20 Reasons Why Real Reef:
ZERO ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT TO THE WORLD’S REEFS
PRESERVING THE REEF HABIT FOR FUTURE MARINE LIFE
A TRULY GREEN PRODUCT
POSITIVE FOR THE INDUSTRY & PUBLIC OPINION
MADE AND FARMED IN THE U.S.A
MADE FROM 100% NATURAL INGREDIENTS
MADE FROM THE SAME BUILDING BLOCKS AS LIVE CORAL ROCK
IDEAL MAKE UP FOR THE MODERN REEF AQUARIUM
PRODUCES SOME OF THE MOST BEAUTIFUL AQUASCAPED AQUARIUMS, REEF OR FISH
DOSEN’T HARBOR NUISCANCE OR PARASITIC ALGAES, INVERTS AND OTHER UNWANTED HITCH HIKERS
HAS GREAT POROSITY, SHAPE, COLOR AND CHARACTER
A QUALITY SAFE PRODUCT THAT MAKES REEF KEEPING SIMPLE
HAS GREAT BUFFERING ABILITY
HOLDS ALKALINITY AND CALCIUM LEVELS
HELPS MAINTAIN A STABLE HEALTHY pH
ALWAYS HAS GREAT PURPLE AND PINK CORALINE DEAD OR ALIVE
GREAT FOR FISH ONLY TANKS, THAT WANT THE REEF LOOK
CONSISTENTLY AVAILABLE AND ALWAYS IN STOCK
EVERY PIECE IS UNIQUE, NO TWO ALIKE
EASILY BONDS WITH EPOXY FOR BUILDING CUSTOM REEF STRUCTURES.
How It Is Made And Grown
Real Reef is made of 100% natural eco friendly green materials. Materials composed of the same mineral building blocks as coral skeleton live rock, without the environmental damage to the World’s Coral reefs. Real Reef is composed of several different types of mineral aggregates and sand. Some are very similar to high end media used in modern Calcium Reactor dosing systems. Real Reef is high in Calcium Carbonate, with amounts in the 82-85% range. Unlike coral skeleton which is primarily Calcium Carbonate, Real Reef contains a variety of essential trace elements and minerals. This remaining 15-18% consists of minerals and trace elements such as: Magnesium, Strontium and Iron.
It takes over 13 steps to manufacturer Real Reef Rock and every piece is unique and different, but not ugly! No two pieces are the same, just like Mother Nature! Real Reefs multiple ingredients are bonded together with natural calcium based binders; we do not use any chemical or synthetic epoxies or glue. It is through this labor intensive proprietary Patent Pending process that makes Real Reef mimic some of the best coral Live Rock shapes the aquarium industry has seen!
Real Reef’s beautiful shades of Purple, Pink and Red come from a water based non-toxic natural pigment. These proprietary pigments are injected and applied through several techniques and processes. Every piece of Real Reef is hand made by our Artisans here at our U.S. facility with pride and creativity. Real Reef is made, grown in the U.S.A and always will be!
Once the Real Reef Rocks are created, they go through a pre grow-out preparation. This pre grow-out freshwater curing process lasts for a minimum of 12 weeks. Once the rock has completed the curing process, it is then transferred to saltwater grow-out for a minimum of 12-16 weeks. Our marine grow-out facility consists of large 3,000 and 10,000 gallon fiberglass raceways in our climate controlled greenhouses. It is in these filtered closed system raceways that Real Reef becomes a biologically active aquarium rock. It is from these grow-out raceway systems that Real Reef is prepared, packed and shipped to distributors and retailers worldwide.
Why Real Reef For The Modern Marine Aquarium?
The end result of the manufacturing and growing process is a beautiful natural three dimensional coralline colored living rock made from 100% natural materials. This wild rock alternative is eco-reef friendly, with the basic building blocks to cycle and promote a healthy modern reef aquarium. Basic necessary components such as: Nitrifying bacteria, Micro Algae’s and some Coralline Algae varieties. Real Reef Mfg. does note grow or promote any unwanted hitchhikers and undesirables that wild live rock inherently is plagued with. As a result, Real Reef requires no curing or waiting for the dying, rotting and decaying biological material normally found on wild live rock.
A huge part of the success of Real Reef has been the progressive aquarist. Cutting edge aquarist know, that being environmentally conscious is the mindset that facilitates a responsible hobby for the future. It is those modern aquarists that have been leading the charge on coral propagation, marine ornamental fish breeding and creating and using eco-reef friendly products. Being a responsible aquarist starts with the products we choose to buy and overwhelming the hard core marine aquarist choose Real Reef!
Currently most Live Rock in the aquarium trade is not alive anymore. Most live rock is shipped via boat and sea container from places like the Fijian Islands. This low cost live rock is known in the industry as Container Rock. Container rock is shipped in large metal sea containers and packed dry in boxes for months at a time. The rock is alive upon collection, but dead on arrival. Simply, most wild live rock isn’t alive, but dead!
Even though most wild Live Rock is dead on arrival, it still requires additional cleaning and curing for weeks at a time by the retailer and/or aquarist. This period of time is called “Curing”. Unfortunately, this curing process only allows the external decaying bio-material to slough or rot off. Often it doesn’t allow for the decaying bio-material within the pores throughout and center of the wild coral skeleton rock. As a result, the wild rock’s decaying bio-material impregnated porous coral skeleton serves as an ideal environment for growing nuisance and/or plague algae’s. With so much emphasis placed on nitrates and phosphates, we must first remove the very dead organic material that ultimately converts into these algae loving nutrients. All of this can be avoided by not buying wild live rock. Another benefit of Real Reef Rock, is it’s extremely porous. Real Reef is covered with thousands of pores, nooks and crevices, which are clean, open and available for beneficial colonizing organisms. Real Reef Rock promotes good strong encrusting coralline algae growth, but does not promote nuisance or plague algae’s.
Real Reef is a quality natural reef eco-friendly product that promotes easy success in marine aquarium keeping! You never have to second guess this product. From inception, quality ingredients and quality control are our number one focus. Real Reef aquarists never have to tear down their aquariums some months later due to an infestation of unwanted pest or nuisance inverts or algae brought in by the rock! It works great as a natural porous filter and provides beneficial Calcium, Buffer and essential trace elements. Simply, Real Reef helps create and grow beautiful aquariums, without destroying the natural beauty of the World’s Coral Reefs.
The wild Live Rock mining, harvest or collection is not a sustainable practice! Never has been and never will be, simply due to the fact that it is the very habitat that is taken and never replaced. There has never been a Fishery or Conservation program that has ever advocated the destruction and removing of habitat. The very habitat that feeds, grows and shelters the very fishery that is harvested and sold (Marine Fish, Inverts and Coral) What is the point of buying sustainable or aquacultured products, if we are placing them in or upon a reef made from destroyed coral reef habitat? This makes no sense and is not a productive practice for our hobby and industry. The idea is for native islanders to farm their coral reef resource, as they have done for thousands of years. Not to encourage them to remove and take pieces of the actual habitat that produces the very livelihood for them and future generations.
Real Reef Made In The U.S.A.
Real Reef is 100% made and grown in the U.S.A. Here at Real Reef we feel it’s critical that we support and buy American made products when ever we can! It’s good for the U.S. economy, security and the American people. Innovation, farming and manufacturing should always start at home first. Real Reef is an American made product, which is sold here and exported to countries around the world. Real Reef is an example for the World, how America can be an environmental leader with innovative eco friendly products. Help conserve the Coral Reefs, while securing and creating jobs here and abroad.
It is products like Real Reef that continue to set the tone and raise the bar for a sustainable aquarium trade. It proves that aquacultured eco friendly products can be profitable and viable, even for our overseas partners. Every sold piece of wild coral rock encourages and promotes our overseas suppliers to continually damage one of the few resources they have. A habitat resource that needs to be nurtured and farmed, not strip mined, crow barred, boxed and shipped.
What example are we leading the world by? America is only interested in exploiting your resource? Ship pieces of your Island habitat and we will give you money? Let’s lead by example and send a message that farming the reefs and protecting your resource is in your best interest and the Worlds! Without healthy reefs, how will our overseas suppliers ever be able to catch next year’s crop of baby coral, fish and inverts for future aquarists? I know of no sustainable Fishery practice or conservation method that advocates the taking and removing of the very habitat that grows the very resource which brings in revenue for the country of origin. Simply….. buy responsible and support aquaculture and sustainable collected marine life here and abroad when ever possible. The future of the Marine Aquarium hobby starts with you!
Reality And Documentary Broadcasts:
Discovery Channel’s TANKED. Multiple Episodes, National Geographic’s FISH TANK KINGS, DIY Network, MANCAVES Show
Public Aquariums And Institutions:
Monterey Bay Aquarium, Seattle Public Aquarium, Baltimore Public Aquarium, Smithsonian Marine Station Florida, Sea Life Centers, Scripps Institute of Oceanography, Stephen Birch Aquarium
Breeders:
Sustainable Aquatics, Proaquatix, Addyzone Hatcheries, Reef Gen
Aquarium Manufacturers:
Ecotech, Neptune Systems, Ecoxotic, Current USA, Red Sea, Seachem, Hagen, Kessil, Aqua Illumination, Sicce, Aqua Tech, Piscene Energetics, ZooMed, ATM Acrylic Tank Manufacturers, AGE Acrylic & Glass Exhibits, Tropic Marin, New Era, Reef Brite, Reef Savy, CPR Aquatics, TAAM, Living Color Aquariums, Build my LED, Eheim, Hydor, Innovative Marine, JBJ USA, Phyto 2, CAD Lights