about to buy new live rock

Well currenly my tank has around 30lb of live rock, and i am planning on adding 20lb of more live rock. I bought 20lb of live rock from a guy when i first started the tank, but later i found out they were just river rock x.x
But lfs guy said river rock still should be able to become live rock later on. Well anyway, im gonna get rid of river rock and add this guys fiji rock, with tonga rock mixed. My tank is around a month old and has 2 fish, 1 snail and 1 hermit, and is currently is massive diatom stage.
When I buy these rocks, can i just directly add them in soon as i come home with it? Or is there some rituals i should do? "methods"

 

With your tank only being a month old you can just put the new live rock in

 

You will most likely cycle by adding that much rock. You're current creatures may not possibly make it just FYI.
Why not just get base rock? Much safer on all levels.

 

this guy on craiglist is selling 20lb for 20$. I think its pretty cheap..more cheap then base rock imo. So what can i do? should i add the LR like couple pounds per day or something?
I have 2 differnt answers here xd

 

At the very least, it wouldn't hurt to place all the new rock in a rubbermaid or extra tank (like we all have one of those laying around); with water movement and aeration if possible for a few weeks. This would allow any die off to happen outside of your tank, prohibiting the ensuing cycle from the certainty of ammonia production. Then you can simply remove old rock, and replace it with old. I'd only go this route if you've checked, double checked and checked again to absolutely confirm that the new LR contains no nuisance algae or other nasties you don't want.

If you were really a control freak (and I mean that in the best possible way)--nuke all the new rock with bleachwater (soak for a few days in bleach and water, then in RO/DI, then change the water to RO/DI with a few pounds of baking soda), then RO/DI again, and allow to dry. This will ensure that all the rock you add is pristine clean, and guaranteed to not harbor any nuisance algae, undesirable hitchhikers, etc. There are several threads on nuking rock if you use the search function--they contain more detailed info regarding times, etc.

The rock will become live in your tank over time--but if you go the nuking route, be sure to swap out the rock slowly. I'd move all your "bad" rock to one side of your tank and leave the opposite side open. Place one piece of the nuked rock on the open side, and remove a similar mass of rock from the other side, and wait maybe a week. This will allow your biological filtration to continue relatively undisturbed. Continue this process until your old rock is gone, and just new rock remains. Then you can re-aquascape.

If you're thinking "that will take so long. .. ." you're not alone. The patience game in this hobby can kill lesser folks; but it pays great dividends.

Good luck!!

 

Isnt the tank still cycleing

 

i guess just adding a dry rock is better way to go? my lfs sells them for 1.75 per pound.

 

Absolutely!! I was under the impression you were buying the LR only because you were getting a very good price.

IMO, all things considered, base rock is safer than LR.

 

does it have to be dry rock based off from ocean?