Cheap live rock

[sammydee]

Hey - I saw somewhere on the net that it is possible to use limestone as *dead* rock, and seed it with organisms from live rock. Is this true? Can ordinary limestone be used as a live rock alternative?

Thanks

 

[amstar15]

i dont know much but I know I wouldnt use limestone in a saltwater tank. I believe it would give off, chemicals that are not good for sw organisms.

 

[leon]

NOOO!

 

[sammydee]

Why "NOOO!" ?

 

[amstar15]

if i am not mistaken and I maybe. I believe the limestone will break down in the saltwater and will effect the PH in a very bad way. even though it is "dead" the saltwater will erode the rock thus causing a severe PH swings

 

[Mr Miagi]

Lime stone contains large amounts of CO2 and when broken down it would release this and other chewmicals into your water. So i wouldnt.

 

[Dragonscales]

you are far better off using a porous, inert type of rock. One that will allow current to pass through it, yet not leach any harmful substances. Alot of people make their own using sand, a little cement, some crushed oyster shell and a few other bits and pieces. It will need to be cured for a fair amount of time though before being put into the tank as it will play havoc with the water parameters until then. I have heard that alot of people have lowered the time needed for curing with smaller pieces by placing it into the sump on the back of their toilet (every time the toilet gets flushed, the rock gets a water change, sounds fair enough in principle) but not sure as to the exact extent of it's effectiveness. Regardless of what you use though, you will still need to seed it with some proper liverock if you want a diversity of life in your tank.

 

[leon]

Why "NOOO!" ?

all of the above. You need a very porous rock so it can hold the beneficial bacteria it needs to make live rock. I like the toilet idea, ingenious!!!

 

[Aquascaper]

I'd gp with DS, make your own. It's the only way to get that certain shape your looking for - and dirt cheap too

 

[sammydee]

Ok, thanks for the advice. I might look into making my own.

 

[Ed4567]

No offence to anyone who posted above, but IMO most of what has been said is either not true or an oversimplification. I'll address each of the points on this thread seperatly.

I believe it would give off, chemicals that are not good for sw organisms.

Limestone is a sedimentary rock formed from calcite (calcium carbonate). Like any sedimentary rock it can contain other compounds however here:
http/www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthre...light=limestone
is a thread on reefcentral where Randy Holmes-Farley says:
"There are lots of different limestones of different purity, but I'd say that if it is white, as that appears to be, and has not been soaking in contaminated water (like a fish tank using copper), it is likely fine to use it.

However, I do not believe that it will help pH, alkalinity, or calcium, in a marine environement. It just won't dissolve much. Think of it as more live rock or sand."

if i am not mistaken and I maybe. I believe the limestone will break down in the saltwater and will effect the PH in a very bad way. even though it is "dead" the saltwater will erode the rock thus causing a severe PH swings

Calcium carbonate can be brocken down into carbon dioxide and calcium oxide however for this to occur it must be in an acidic solution, at which point you wouldnt be too worried about it since the rest of your tank would be dead and your live rock dissolving.

 

[Ed4567]

Lime stone contains large amounts of CO2 and when broken down it would release this and other chewmicals into your water. So i wouldnt. smile.gif

As above.

. Alot of people make their own using sand, a little cement, some crushed oyster shell and a few other bits and pieces.

Um cement is made from limestone. Crushed oyster shell and the most popular types of sand are also calcium carbonate.

You need a very porous rock so it can hold the beneficial bacteria it needs to make live rock

Some types of limestone are porous some are not.

Oh and Tampa Bay Aquacultured live rock is also limestone based as far as I know!

 

[sammydee]

But is it porous enough to be used as a live rock substitute? If it is chemically safe, will there still be enough surface area to house all the bacteria and other creatures for the tank?

 

[leon]

basically nope, if it was , we'd all be using it, as its very easy to come by. There are some rock that are used in FW tanks that can be used in the way you want, but im not sure which at hand, i think it might be the lava rock, but dont use real lava rock, as this can leach into the water and cause all kinds of problems.
leon

 

[Great Lakes]

I have a couple of enormous slabs of limestone that form the base of my reef.
Your lower rocks can settle into the sand. I hated the thought of expensive liverock becoming half buried so I use the limstone without any ill effects.

GL