Is this Rock safe for my aquarium?
- Thread starter Sir Guppy
- Start date
It looks a bit like granite and that is normally safe. However, if it has been contaminated with herbicide or pesticide, it's not worth risking. A lot of pesticides leave a poisonous residue that lasts for years and are extremely toxic to aquatic organisms. If you aren't 100% certain it's free of chemicals, don't use it.
JohnnyReb
Fish Fanatic
To clean pesticide off aquarium rocks, the safest method is to thoroughly scrub them with a stiff-bristled brush and warm water, then soak them in a large container of clean, dechlorinated water for several hours or overnight to remove any residual pesticide; for heavily contaminated rocks, you can consider a brief soak in a very diluted bleach solution, followed by multiple rinses with clean water before adding them to your aquarium.
Archerfish
Fish Crazy
Clean it as mentioned above, dry it and put a drop of vinegar on the rock and look for fizz. No fizzing, put a drop of API Nitrate testing fluid on it and look for fizzing. If just one rock is used and if no fizzing is noticed I wouldn't worry about it.
Or, if there is a pesticide risk and the rock hasn't got sentimental value, go for a walk where pesticides aren't an issue, and simply pick another one up. I use 'wild caught' rocks in my tanks. I use a field guide to be sure of what they are, and have a clean spot to pick them up from. You're from Canada, and we have rocks. Lots of rocks.
Do you keep guppies? If you do, you don't even need the fizz test, and minerals released in the water are fine by them. I get green limestone here, a rock I'd never put in a rainforest tank. But in my platy tank, they're ideal.
Do you keep guppies? If you do, you don't even need the fizz test, and minerals released in the water are fine by them. I get green limestone here, a rock I'd never put in a rainforest tank. But in my platy tank, they're ideal.
And trees and rocks and trees and water!…
I found this in a forest, near a school. Might be free from pesticides, I don’t know, when I first posted this I couldn’t remember where it came from.
I washed it off, and now it is starting to look suspiciously like concrete lol:
Can I ask what region of our country you're in?
It does look like concrete. That would be a bad idea.
I have a shoulder bag I sometimes put on when I walk the dog. I'm by the ocean, so I can go out and pick clean rocks, if they aren't frozen into the sand. I toss them in the bag if I think they'll fit a 'scape' idea.
It does look like concrete. That would be a bad idea.
I have a shoulder bag I sometimes put on when I walk the dog. I'm by the ocean, so I can go out and pick clean rocks, if they aren't frozen into the sand. I toss them in the bag if I think they'll fit a 'scape' idea.
Uberhoust
Fish Herder
If you ask me, it almost looks like a type of limestone. I would as other people suggest make sure it is washed thoroughly. I would then give it an acid test to see if it reacts. I test with muriatic acid, but you could use vinegar but it will take longer for the bubbles to show. Acid test should be done on a discrete freshly exposed surface of the rock.
If it reacts to the acid test then it contains some carbonates and will react with your water. Then you have a choice of whether to use it in the tank, it will increase your hardness and along with it the pH, but if you already have a hardwater tank that will not be an issue. In practice I find if you do large changes frequently you can use limestone in softwater tanks too, but you cannot skip on your water changes.
If you have a tighter location on where you collected the rock one might be able to limit the choices of rock types as well, Canada is very diverse with rock types. Also close up photos would be helpful, close enough to see crystals in the rock if there are any.
If you collected the rock from an arid region you need to be a bit more careful, sometimes in these areas the rocks can get coated with various minerals which can cement onto the rock, some which can be toxic, ie Arsenic.
If it reacts to the acid test then it contains some carbonates and will react with your water. Then you have a choice of whether to use it in the tank, it will increase your hardness and along with it the pH, but if you already have a hardwater tank that will not be an issue. In practice I find if you do large changes frequently you can use limestone in softwater tanks too, but you cannot skip on your water changes.
If you have a tighter location on where you collected the rock one might be able to limit the choices of rock types as well, Canada is very diverse with rock types. Also close up photos would be helpful, close enough to see crystals in the rock if there are any.
If you collected the rock from an arid region you need to be a bit more careful, sometimes in these areas the rocks can get coated with various minerals which can cement onto the rock, some which can be toxic, ie Arsenic.
sometimes I think people worry excessively... my favorite place to pick rocks, gets sprayed by Roundup weed killer, I wait until after a rain, before I go picking, then I wash them in a sink, with dish soap, and towel them dry, just like a dish, & I've never had an issue...
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