What do you guys think about KP aquatics? starting a new 130 galloons, and i want full LIVE rock.
KP aquatics? Experience?
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Best live rock around. Better than TBS IMO. Full of life and if you get it shipped in water, 0 die off. Not cheap but if you want tank without the headaches of Dinos, cyano, diatoms, GHA, etc it’s the only way to go.
Also don’t go by the website in terms of it’s availability or not. Email or call Phillipe. Especially if you want a decent amount shipped in water, he’ll get it for you. Great guy to deal with btw.
Also don’t go by the website in terms of it’s availability or not. Email or call Phillipe. Especially if you want a decent amount shipped in water, he’ll get it for you. Great guy to deal with btw.
I sent them an email, Explaining if they can create a full aquascape from live rock, and ill pay whatever we gonna see.
They've been around for more than a decade (maybe two? I haven't been in the hobby that long) and have a great track record, I don't think you'll have any issues.
The upfront cost pays for itself in not having to deal with the time, effort, money and products to fight all the nasties that you get with dry rock. Also, if you are concerned about unwanted hitchhikers, put the rock into the tank without corals or fish and remove anything that you don’t want.
So I used them in 2018 for a new build. I typically use gulfliverock.
I’m going to share MY experience. People should do the same. Mileage may vary and that’s what reviews are for. Aggregated reviews are important and I’m sure mine will be buried below all the glowing reviews. I’m sure they/he/she are great people and I have no issue with them but I wouldn’t order from them again.
So like I said, usually order from gulfliverock. My curing process is get the rock in, put directly in a holding tank or the display if new, little die off, cycled rock in about 4 days. I have done this for 5+ tanks over the years. I’ve been very happy each time. I’ve gone from an empty tank to ready for coral in about a week with no algae blooms or uglies. It’s been great and a key to why I still enjoy this hobby.
GLR were out of stock on everything or on vacation or I don’t know (it was 5 years ago) so I had to look elsewhere. I ordered from KP with overnight shipping.
It arrived. I remember I was disappointed with the life and fauna on the rock. Gulf live rock comes with crabs and algae’s and corals (yes real corals) and sponges and coralline algae and bugs and tunicates and clams. Just chunks of incredibly dense biodiversity. KP looked more like the base rock my LFS scams people at $8 a pound that’s “cured” in a giant vat of water. Maybe I got the bottom of the barrel. I don’t know. I admit I have gotten clunkers from gulf live rock (rocks that are boring) but never the entire order was just gray chunks of ugly rock with maybe a little plant on it.
Oh well. It’s here. I’ll put corals on it. Live and learn. I put the rock in the tank. I got a little ammonia spike. Great. Things are working. Day or two later, HUGE ammonia spike. Another day or two goes by. Ammonia gets too high. Tank smells awful and the ammonia is so high the cycle stagnates. Tank turns into a smelly pit of death with no end in sight. So I gave up and did huge 100% water changes and basically ended up spending a premium for dead rock that was ugly.
I didn’t read the full exchange this morning to refresh my memory but I think the response was “you need to do 50% water changes daily during your cycle like you would for a normal cycleor something. I remember because it was absurd.
I have read and heard about many many ways to cycle a tank but 50% water changes daily at the beginning of a cycle isn’t something I had heard or practiced for any liverock. What’s even more odd to me is that the rock was so devoid of life when it came in, I’m not even sure how the ammonia got so high.
KP insisted it was user error and begrudgingly offered me around a $40 credit on a $250 order. I could have gotten prettier dry rock for $20 locally and not had my living room smell like death.
That actually became my first tank I had to deal with the cyano, diatoms, hair algae blooms, etc. All the nasty stuff one normally sees in the first year.
On the flip side. I ordered gulfliverock last week for Wednesday delivery, got an email asking if I would take “a few big chunks” then after responding have yet to hear anything back so…in this second I’m not recommending either company.
Petco has 40lbs boxes of dead rock for $40 right now which is sounding pretty good.
Sounds like you went with the standard overnight shipping in wet newspaper vs. same day shipping water. Night and day. That will def cause ammonia spikes.
But as you say, different experiences for different people to give OP a balanced view so all good.
But as you say, different experiences for different people to give OP a balanced view so all good.
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I have ordered two different times... Jan 2021 and Jan 2022. Rocks were full of life and coraline. They aren't solid rocks. They have tunnels in many locations. I'm am planning another shipment this month
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I have ordered from them twice, both to my door in good weather conditions and experienced little to no die off. Would use them again as they are one of the few that will ship to your door, airport hub is hours away. Lots of shrimp, good macro algae, tunicates, starfish, some gorilla crabs, and sponges. Read the packing info and do adequate water changes, especially the first week.
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definitely have the rocks shipped in water if possible
I went in person bc I’m about an hour away and it was great. No die off obviously bc of that so can’t speak to shipping exp. The rock is very porous so it’s larger per pound than you would think. I only got less than 20 pounds to supplement and it felt like a lot.
Did have hitchhikers. I’ve killed two fireworms trying to eat corals and I heard pistol shrimp.
Would definitely use again.
Did have hitchhikers. I’ve killed two fireworms trying to eat corals and I heard pistol shrimp.
Would definitely use again.
As a new person to the hobby hitchhikers scares me. Haha. Like i would not want a manstis shrimp, or bobbit worm in my tank. I hate getting on my hands or anywhere near me. But i dont know if they can do a full scape for me and ill pay for that not sure if its even possible.
I’ve order a few times through Gulf Live Rock and have never had a bad shipment. Dan can be hard to get ahold of sometimes but he’s got good LR.
I don’t think they or any real LR vendor is going to make anything like the minimalist, extravagant scapes you see and can buy online with dry rock. They can probably give you some pieces that would go well together for the size tank. And it will look a whole lot better than the pile of boulders from a lot of LR at a fish store.
You can’t go wrong with real live rock though. I’ve never been scared of putting my hands in the tank, but def seen some freaky looking stuff. You will get over it. Clownfish are a more likely predator of your fingers.
I ordered KP rock for my last big build. This is 60 pounds of premium live rock 2 hours after adding to a new tank. No abundance of life, no macro algae, not much of anything, really. I had one hitchhiker pistol shrimp. Within 2 weeks it was overgrown with bryopsis and bubble algae. I took the tank down 10 months later. If I order live rock again, it will be with a different supplier.
When was that? When did that happen to you? Years ago or recently?
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I have KPA live rock and gulf.
The gulf has more life in terms of corals and macroalgae but they both had the important stuff like worms, dusters, starfish, coralline, pods, sponges, etc
I very much prefer KPA because the shapes and lighter density is wayyyy better than gulf rock. The gulf rock is more dense boulder like shapes and the KPA is more like how we would expect rock for aquascaping to be.
The gulf has more life in terms of corals and macroalgae but they both had the important stuff like worms, dusters, starfish, coralline, pods, sponges, etc
I very much prefer KPA because the shapes and lighter density is wayyyy better than gulf rock. The gulf rock is more dense boulder like shapes and the KPA is more like how we would expect rock for aquascaping to be.
That LR looks awful! I don’t see any growth. Very Brown looking…
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