What is the purpose of live rock?

A reef structure made of rock or reef ceramics is the basis for your saltwater aquarium. The rock offers sufficient space for corals and numerous hiding places for fish, shrimp etc. In addition to the visual aspect, it also fulfills another important function: due to its high porosity, numerous bacteria can settle on the rock, which in turn improves the water quality. Basically, live rock is nothing more than a biological filter.

Real, cultured and artificial live rock - what are the differences?

Live rock is generally characterized by the existence of a film of bacteria on the rock, which are active in seawater and break down nutrients. While "real live rock" is taken from natural coral reefs, "cultivated live rock" is originally dry rock that has been in natural seawater for a certain period of time and is colonized with bacteria and other organisms during this time. There is also the "artificial live rock". These are natural or man-made stones that are then covered with a bacterial film. From an ecological point of view, every aquarist should avoid "real live rock". Live rock from aquaculture or artificial live rock are sustainable alternatives.

CaribSea Life Rocks

CaribSea's Life Rocks are all naturally grown. That's why every stone looks unique and offers many design options. The stones are silicate-free and without any other chemical additives. Since the rock is stored and delivered in a dry state, you can take your time putting together your reef structure.

Tips for your reef scape - less is often more

Ideally, the reef construction will not look " fully finished" when you put it into the tank. The optimal look will only be achieved over time, when the rocks are completely covered with corals. Leave enough space to the panes and to the surface. Avoid a symmetrical setup, as this looks unnatural (good keyword here: golden section). Last but not least, think about where you want to place the flow pumps and avoid the flow bouncing off the rocks. Apart from that, there are no limits to your creativity and you can just experiment with the rocks!

Note on shipping

We pack the stones as well as we can and ship them with additional filling material to prevent damage. Despite this, minor damage or breakages may occur in normal parcel shipping with DHL, DPD, UPS & Co. These are no reason for complaint, as we have no influence on how the stones are packed in the box itself and how our shipping service providers handle the parcels. Please choose to pick up the stones yourself (free of charge, of course) or contact us if you would like a secure pallet shipment by freight carrier ( starting at 65 €, depending on the delivery address).