JimM

The best practice would be to cycle any rock before it goes into an established tank. I even cycled "dry rock" that was as dead as you can get. It was created with the sand, shell mixture stuff. So I knew there was no die off in there, but still wanted to cycle it just to be safe. I'm glad I did too, because even though it was cycled, it still caused a small algae bloom in the tank when it was added. I hate to imagine what would have happened if i had thrown it straight in... might have lost several hundred in corals in a worst case scenario.

So... after saying all that. There's also several people who believe that since it's "dry rock" it won't cycle. If it used to be live rock at any point in time though... it's guaranteed to have some die off... no matter how small it may be. It would depend on what's in the tank for me personally. :-)

Man made rock will "cycle" because of chemical swings it induces in the tank. If you have a system with established live rock, and want to add some marco rock (that was quarried inland and sold as such) you can add it at any time. A good rinse with saltwater before putting it in your tank wouldn't be frowned upon, but otherwise you're in the clear as far as my experience dictates.

Hey kileysmama so the dry rock would then eventually turn into live rock? and also how long does dry rock take to be live rock?