When aquarists explore the possibility of moving up to a saltwater reef
aquarium, they usually are confused by the terms "live rock", "cured
rock," and "reef rock." They read about the virtues of "live rock" and
the advantages of having it in a marine aquarium, but they are not sure
what it is, and inaccurate retailer descriptions of "live rock" add to
the confusion. Suppliers sometimes make false claims about the
condition and quality of their live rock. And to make it worse, a
search of the internet for "live rock" produces hundreds of leads to
musicians, concerts, publishers, and other web sites you really don't
want to visit.
Let us tell you what these terms mean and how Aquarium Arts cures live rock.
What is Live Rock?
Live rock is a calcareous (limestone) structure that is formed by the
deposition of many species of living (stony) corals and other
invertebrates, forming either deep ocean or shallow coastal reefs. Some
coastal reefs grow toward the surface of the water and form a barrier to
the island or continent (Great Barrier Reef of Australia) that may cause
ship wrecks.
Although the aquarium industry is frequently blamed for decimating
tropical reefs, more reef damage is done by pollution from oil spills,
waste discharges into the ocean from coastal cities and ship bilges, and
runoff of coastal waters containing fertilizers, heavy metals,
pesticides and naturally-occurring minerals leached out of the soil. In
some tropical areas huge portions of reefs are mined and the limestone
is used for building material (building blocks, cement), since the
islands, which are giant limestone reefs themselves, lack any kind of
inorganic mineral or renewable building materials.
How Do Suppliers Treat the Rock?
Other suppliers wrap the rock in plastic sheets inside a cardboard box.
Some suppliers "pre-cure" the rock by spreading it on racks in the
collecting region and continuously spraying it with sea water for
several weeks. During this time many delicate plants and animals die and
some undesirable species (such as mantis shrimps, bristle worms, and
predatory crabs) abandon the rock. Some of the hardier plants and
animals endure the change in conditions and will re-emerge when the rock
is placed in good conditions of water quality, circulation, filtration,
light, and temperature. This rock usually costs more but it saves time
in the building of a reef system. Then the rock is shipped to the
wholesaler.
Some suppliers "pre-cure" the rock by flushing it in tanks with sea
water for several weeks. This eliminates some undesirable species, and
causes less damage to the delicate plants and animals on the rock, which
is then shipped to the wholesaler.
Successful transport depends on the packaging, handling, and speed of
shipping.
The wholesalers forward ('transship') the boxes to retail stores,
usually without even opening the boxes and examining the rock. After
all, they want to get rid of the stuff before it smells up their
warehouse. This rock is relatively cheap and is sold in boxes of about
40 lb. (20 kg).
The quality of the rock then depends on how quickly it is transferred to
an aquarium without exposure to big changes in water quality,
temperature, light, etc. Even so, the rock is usually "dead rock" by
the time it reaches the retailer, and need weeks of treatment ("cycling"
and "seeding") before it is functional in a reef aquarium.
Aquarium Arts' Curing
Process
If you break a piece of rock in half, the broken surface may look like
this, with larger holes made by boring organisms. The porous rock has an
immense surface area which serves as a substrate for the bacteria living
inside.
Once the smell is gone from the
rock in Aquarium
Arts' curing tank, the rock is transferred to racks in
another tank where it is exposed to high intensity light and vigorous
water movement. A very efficient protein skimmer cleans the water.
Sediment that accumulates in the tank is regularly vacuumed out and
frequent water changes are made.
But we give it more time. The rock is moved into a third tank for
"polishing."
Finally, after 30-60 days this "live rock" is "cured"!
All the dead material has been removed, new colonies of coralline
algae cover the surface, and countless micro-organisms are emerging on
the rock. At this point it can be put into an aquarium with no further cycling!
That is what we call "Prime Cured Live Rock™."
How Does Aquarium Arts
Ship Live Rock?
To see photographs of our packing procedure - just click
here!
We ship livestock by Fedex Standard Overnight express -
your order will arrive no later than 3PM in most locations; some rural
locations are not delivered until 4:30PM. If the shipment is late, the
shipping fee is refunded unless the delay is caused by weather (an "act
of God"). If the delay is caused by Fedex error or insufficiency, we
will submit a request for a refund. This takes several weeks and
requires a lot of our time in filing requests, following up by phone,
etc. Consequently, we will retain 25% of the shipping charge to
compensate us for our efforts
Before we ship, we check the weather conditions in your area (and
enroute). If we feel there is a good possibility that the shipment will
be delayed, we let you know by phone and let you decide if you want to
risk losing the shipment to bad weather, delay, etc. If you decide to
have the rock shipped against our recommendation, all refund policies
are null and void. Our weather assessments are based on on-line weather
predictions and we will not be responsible for any errors. If you don't
hear from us, you can assume the shipment left Bakersfield by 6PM and
can track the shipment on the Fedex web page (fedex.com) from the minute
it leaves Bakersfield until it arrives the next day.
If there are no delays or temperature shocks from handling and the
rock is placed in the aquarium as soon as it arrives, it suffers no
damage. If the aquarium is in good condition, the rock doesn't "skip a
beat."
Many reef aquaria have very few macroalgae (which look like green
plants!) because there usually are fish or other inhabitants that eat
them. Some algae (hair algae) can be a problem that requires special
attention to aquarium conditions or requires grazers (fish, shrimp,
crabs, snails) to keep them under control. Other microalgae (brown,
red, black- actually cyanobacteria) are a result of special water
conditions that occur when the nitrate, phosphate, or silicate content
is very high.
If the reef is populated with brightly colored corals, the filtration
effect is vastly increased. The colors of the corals are not from the
usual animal pigments, but from photosynthetic algal cells
(zoozanthellae) that live inside the tissues of the corals and other
invertebrates in a mutually beneficial arrangement. In this
"mutualistic" relationship, the algal cells get protection, a stable
living place, and a supply of carbon dioxide and other nutrient
chemicals from the host. In return, the photosynthetic process in the
zoozanthellae consume carbon dioxide and release oxygen, both beneficial
to the corals, and produce sugars, which may be an energy source for the
coral host. Zooxanthellae have a major benefit to stony corals by
promoting the deposition of calcium carbonate, the backbone of the coral
reef. Coral reefs grow only in shallow water and grow faster in
sunlight.
This Prime Cured Live Rock reef is three days old!
Your local fish store may be a source of cheap rock and you also save a
lot on shipping costs.
This is all right, and it may be economically necessary, but the
aquarist must be willing to put the rock in a brand new system and
endure weeks of smelly "cycling", expensive water changes and lighting,
and hard work before you introduce other livestock!
If you buy it from a store, you can tell by the color, size, shape,
and smell - sniff each piece of rock and if it stinks, don't buy it!
If you buy from a catalog or e-tailer, you, the buyer must
beware. Here are some things to look for in a bad deal:
1-if the rock is selling for less than $6 per pound, beware!
That retailer can not invest the time it takes to properly cure live
rock and sell that cheaply!
2-if the retailer includes shipping at the $6 price, stop right there!
Shipping costs vary with speed and distance. It costs a lot to ship to
"Region 8" - all the way across the U. S. - the highest shipping rate.
Does it make sense that a retailer will ship 2500 miles for the same
price as to the next county?
3-if the retailer ships by any method that takes more than 24 hours,
beware! Live rock can not tolerate that much abuse.
Some suppliers will sell to you cheaply, in 40-50 lb. boxes. This is
usually done by "drop shipping" from the importer, so the retailer never
sees the material!
We pride ourselves on establishing a rapport with our callers and
providing the highest quality product and an honest, reliable service.
This is why we do not have a "shopping cart" ordering system on our web
site. We believe that speaking to each individual customer is a very
important step in the educational process that will result in the best
possible result in your system. In fact, most of our live rock customers
are so impressed with our product and service that they often buy more
rock and then order livestock and equipment. If you want to know what
our clients have to say about Aquarium
Arts' products and performance,
read some of their recent comments.
-Finally, if you aren't absolutely sure about the dealer, make a test
purchase. Buy 10 or 20 lbs.
Shipping costs will be a bit higher, proportionately, but not enough to
break you. In most cases the cost per pound of our rock, even with the
high shipping cost, is less than prices in the local fish store. When
you see the quality of our rock, you will probably elect to order the
remaining rock that we recommend for your system. For larger orders the
cost per pound goes way down - a 50 lb. shipment to destinations outside
California is $8.99 per lb. - delivered to your door, guaranteed!
If you can afford prime rock, you save money and time in the long run
because you get an established reef immediately! You can introduce
livestock safely within a few days and will have a lower mortality of
fish and inverts. You can really enjoy a beautiful, easy-to-maintain
system as soon as you set it up.
First of all, most of what we normally consider as "rock" is a mineral
structure formed by: compounds settling in ancient oceans and lakes
(sedimentary), minerals that were once melted and spewed out of the
earth by volcanoes (igneous), and sedimentary deposits that were
transformed by great pressure created by overlying deposits
(metamorphic).
Parts of the shallow reef are broken to pieces by powerful storms and
washed into shallow, tropical waters by the surf, like the sample at left from an island in Fiji. Here the pieces are
colonized by a wide variety of marine organisms, including encrustations
of coralline algae, sponges, tube worms, soft and hard corals, anemones,
and molluscs, as well as more mobile species such as crabs, shrimp,
starfish, worms, and snails. Most importantly, the porous rock is
inhabited by species of bacteria (decomposers) that live on the waste
products and dead tissue of the other reef organisms - converting the
wastes to basic chemical elements that either enter the atmosphere or
are used by the plants that feed the animals.
These rock fragments are collected by "suppliers" , treated in various
ways, and shipped to wholesalers all over the world for use in marine
reef aquariums.
Some suppliers wrap the pieces of coral in wet newspaper, pack them in
wax coated cardboard boxes, and air freight them to wholesalers in
coastal cities. Since most of the reef organisms die within hours from
exposure to drying air and high temperatures, when the product arrives
at the wholesaler, it is "dead", and smells like it! The films of algae
and invertebrates on the surface of the rock quickly die when exposed to
air, wide temperature changes, intense light or total darkness. The
effect of the chemicals in the newsprint must also be a contributing
factor in the mortality of the rock organisms.
Even in this "dead" rock there are surviving crustaceans, molluscs,
worms, and reproductive stages (spores, cysts, larvae, etc.) of plants
and animals in the crevices and pores of the rock. The porous rock also
harbors bacteria which are the major base of biological filtration in
the reef system. This is important in "seeding".
Aquarium Arts
buys dead "live rock" from our wholesaler who is two hours away, next
door to Los Angeles International Airport; we generally purchase the
rock the same day it arrives and we transport it to our facility within
a couple of hours. We then proceed to "cure" the rock, a process often
referred to as "cycling". This means that the rock inhabitants continue
the process of death and decomposition, and the pollutants produced by
the decomposition are removed. 
The rock is rinsed in synthetic sea water and
placed in an unlighted tank with a high rate of water flow from a closed
circulation system. A biological filtration system supplied by a second
pump, along with frequent water changes and a protein skimmer, removes
the breakdown materials produced by the decomposing organic matter. At
the same time, bacteria living in and on the rock increases and
effectively becomes a "biological filter" which breaks down toxic
pollutants, especially nitrates.
Soon colonies of rich velvety red-purple, coralline algae (often
several shades of color) begin to develop on the surface of the rock.
Tiny invertebrates - worms, crabs, molluscs, bryozoans, sponges,
coelenterates, and tunicates as well as coral polyps - that have
survived the long trip from tropical ocean to our aquarium shop, begin
to emerge on the surface, adding to the diversity and improving the
filtration effect of "live rock". Individuals spread from one rock to
another, establishing new colonies or populations. This is known as
"seeding". Soon the rock is "cured" and "seeded", that is, there is no
dead tissue in the cracks and crevices, and a healthy growth of
invertebrates is invading the crevices and surfaces. 
We now have a larger facility
with bigger curing tanks.
When live rock is ordered, a
delivery date is set and the customer is given a tracking number which
enables the continuous tracking from dropoff to delivery. On the
afternoon before the delivery date the rock is carefully placed in
plastic bags with enough water to maintain a saturated atmosphere,
packed in styrofoam boxes (with hot or cold packs , as necessary) and
packed with crumpled newspaper for padding and added insulation. The
styrofoam box is securely sealed and placed in a reinforced cardboard
box which is sealed, and delivered to Fedex in the late afternoon. (We
could have the packages picked up, but we don't want them being hauled
all over town for half a day before they are shipped - we deliver them
to the Fedex terminal in less than 5 minutes after we load them in our
van.)
Obviously, a product of this quality costs more!
PLEASE!!! We have seen comments on several aquarium
forums that say something like "Even if you buy cured live rock, after
it is shipped to you, it has to be cured again, because it 'dies' during
shipping." THIS IS NOT TRUE OF Aquarium Arts' PRIME CURED LIVE ROCK ™ because of our complete curing,
secure packing, and speedy delivery to your door. OUR CUSTOMERS WILL
TELL YOU - see their comments here.
What Determines the Value of Live Rock?
The value of cured live rock comes from its role in a saltwater reef
aquarium
where the reef is the major filtration system. How so? First, the
bacteria in and algae on the rock remove chemical compounds containing
nitrogen and phosphorus, which can be toxic to animals, and the algae
consume carbon dioxide and produce oxygen, all of which are advantageous
to aquarium animals.
Prime Cured Live Rock made this aquarium look like this in
5 months!
Prime Cured Live Rock made this aquarium look like this in
only 3 months!
Is Cured Rock Worth the Price?
Beginning saltwater aquarists often are not prepared for the costs of a
reef system. After getting the necessary equipment - lights, pumps,
skimmers, heaters, coolers, etc. there isn't much left for the reef.
Budget-minded novices have a natural tendency to buy uncured "cured live
rock" for half the price of quality material. Don't make that mistake!
And don't think about adding a lot of cheap rock to an established
tank - the results would be disastrous! The uncured rock will
pollute the system, cause all kinds of changes in water condition,
increase the level of pollutants, and seriously damage most of the less
hardy species in your system. We regularly get distress calls from
aquarists who lost valuable animals (and time) when they put cheap rock
in their tanks.
We also sell a complete line of aquarium supplies and equipment and the highest
quality
marine fish and
invertebrates.
How Can You Tell if You Are Getting a
Quality Product?
How Can You Safely Buy "Sight
Unseen?"
Anytime you buy
something you have not seen from someone you do not know, you are taking
a chance.
-If you are not too confident about the deal, call the supplier
and ask questions. If no one will talk to you, go elsewhere.
-If you do reach a person by phone, ask for names and numbers of
satisfied customers. Only the honest, reliable dealers will provide
that. Customers pleased with their purchase usually buy repeatedly and
are willing to be references. Honest dealers are interested in repeat
customers, not one-time buyers.
Orders of 50 lb or more of our Prime Cured Live Rock can be shipped to anywhere in the continental U.S., hand-selected, custom packed (insulated box, heat/cold packs), Fedex Standard Overnight, for $8.99 per lb. (Discounts may apply due to promotions and sale pricing).
SORRY, BUT WE DO NOT SHIP OUTSIDE THE
CONTINENTAL U.S.A.
Terms of Sale. When we accept an order, we charge the cost to your
credit card at that time and set a future shipping date; unless the
product is back-ordered. In that case a 50% deposit will be charged
and a tentative shipping date will be discussed. The remainder of the
cost will be charged to the card on or about the date of the shipment.
Orders that are cancelled on the shipping date (after the rock is
packed) will be charged a 50% re-stocking fee and 50% of the total
deposit will be refunded to your credit card. If an order is cancelled
before the shipment (packing) date, a 25% processing fee will be charged.
If an order is placed and the purchaser does not request shipment within
90 days of the order date, the order is voided and the deposit will not
be refunded.
Walk-in customers are welcome, by appointment, and can hand select
pieces of fully cured Fiji live rock from a stock of thousands of pounds
for $6.99 per lb. You should bring a container (insulated box, ice
chest, etc.) to avoid packing/box charges.
READ THIS FIRST!
LARGE SHOW PIECES are available
at no additional cost. Acquiring large pieces to meet your
specifications may require additional time and packing materials.
We try our best to accommodate the needs of our reef customers and can
supply large pieces of cured live rock for our best customers, at the
same price as the smaller rock! Get more information here.
Read comments from Aquarium
Arts customers
here.
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