Outside rocks in aquarium

[fishlover9000]

I want to make a good hiding spot for my fish with rocks from out side.

is it safe?
any formation ideas?

 

[WhiteDevil]

Totally safe if you boil em out.


look at whats natural to them and go from there, I try and make things as natural as possible.

 

[joy13]

Rocks can be tested with muriatic acid or vinegar, if it bubbles it isn't safe. You might want to let the rock soak for a few days or a couple of weeks to see if the water has changed.

You can silicon the rocks together with aquarium safe silicon GE has one that is safe Silicone 1 is the one you want it is in a blue and grey tube. Make sure it is cured before putting it in your tank.

http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/361926/create_your_own_rock_cave_aquarium.html

YouTube - DIY betta cave this is a good idea but I think it would look better with substrate on or rocks about the same color as the substrate. It makes it blend in a little better especially for a planted tank.

 

[newfound77951]

Yes and no. You don't want to use rocks that contain carbonates as they will increase your pH and hardness unacceptably (unless you've got a tank full of african cichlids). Carbonate rocks include marble, limestone and any sort of shell. The vinegar or (better) muriatic acid test will usually tell you which rocks contain carbonate. Rocks like granite, basalt, sandstone and slate are safe.

It is wise to either boil or bake the rocks before use to kill any unwanted microbes. I usually bake mine (at a low oven setting, no need for 350F!) but boiling works well too.

If you have some particular rocks in mind you can take pics of them and post them, I or other folks might be able to ID them for you.

 

[WhiteDevil]

^^^ I didnt know that, good to know since Ive been contemplating grabbing some rocks from work

Looks like this( infact same rocks)

Fromw what I can find on them and prairie stones is that it is pure limestone, is this true? maybe not pure pure but its limestone.

How would you prep SLATE that has come out of a living river?

 

[newfound77951]

Yep, looks like limestone to me! Not too many other rocks that are that white. Rocks in the central US are predominantly limestone.

Slate is fine for tanks. Just give it a scrub if it's dirty, then boil or bake before using it.

 

[WhiteDevil]

Thats not cool then cause we got some wicked shaped shards that I was wanting to use. Oh well guess its a trip down to the vermillion for some natural slate( its the only stone in that river's valley, makes for great summer algae slides)

Whats neat is its in chunk form still, not thin sheets like what they sell in the store, drop one of those chunks and it shatters into hundreds of smaller slivers.

 

[morningman]

I've used outside rocks for 25 years. As long as they pass the vinegar test....and you sterilize them ....they're safe...and CHEAP! I also hunt my own driftwood along local riverbanks and creeks, and have used locally harvested plants as well.

 

[Sicklid]

Old thread, but I think it's slightly dangerous to bake rocks for risk of exploding them once they get hot...

I have never once encountered any ill effects from just soaking my rocks in a bleach and water filled bucket, and then rinse a few times, and a final soak i something we ALL have on hand... de-chlorinator. Always gets rid of any trace of bleach smell almost immediately making them safe!

Again, I have done this method for years and years in tankful after tankful and have never introduced one bad bug or another...

Actually, any time I have introduced anything bad to my systems it was from a fish store selling me plants, fish, or live food...

 

[WhiteDevil]

Ive never had one explode, I learned the method from my father who has been fishkeeping since the 60's same method of cleaning rocks, not once has one exploded or even cracked. I guess its the type of rock too, I take my PH UP bottle with me filled with muratic acid and do my testing in the field then I make sure there are no cracks in them if there are I break it off with another rock and go from there.
Im not saying it cant happen, it sure can but alot of it has to do with the rocks that one is boiling/baking.

 

[Sicklid]

I was'nt saying it was wrong to do, I'm just saying many people may not know the proper temperature or length of time needed... I mean, there are people in the world who still mix bleach and ammonia!

I was just letting people know what has worked for me, and I never had to stick a boulder in my oven...

You obviously know what you are talking about, I was not slighting you or your dads methods...

 

[WhiteDevil]

not a problem, no offense ever taken at all ok.

I do understand what you were saying, I do the 350 just because that temp kills everything and anything in the "wild" decor.

I stopped doing tanks for nearly 10 years while in the service and playing happy bachelor you know, so the info I get here helps bring thngs back and actually this is the only forum where people respect eachother opinions and ideas, I was already ousted from one fish board this week possibly a 2nd after an arguement over whisper filters today, so yeah Id kinda like to take up residency here.

I hate the net due to the fact that you cannot express yourself or use body language to help the statement out.

My feelings rarely get hurt, so its all good.

Now what about mixing baking soda and a certain Toilet cleaner hehehehe.

doesnt bleach and ammonia create a form of mustard gas?

Im no chemist, got kicked out of chemistry for making chemical reactions when I wasnt supposed to.

I will try your method sunday when I get back from my rock hunt. Im open to change and safety with the two toddlers in the house is 100% fine by me. Last thing I need is my kid getting splatted by a rogue rock.

 

[Sicklid]

No sweat... Take a look at this thread... every boulder in this tank was soaked in a five gallon bucket, mixture of bleach and water, rinsed a few times, and final soak was with Prime de-chlorinator... Not one fish has died in this tank...

http://www.aquariumadvice.com/forums/f100/75-gallon-garden-variety-mbuna-tank-114853.html

And thanks for serving your country! I salute you, sir...

 

[WhiteDevil]

I got shafted, stuck in kosovo instead of going to the sand box. Id go back in a heartbeat but now with the 3 and 4 year old they would never understand and with their biological father walking out on em at an earlier age I cant do that to them now, they have a thought process and I cant make them understand that.

I dunno, I like shooting things, its in my blood, im 3rd gen us armed forces and my son will be 4th gen us armed forces if he knows what the right thing to do is.

Wont any water conditioner work to de-chlorinate? I usually use sodium theosulfate to counteract the bleach.

 

[Sicklid]

Yep, I was just saying I used Prime cause that's what I had on hand...

 

[colematthewmalaka]

It should be safe but do the vinegar test, also look closely for rusty or metallic lines on the rock this could be metal which is fatal to fish.

 

[WhiteDevil]

Vinegar is good
PH Down is better
Muratic acid is best for testing rocks, I keep PH down and my PH up is muratic acid, small tubes for pocket fit. I tried vinegar to no avial the PH Down revealed bubbles, muratic acid gave me a spa of bubbles.

 

[Sicklid]

Well, would your tank water be as acidic as vinegar? As pH down? As Muriatic??? I guess what I am saying is, if it does indeed pass the vinegar test, I would imagine that it would not buffer your water too aggressively if you had a high pH out of the tap...

I myself would not fear a rock that was a bubbler when acid was applied, but that's because I am currently keeping rift lake cichlids. If I wanted it in an Amazon tank, I would not go there... But then, I would not be using any rock at all in a tank like that. I guess it's all in what you are after for your particular set up...

I did have a couple of limestone boulders in a tank that had Angelfish, and they never seemed to be stressed!

 

[WhiteDevil]

I soaked a piece of prairie stone aka limestone in a gallon of vinegar didnt get one single bubble off it, even after breaking it to expose virgin minerals.

Distilled white vinegar is the right stuff,right?

 

[Sicklid]

I soaked a piece of prairie stone aka limestone in a gallon of vinegar didnt get one single bubble off it, even after breaking it to expose virgin minerals.

Distilled white vinegar is the right stuff,right?

Yeah...