i am interested in using the dead/base rock...not only to save money, but i think it will make my aquascaping much easier....i can slowly build a structure and not have to worry about killing off everything (not to mention worrying about getting electrocuting while drilling wet rock...lol)

my question is this:....what is the minimum amount of live rock i can get away with (%-wise) in the display?.....also, are there things i can do to get this rock established?..l..ike adding water from an established tank, adding live bacteria & pods, more LR in the ruge?

thx!

You could probably get a way with 15-20% LR. But take your time adding coral and bioload.

"technically" you can do ALL base rock, or aragocrete (homemade rock).
but seeding it with a few pieces of LR will help kick start the process.
just keep in mind that base rock will take months before it will be able to do any type of filtering

you can added bacteria, or water from an established tank, or LR from an established tank

or you can seed it with a handful of sand from a buddies tank.

thanks for help, guys....i am finding that finding dead rock is not that easy

thanks for help, guys....i am finding that finding dead rock is not that easy
thats odd.. most LFS have it by the crate full...
at least around here they do..

kinda surprised me as well....i have been to 3 different places and 1 carried no dead rock.....the other 2 have small bins w/ one or 2 pcs

there are a couple of more places i can check, but they are a bit of a drive......that is okay, because i want to check out what they carry

You have to love the prices of Lace Rock. $1.99 to $2.99 per lbs compared to that of live rock prices. My local fish store has a corner about 5 feet high with Lace Rock.

i've never even seen lace rock, as far as i know

is the lace rock light in weight?

This place is fantastic for base rock.
http://www.reeferrocks.com/

jimm, thanks for link...it is much appreciated