"Environmental Friendly" Saltwater Aquarium

[SolRo]

with the end point of $7 a pound, im sure that to many in poor tropical nations, its well worth the effort.

[DaChrisDude]

with the end point of $7 a pound, im sure that to many in poor tropical nations, its well worth the effort.

Well, you've got to figure that the LFS's are buying LR for about $2.00-2.50/lb. That means the wholesalers are buying it probably for $.75-1.75/lb (not sure of their markup) including all the shipping/freight costs. That means Walt Smith is probably getting paid less than a buck a pound. That means that the guy actually in the water is getting paid WAY less than a buck a pound.

[Daniel]

www.marcorocks.com

you can consider buying rock from here... just keep in mind this is "DRY" rock, so the weight is different from "WET" rock, $/lb does not apply in the same fashion. (i'm going to guess 1 lb dry is ~ 1.5lb wet)

you will need to seed this stuff with live rock (obviously)

[SolRo]

Well, you've got to figure that the LFS's are buying LR for about $2.00-2.50/lb. That means the wholesalers are buying it probably for $.75-1.75/lb (not sure of their markup) including all the shipping/freight costs. That means Walt Smith is probably getting paid less than a buck a pound. That means that the guy actually in the water is getting paid WAY less than a buck a pound.

Well, considering how poor some of the nations where the live rock is harvested, then less than $1 a lb would be very good pay.

You gotta consider their standard of living...they dont need to pay for a car, gas, or extreme san diego housing prices....mostly, they just need to buy food and clothing (which is also much cheaper than it is in the US).

[DaChrisDude]

Well, considering how poor some of the nations where the live rock is harvested, then less than $1 a lb would be very good pay.

You gotta consider their standard of living...they dont need to pay for a car, gas, or extreme san diego housing prices....mostly, they just need to buy food and clothing (which is also much cheaper than it is in the US).

Very, very good point. Specially when in some countries they make like, $2 US dollars /day...

[hsarabia]

WOW! This really sparked some interesting conversations. I think there are many sides to an issue. Having something to eat, clothes, and a roof over ones head is no doubt a blessing. However, the long-term sustainability of continual non-renewable resource extraction, over the years and generations, remains questionable.

I can't wait to start my "low impact" aquarium!

Best to all!

[SolRo]

I'd actualy be happy if they banned the import of natural live rock, most of the "life" people rave about in live rock an equal amount of people consider pests or worse...hence why it's "cured" most of the time, basicly to kill off anything larger than bacteria.

I'm sure that artificial rock could be aquacultured just as easly off US coasts, and it would provide temporary artificial reefs.

[lucubrator]

I'd actualy be happy if they banned the import of natural live rock, most of the "life" people rave about in live rock an equal amount of people consider pests or worse...hence why it's "cured" most of the time, basicly to kill off anything larger than bacteria.

Not quite:

Why must you cure your live rock?

Live rock must be cured to allow the plant and marine life - especially sponges which were living on the rock - to undergo a natural die back without polluting the aquarium water. This die back occurs in all transported live rock and is necessary to provide a solid foundation for the remaining species to grow and flourish. As the organisms on the rock go through a die back, they will produce a large amount of waste material and cause toxic levels of ammonia to be released into the aquarium. Most of the very beneficial nitrifying bacteria survive the curing process by hiding deep in the pores and crevices of the live rock. In addition, some of the corals and invertebrates will also not die off completely and will begin to re-emerge in the new aquarium over time.

More info here: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/ca/volume.../live_rock.htm

[SolRo]

I assumed that "toxic levels of ammonia" would kill off anything nice, and anything hardy enough to survive that would be a pest.

[hsarabia]

This is a great discussion and it boils down to coming to reducing impact of the hobby on the remaining natural reefs. I'm very excited to find out that there are viable options and appreciate all of your input.

I just got a 24g Aquapod. So I'm ready to get it started.

[FishBulb]

If you do decide to go DIY live rock I can give yo a few pointers. First, it takes weeks to cure the concrete so make it your first reef project. That way it won't slow you down for long once you get going. Next, make many more pieces than you actually want. It's costs nothing to make rock once you get the oystershells and concrete so it's much better to have several pieces to choose from rather than having make more if you change your mind later. Good luck,
FB

[hsarabia]

Some solutions:

http://news.mongabay.com/2005/0726-geogia-fiji.html

Here's a couple of other interesting link related to this discussion:
http://www.ipsf.com/
http://www.coralreef.gov/taskforce/

[DaveMorris]

Try these guys. They grow environmentally friendly rock and have a pretty good system for stocking tanks.

http://www.tampabaysaltwater.com/liverock/index.html

I have seen some of the rock from these guys and it is every bit as "live" as can be.