Old Seashells In The Fw Aquarium

[Squishiebabe]

Ok, so last night my dad got this great idea on how to spice up my tank..downstairs in my basement he has these 3 large conch shells that he picked up from the beach in Jamaica in around, 1984 he says....If I boil these/cook them/ somehow sanitize, will they be okay for my freshwater tank? My dad says their bone so they shouldnt leech anything

Has anyone done this? I'll add pictures later today of the shells (their very large!)

 

[Sysiphus]

Although you would think all dead material would be out of the shell after so long a time, things can really get into some of those small twists and turns and just be dryed waiting for some water to rehydrate them. You have to be very watchful of seeing signs of cloudy water for a while. Even boiling will have trouble getting to all the turns in a large conch shell. Cleaning with a sterilizer like bleach is not a real good idea because the fluid moves into the smallest reaches of the shell and then (just like dryed decaying particles) can leach out into the water if not completely removed during a rinse.

You did not mention if this was a salt tank or fresh water and that can also play a part. I have never had my own experience with this, but know at least two first hand experiences with people who have lost cat fish (one cory and one upsidedown) getting stuck in shells. It seems they try to follow the contours to a point of getting wedged in.

 

[Benauld]

You did not mention if this was a salt tank or fresh water and that can also play a part.

will they be okay for my freshwater tank?

!!!??? Please READ the thread.

 

[Benauld]

To answer your question Squishiebabe, the shells will likely be composed of calcium carbonate not bone per se. This may have an effect on your water stats in the same way that aragonite sand would i.e. making your water harder and more alkaline. As for any biological contaminants they may harbour, I dare say it would be highly unlikely. Boil 'em long and boil 'em good, and you shouldn't have a problem.

 

[dc3]

Just an quick quirp >> what about the shells' effect on the pH?

 

[Squishiebabe]

Thanks for your opinions. Yes my tank is freshwater,(30g) and it has 4 cherry barbs, a bristlenose plec, 1 platy, and 6 glowlight tetra...I'm unsure of my pH but i know the water I'm using is RO water, so it shouldnt be hard or have high ph?(right??) Here are some photos of the shells
Please keep giving me suggestions!!!!

 

[Benauld]

I don't really understand your point dc3, the acid-alkali spectrum is pH. Acid = low pH, Alkaline = high pH where pH is a measurement of the activity of hydrogen ions in solution. So increasing alkalinity is an increase in pH.

What exactly are you asking?

 

[Squishiebabe]

does anybody have any idea?

this site says that if you coat them in epoxy they should be okay, but I'm not sure if I could coat the inside of those shells? Maybe submerge it completely? lol hellppp

 

[dc3]

I don't really understand your point dc3, the acid-alkali spectrum is pH. Acid = low pH, Alkaline = high pH where pH is a measurement of the activity of hydrogen ions in solution. So increasing alkalinity is an increase in pH.

What exactly are you asking?

Maybe I made a mistake with the kind of H (pH / gH / kH) - what I meant to say is would adding in sea-shells increase the hardness of the water? I know they go into tangynikan cichlid tanks where hard water is desired - but this isn't always ideal for all kinds of fish... I had posted before about my betta tank and was told that sea-shells increase the pH as per >> http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?showto...62&hl=betta

 

[K.J.]

Honestly I wouldn't, better to be safe than sorry.

 

[Squishiebabe]

ya I'm thinking that ... would be beautiful in a tank though...guess I'll have to go saltwater for that...

 

[MikeD67]

ya I'm thinking that ... would be beautiful in a tank though...guess I'll have to go saltwater for that...

coulodnt you run simple test your self to see what it does to the parameters of the water? ie Take a bucket fill with water then test the water peramiters before adding the shells then add your shells and test again after about 24 hours and see what changes if any were made to the parameters of your water. is this something that could be done to see if its safe to use them? If you want to use these in your tank seems this test may be worth the try.

 

[Squishiebabe]

no test kit lol...atm that does sound good but the thing is that from what I'm reading it slowly changes it over time, so i would have to test it after like a month and a few maybe...I'm now looking into driftwood which should be fine. Thanks alot