Natural Slate from lowes aquarium Safe?

[johnnygromis]

I want to get some natural slate from lowes to build some hides. But I can't find any info or other aquarists who have used this. Just wanted to know if there's anyone out there who has any experience with this slate. The link is below

https://www.lowes.com/pd/Anatolia-Ti...ile/1001042626

[Colin_T]

As long as it hasn't been exposed to any chemicals it is fine. Normally with tiles they are cut in a workshop and rinsed with water before packing. They are not normally exposed to anything during this process so should be fine. Just give them a rinse under tap water before adding to the tank.

[johnnygromis]

Someone pointed out theres a warning that the product may contain silica. You know of any alternatives?

[ColdKoi]

As far as natural products, you’re not going to find much that doesn’t carry the risk or harbouring some silicates

If you stay away from any pieces containing notable amounts of quartz I don’t see their being enough to cause any harm. From my understanding it takes a lot to cause any harm and even moderately high levels only increase diatom algae growth

Depending where they sourced the slate, it may be entirely impossible to find any that don’t have a lot of quartz as it is one of the more popular components of slate

[johnnygromis]

I ended up buying a pack to test them. No bubbling. But I do have alot of red all over these tiles. is this rust or just the coloring of slate. And is rust toxic to fish?

[ColdKoi]

It’s quite likely to have some iron/iron pyrite, again, really depends on the formation it was mined from

Like quartz, in small quantities it shouldn’t have any side effects. Iron is a normal part of many plant fertilizers, heck I actually dose an iron only specific fertilizer for my red ludwigia.

If it is an excessive amount, and you don’t have any plant life or anything to utilize the excess iron, I can foresee that causing some long term health issues for the fish

[Aiken Drum]

It appears you have done a vinegar test for carbonates/ bicarbonates as you mention "bubbling".

Slate from different sources will have different mineral make up. Some flooring slate comes pre-sealed. Your one doesnt read as though it is, so thats good. Give it a good rinse and scrub, then let it soak for 3 or 4 days, changing the water daily. This will leech out most of what might get into your water.

Many people use slate in their tanks without issue. Yours has just been cut into a flooring tile. Only way to know is to try. If you are 100% risk averse, the only safe option is to not use natural products for fear of what contaminents it might contain.

[johnnygromis]

Thanks for the reply! I've been soaking it for a few days now. I took a piece out scrubbed and rinsed it and went to dry it with a paper towel and it stained it brown no matter how many times I rubbed it. Seems like this particular tile has ALOT of rust on it. Most of my pieces are 50-70% covered in the orangish red color. Considering my budget and how much I spent on my 55 gallon setup I don't want to risk spending more replacing fish. Plus I don't want the fish to suffer just so I can test it. Even if on paper it seems safe.