I accidentally bought glow in the dark gravel... is this stuff safe for betta fis

[Lululover15]

Hello! I’m new to this forum

I am in the process of setting up a tank for a betta fish. I bought gravel and plants yesterday, and after putting the gravel in the tank, planting the plants, and filling it with water, I realized that my gravel is glow in the dark...

Is this stuff harmful for fish? I still need to cycle the tank, so it will be some time before I add a betta.

I really don’t want to have to do this all over - do you think my future fish will be ok?

 

[Colin_T]

Hi and welcome to the forum

If you bought the gravel from a pet shop and they sold it to you as a substrate for an aquarium that is going to contain fish, then it should be safe for the fish. However, I have never heard of glow in the dark gravel for aquariums so it could be something new and might possibly have some unwanted side effects.

Does the packet have any brand names or company names on it that we can google search?

If you can post a picture of the packet and or gravel, it might help.

How do you know it actually glows?
Did it glow during the night when the room was dark, or is the gravel just brightly coloured, pinks, greens, blue, etc?

 

[Colin_T]

According to the Pet Smart website it is safe for fish. They do recommend rinsing it with warm water before adding it to the aquairum but there is nothing on the site that would suggest it is harmful for fish. However, most rocks don't naturally glow in the dark and require another chemical or substance to be applied to the outside and that is what actually luminesces or glows in the dark.

They are advertising it on their website as safe so presumably they have used a non toxic substance to coat the gravel and cause it to glow. Whether this causes any long term damage to the fish, I don't know, but it might. Any long term side effects from this would probably not be noticeable in fish unless you have it necropsied and tested in a lab after it dies.

I would say it is safe but caution there could be possible long term side effects (that are unknown or yet to be identified) from being exposed to it. Any side effects could be lessened by doing big regular water changes (75% several times a week) that would dilute anything leaching into the water. And you could use carbon in the filter to help absorb anything that has leached into the water.

Alternatively, return the gravel and tell them it was keeping you up at night with its glowing. Then get a plain brown or white substrate that doesn't glow.

 

[Byron]

If this gravel actually does "glow" during total darkness, it is harmful to fish. To be honest, if it glows during daylight it is also going to be detrimental to fish.

Light affects fish because every cell on the fish's body, in addition to their eyes, is extremely light sensitive. I have explained this in detail in other older threads, and will copy over if asked. But the fish should not be subjected to this gravel.