MReef20 Posted January 30, 2021 Share Posted January 30, 2021 Hi all, I just wanted to share my (recent) experience with ordering live rock from gulf live rock.com. I've really been itching for some "real" live rock, as I think some of my struggles are due to using only dry rock. Originally, I was concerned with the USPS shipping time frames (2-3 days) and what die of I might expect. after placing my order on this past Monday, I called on Wednesday just to get an idea of lead times. I talked to Dan - super cool guy. While their website doesn't advertise it, he suggested that overnight shipping would potentially be an option, if in budget. I was totally on board with minimum shipment time from ocean to tank, so I agreed. I was able to pick up the rock yesterday, and I gotta say, it looks great! This is my first experience with picking up live rock via air freight, but I'm very encouraged/optimistic! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lazyreefer Posted January 30, 2021 Share Posted January 30, 2021 Nice I have definitely looked into this and am very interested in how it goes for you, good luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EMeyer Posted January 30, 2021 Share Posted January 30, 2021 The life on that stuff looks great. Hows the density? Is it mined limestone or real coral skeletons? Don't think we've tested a GLR tank yet, I can do a 50% discount on microbiome testing of this tank if you're interested. It'd be interesting to see what kind of microbial community came along with all that nice surface life. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MReef20 Posted January 30, 2021 Author Share Posted January 30, 2021 57 minutes ago, Lazyreefer said: Nice I have definitely looked into this and am very interested in how it goes for you, good luck! Thanks! Yeah, I've put it off for some time, but just felt like I was missing out on the biodiversity. I had originally been looking at KP Aquatics, but decided on Gulf Live Rock based on reading some good reviews and it was overall a better price. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MReef20 Posted January 30, 2021 Author Share Posted January 30, 2021 42 minutes ago, EMeyer said: The life on that stuff looks great. Hows the density? Is it mined limestone or real coral skeletons? Don't think we've tested a GLR tank yet, I can do a 50% discount on microbiome testing of this tank if you're interested. It'd be interesting to see what kind of microbial community came along with all that nice surface life. Some of the pieces are pretty dense/heavy, some have a more porous look/feel. I believe that they are coral skeletons. I'd love to get the microbiome testing done, but I'm not sure of the logistics (I'm in Tri-Cities). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ocboat Posted January 30, 2021 Share Posted January 30, 2021 The rock looks great. I've ordered from them two different times with the latest being a couple of weeks ago. Both times I've had it shipped priority mail with the first shipment taking two days and the latest taking three. I'm sure not as much survived as the above rock but I'm very happy with the minimal die off and the diversity of the rock. I was able to start with SPS corals after just one month after now at 10 months everything is doing great. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MReef20 Posted January 30, 2021 Author Share Posted January 30, 2021 12 minutes ago, ocboat said: The rock looks great. I've ordered from them two different times with the latest being a couple of weeks ago. Both times I've had it shipped priority mail with the first shipment taking two days and the latest taking three. I'm sure not as much survived as the above rock but I'm very happy with the minimal die off and the diversity of the rock. I was able to start with SPS corals after just one month after now at 10 months everything is doing great. I would have probably been ok with priority if I had ordered in say the March-May time frame. Good to know for next time though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ocboat Posted January 30, 2021 Share Posted January 30, 2021 I didn't realize that overnight was possible or I might have looked at that although I only ordered the nano pack for my daughters new tank so the shipping probably would have been as much as the rock. If I ever order a larger amount, I'll definitely look into the overnight option. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MReef20 Posted January 30, 2021 Author Share Posted January 30, 2021 Yeah, the only reason I found out about it is because I called after ordering just to get an idea of lead times for shipment. That's when Dan suggested it as an option. He can either ship Southwest or Delta freight (i.e. pick up at airport), but he said that Delta has been hit or miss recently due to Covid restrictions. He was able to get mine on Delta, so that saved me a trip to Spokane! So, if you do want to go that route I'd probably call to check with him first. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MReef20 Posted January 30, 2021 Author Share Posted January 30, 2021 8 minutes ago, ocboat said: the shipping probably would have been as much as the rock. The overnight shipping was $65. Not cheap, but worth it to me. Not sure if that is a "flat" fee or changes depending on weight (I ordered 50 lbs). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ocboat Posted January 30, 2021 Share Posted January 30, 2021 1 minute ago, MReef20 said: The overnight shipping was $65. Not cheap, but worth it to me. Not sure if that is a "flat" fee or changes depending on weight (I ordered 50 lbs). That's not bad at all. Definitely worth it for that amount of rock. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cjmdh Posted January 30, 2021 Share Posted January 30, 2021 I ordered some live rock from KP Aquatics. I got the starter rock, not as much life on it. 15lbs was $160 shipped over night. There was a brittle star that perished and something else that ended up as a blob on one of the rocks. Survivors included feather dusters, a couple of snails, spaghetti worms, really cool tunicate, and of course some bristle worms. The rock we use is an extremely porous type of limestone called “Miami Oolite”. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MReef20 Posted February 5, 2021 Author Share Posted February 5, 2021 Update time! Looks like I've made it past the initial ammonia spike (lots of water changes), and I'm starting to see a lot more life coming out! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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