 

[ReefGoat]

3 hours ago, Micro-Reefs Aquariums said:

What is KPA?  What is INDO ban?  What is Tampa Bay Salt Water?  Is this new man made purple spray good?  Will it grow purple coraline?  What are the pros and cons?

 

Why did this happen?  Why now?  Why did it not happen during my administration as a reefer?

 

I loved the smell of my live rock when I brought home the box full of either cured or uncured live rock.

 

 

Kp aquatics is mined terrestrial rock in Florida that used to be reefs a very long time ago. They have an offshore farm in the ocean. They load up the terrestrial rock and let it sit at the bottom of the ocean for 2 years minimum and then re-collect it as orders roll in. 

https://www.kpaquatics.com/

 

The indo ban is a restriction in the import of rock, fish and corals. It was directly targeted at our hobby by our government to my knowledge. Theres a set of rules set by our government called CITES I think. If the importers can't meet these guidelines....they can't import here. (Those guidelines probably include being able to line the pockets of crooked politicians, but I digress). Fiji importers couldn't meet those guidelines so am immediate ban on the import of those items above was put in place. I could have some things wrong here but that's the gist of it.

https://m.liveaquaria.com/general/general.cfm?general_pagesid=225

 

 

Tampa bay saltwater was an awesome place that had something called "the package". It was legit apparently and people swore by it. You'll have to cruise their website and see what I mean. 

 

https://www.tbsaltwater.com/

 

 

Why did this happen? Because of our over bearing and restrictive government.

 

I mean coraline grows on our glass. It grows on our powerheads.....back acrylic walls of aios. I don't see why it wouldn't grow on man made rock....in fact it does. Lots of folks here have caribsea life rock and it looks amazing. 

 

 

[geekreef_05]

oh also, if you havent bought a tank yet, there are way more nicer companies and products to choose from today.

I also went right to the trusted old-school (hagen-fluvial), but i regret that move. 

 

Check out Waterbox and what Red Sea has these days! 

 

Oh and google Ammino Acids for corals. New science. New foods. Looks like good stuff. 

[ReefGoat]

23 minutes ago, geekreef_05 said:

oh also, if you havent bought a tank yet, there are way more nicer companies and products to choose from today.

I also went right to the trusted old-school (hagen-fluvial), but i regret that move. 

 

Check out Waterbox and what Red Sea has these days! 

 

Oh and google Ammino Acids for corals. New science. New foods. Looks like good stuff. 

I could be mistaken. But I think the OP has the capability to actually make his own tank. Some of the stuff they've posted looks pretty cool. 

[Tired]

I'm a bit reluctant to call restrictions on coral importing overly restrictive. I'd want to hear from people who are experts in the field (i.e. marine biologists studying the relevant area) to learn about the impact of coral collecting. And we definitely shouldn't be chopping up existing reefs to get live rock. 

 

Now, I would love to see aquacultured Indo live rock be available. But, was aquacultured live rock really done at the time the ban was placed? It may have been made only considering the impacts of collecting live rock from existing reefs. Maybe the law can be changed to allow the import of aquacultured Indo live rock? Though it would be hard to tell the difference between aquacultured and wild rock. 

 

And I believe the Indo import laws are being changed, anyway. Or did those changes not go through? 

 

I'll be honest: I would rather see overly restrictive import laws getting in the way of reefkeeping, than have wild corals being collected at damaging rates for the hobby. Obviously the ideal would be something in the middle- good availability of corals, rock, and the like, while not doing any harm to the environment. But I'm inclined to prioritize the health of coral reefs over the ability to put corals in a pretty box. 
(yes, I know there's some benefits from reefkeeping, like learning more about coral culture and getting people interested in reefs.)

[ReefGoat]

If you care so much then put your money where your mouth is and quit the hobby. Even though you may be only using aquaculture stuff the money you spend for your aquarium goods is still in the ether of this hobby were mariculture is still a very prevalent thing. You're also using a lot of uneeded energy and water consumption for your little glass box. It's no different than the people who complain about our carbon footprint but still drive around in cars, fly in planes and consume goods that are created around the world and shipped, flown and driven to destinations..........You're just virtusignalling to make yourself feel better at the end of the day. 

 

End point....the ban is stupid and over bearing beurocracy. Much like everything in this country. 

[Tired]

[mcarroll]

Hand-waving aside...

 

The only banning I know that's happening in the States (so far) is in Hawaii.  And that's the doing of the state gov't along with monied interests that have political connections...not the fed's.

 

The fed's do this under the Lacey Act (including support of foreign protection laws)....which does impact us, but I think not too much recently by our own hand.  

https://www.fws.gov/international/laws-treaties-agreements/us-conservation-laws/lacey-act.html

 

At least that's my understandings of far...

 

Walt Smith gives a nice interview on this vid:

 

[Micro-Reefs Aquariums]

I am about to order from KPA aquatics.  I have 12.5 gallon nanocube with 20 lbs live sand.  Would you add 15 or 20 lbs of uncured live rock from KPA?