[pyromaniac398]

ok so i live in florida oh about 5 minutes away from the beach, which is a highly useful thing for a person keeping a marine tank. i opted to get my live rock from the local beaches around my house instead of having to pay for it from the LFS. as im sure you all know any money saved in this hobby is good i was just wondering if i should do anything to the rock before putting it in my tank, i.e. soak it in a trash can a couple of times... i weary to do it tho because these rocks in pullin out are full of creatures from crabs to feathers dusters, snails, and even a coupe of anemones would they die if i tried to rid the rock of any pests that may hitchhike their way into my tank?

[darkwolf29a]

I think I would cure it for awhile before putting it in myself. Do a google search on it and see about instructions for curing rock. I know I saw some one site or another, but I can't remember where now.

[glampka]

Didn't think it was legal to be taking rock in FL? Be cautious since most rock/sand taken close to shore tends to have more pollutants in it. If you're curing the rock, you'll lose some on what's on it.

[pyromaniac398]

i live on private property so i guess you could say that Fl doesnt ownt he rock anyway... lol i hope it isnt illegal but just to be safe i wont do it any more

[Coma]

Pyro,

A quick Google resulted in finding a website with this tidbit on it:

2) No person shall sell, within the State of Florida, any live rock harvested in or from federal Exclusive
Economic Zone (EEZ) waters adjacent to state waters unless such person possesses a saltwater products
license with both a marine life fishery endorsement and a restricted species endorsement.

Original link: http://www.scubadivecharters.com/FL.htm

So, you can harvest the rocks but just don't go selling them unless you have a license. Harvest away, man. =)

Of course, as you skim through the rest of the page, there's a lot more legal mumbo jumbo that I don't care to try and understand so it's up to you if you want to continue getting your own live rock. I think it would be fun to harvest your own... although, I don't have a private beach so my circumstances are different. =)

[crazygator]

in the future for i'm sure you'll do it again (i would) you'll need to cure the heck out of it because of the threat of pollutants, there will be some die off due to the rock touching air but i would be more careful with te gunk that accumulates close to shore.