Are some rocks NOT safe in my tank?

[pecosblues]

Hi, I hope someone can help me.
I have a 55 gal. tank and I am tired of the scenery.

I have a multitude of rocks that I have picked up from mostly the desert and would like to use some of them in place of the black shale that dominates the theme now.

Are there any particuliar rocks I should stay away from?
What steps should I use to insure they are clean or safe?

Specifically, I'd like to know if petrified wood and quartz rocks are safe, but would appreciate any input on others as well.
Thanks!
pecosblues

 

[Sati]

You don't want rock with lime in it and you don't want rock with a lot of calcium in it because it will make the water harder and more alkaline. You can test it by dropping vinegar on the rock and seeing if it fizzles a whole bunch. I use all kinds of found rocks in my tanks... in all of them. I've never had any problems. I cleaned them with elbow grease and hot water, soaked them in a light solution of bleach for 10 minutes, and boiled them. I have a piece of petrified wood in my Oranda tank but there's no way to say if all petrified wood is safe considering it's rock... rock that could contain any of a number of minerals depending on where it's found. I'm 99% sure quartz would be fine because a lot of aquarium gravel is made from quartz.

 

[QTOFFER]

Pecosblues, WELCOME to AA!!!!

I'm slowly changing my tank over to a desert Southwest theme, so you'll have to post some pics when you are done.

First of all, what kinds of fish do you have in the tank? Some fish like African cichlids prefer hard water with a high pH; most other fish prefer slightly acidic to neutral water. Limestone and other carbonate-containing minerals will raise your water hardness and pH.

As far as rocks go, you want to avoid anything that will dissolve or react in your water. If you place some muriatic acid (get it at a paint or hardware store) on the stone and it fizzes, don't use the stone. You also want to avoid rocks containing metal ores that may leach toxic metals into the water.

I can tell you from experience that most petrified wood and sandstone will be OK. Quartz will be OK too, but stay clear of a glass-like stone called Utah ice which you can buy from the lfs. Someone here - I think Ferret? -reported that this stone slowly dissolves away in water.

Before you put the stones in the aquarium, soak them in warm water overnight. Then scrub them well with a fingernail brush until the water is no longer cloudy. You may also wish to boil the stones to kill parasites. Don't use stones that were collected from areas where pesticides or herbicides may have been applied.

 

[millipede]

stones

Yes, welcome...
I have nothing to add about the rocks... good info so far... I just have a comment on the "utah ice"... I would guess, based on "Utah, that it would be made of salt... There's "salt lake" and the "salt flats", basically a desert made of salt... something called Utah Ice sounds to me like it would be salt... just a thought...

 

[pecosblues]

Thanks for the quick replies.

I have in my tank:
1 Bala Shark
1 Pictus Cat
3 Cichlids
2 Clown Loaches
1 Pleco

These fish are all from about 3" (the clown loaches) to about 7" (1 Cichlid & the Pleco) The others fall in between those sizes. I have had them for almost 2 years. I inherited them from my daughter. They outgrew their 30 gallon tank pretty quick and have been in this 55 galllon tank since Dec. 2002.

The desert theme is what I was aiming for. I will post some pictures when it's done, although that might be another month.
peace~
pecosblues

 

[QTOFFER]

OK, I had a chance to search for 'Utah ice'. The original post was actually made by William.
http://www.aquariumadvice.com/viewtopic.php?t=18908&highlight=utah+ice


I'm assuming that by cichlids, you mean dwarf South American cichlids like rams?

If that is the case, you definitely do not want calcium carbonate-based rocks since all your fish prefer softish water at a slightly acidic pH.

Have you considered putting some dried cholla cactus in there as well? I'm doing an experiment in my QT tank to see how well cholla wood holds up in the aquarium. I'll post my results in a few weeks - hopefully the stuff doesn't break down.

 

[Menagerie]

[center:bb81578752] Welcome to AA, pecosblues! [/center:bb81578752]

I'm assuming that by cichlids, you mean dwarf South American cichlids like rams?

Not if one of the cichlids is 7" and the rest are over 3"!!!
What type of cichlids are you keeping?

 

[pecosblues]

I don't know what kind they are. Maybe this is a good place to find out.
I'll see if I can figure out this gallery thing and post a few pictures.

I inherited these fish from my daughter. She worked in a pet shop and bought these fish when they were tiny, then moved into an RV a couple of years ago. She called them as African Cichlids.

I would be very interested in the outcome of the cholla wood. I have some really cool pieces I could use.
peace~
pecosblues

 

[Menagerie]

African cichlids come from a few rift lakes and there are 100s of them. A good site to see which fish they are is cichlid-forum.com. You can post here and we can try to help, but I am only knowledgable in Mbuna (Lake Malawi) and some from Lake Tanganyika.

 

[pecosblues]

I spent most of the remainder of the evening last night viewing cichlids from Africa. Have not determined for sure which they are, but sucessfully uploaded pictures of them. Check my gallery. Any input? The yellow & orange striped one is the bigun'. He's as big as my hand.

 

[Menagerie]

I have some guesses, but that's it--guesses.
012 looks like a red zebra (Maylandia estherae, also Pseudotropheus estherae; previously Pseudotropheus zebra--I couldnt't find a link with a mature male)
011 looks like an Auratus ( http://www.cichlidae.com/gallery/Melanochromis/auratus.html )
010 could be in the Nimbochromis genus