Dumb question of the day... (which side is "up", and does it matter?)

[Jesse Sunday]

Hi all! (first post)

I just received a Biocube 32, and after setting it up and adding live rock donated by a friend from his established tank, I have a question...

A) Which side of this live rock is "up" (algae/green or not green)?

B) Does it matter to the already living "things" (I have NO idea how to identify the things growing on the rock) and/or algae if I flip it?

I started off with the green side down because I thought it looked bad. But have since flipped it because of some of the "things" I saw growing. I didn't want them to die. And I didn't want the algae to die and cause a shock to the tank, if that's a thing.

Am I overthinking this?

Thanks, and I'm sure I'll have 100 questions to come.

*Bonus Question* What are those things in the pictures? The brown things that look like baby anemones.

 

[Uncle99]

Welcome to R2R!
Yup, your overthinking the rock.
Looks like a pest to me. I’d remove them unless you love them.
If so, in time, there will be many!

Clean that rock up and let nature take over from there.

 

[vetteguy53081]

Hi all! (first post)

I just received a Biocube 32, and after setting it up and adding live rock donated by a friend from his established tank, I have a question...

A) Which side of this live rock is "up" (algae/green or not green)?

B) Does it matter to the already living "things" (I have NO idea how to identify the things growing on the rock) and/or algae if I flip it?

I started off with the green side down because I thought it looked bad. But have since flipped it because of some of the "things" I saw growing. I didn't want them to die. And I didn't want the algae to die and cause a shock to the tank, if that's a thing.

Am I overthinking this?

Thanks, and I'm sure I'll have 100 questions to come.

*Bonus Question* What are those things in the pictures? The brown things that look like baby anemones.

View attachment 2974358 View attachment 2974359 View attachment 2974360 View attachment 2974361

Top pictures are the right way and those are Not pests but are called ball anemones and are actually not anemones but mushrooms and come in an array of colors and are given the name due the balls looking like an anemone and are harmless and do not reproduce quickly and should be fine in new setup

 

[Uncle99]

Top pictures are the right way and those are Not pests but are called ball anemones and are actually not anemones but mushrooms and come in an array of colors and are given the name due the balls looking like an anemone and are harmless and do not reproduce quickly and should be fine in new setup

One man’s pest is another man’s treasure I guess.
They just look brown to me.
I rid all of this stuff at the start and keep just the rock especially when it comes to donated substrate from a friends tank.
Now if they were colourful, sure I’d try that.

 

[Jesse Sunday]

Welcome to R2R!
Yup, your overthinking the rock.
Looks like a pest to me. I’d remove them unless you love them.
If so, in time, there will be many!

Clean that rock up and let nature take over from there.

Thank you guys! I love this forum and hope I can eventually contribute in a helpful way!