pottery in the aquarium

[Torrean]

I'm makeing an ornament to go in an aquarium in my pottery class and I just wanted to make sure it would be safe. It is going to be unvitrified which is why I am concerned. I know not to use glaze but it won't be fired to the point of vitrification.

 

[LuBear]

I didn't know that glaze was bad... but hey, that's a good question. Really repends on what type of clay you use. Yes, there's deferent kinds of clay...

 

[Torrean]

I know there are different kinds of clay but I wasn't aware that that would make any difference. Now when I say that glaze is harmful i am just repeating what I have heard several people on here say. I asked my teacher and she had no idea. So if you know different than i do then please speak up.

 

[LuBear]

try taking a peice of kilned clay and put it in dechlorinated water(not the ones in the tank) and take a water test. I think that should do some solving. I have never tried using clay so I'm not that sure on this stuff.

 

[Torrean]

I don't think the particles that would possibly be released would show up on any tests, except maybe PH. That's what your talking about isnt it. DUH. Sounds like a pretty good idea. I think i'll try that out if I don't get a couple deffinite answers through the net.

 

[Rivermud76]

Several types of clay contain heavy metals which are harmful to fish and invertebrates. If unfired the clay will eventually solve and becomes gooey feeling or slimy feeling and possibly fully dissolve.

Glaze has no adverse affects on fish as far as i've ever heard and trust me I have used glazed products in tanks before.

I would suggest that you coat your clay decorations in something... some sort of expoxy clear coat or similar if you choose not to fire and glaze them.

 

[Torrean]

I am using Carolina Buff clay. It will be fired until it will not solve in water but it will not be fully vitrified.

 

[cla55y19]

people put teracota pots in there tanks is this different then or should i be worried about that?

 

[Torrean]

terra cotta is ok as far as I know, I just can't find out why it's ok, and if my clay will be ok.

 

[Rivermud76]

Heh, I used to know sooo much more about clay. I wanted to make some unique none fired structures for my tank. The reason I wanted non fired was because the sheer size of the project. You see the thicker the walls the more dangerous it is to fire it.... Anyway, basically it is all based on the type of clay you use. Certain types of clay contain these heavy metals, other types of clay will eventually solve in water.. Terra-Cotta pots can tend to gt slimy but they are mainly made from safe types of clay so they are quite safe and used widely. Firing normally takes care of most issues with clay however i would suggest that you look into the type of clay you are using..Let me see if I can find some of the old information on this I used to reference.

Ahh now i remember... Went and looked back at some old notes. The type of clay to use would be Barium Free clay. This can then be cured and coated with an epoxy at any time you wish. The article I referred to in my notes stated that they used barium free clay which they then fired, they did not glaze it becuase they wanted to actually paint it afterwards with some sort of cement coloring or something of that nature and then coat it with epoxy. It must have been a great article because my notes said the picture of the final product looked AWESOME.. hope that helps.. BTW, my notes also state that all clay will eventually feel slimy but it won't fully solve depending on whether or not it's be fired.

 

[Torrean]

This is the conversation so far between me and the company that my teacher bought the carolina buff from

Hello Landon,
Thank you for the e-mail. I am not familiar with carolina buff, it is
not one of our clays. However, my advice is to find out if the clay has
manganese, barium, and the sulfer content of it. All of these will be
harmful to an aquarium. Most ball clays contain sulfer, just in
different amounts. There should not be a problem with not firing it to
vitrification as long as the sulfer isn't too high. There should be no
need to glaze either. I hope this helps you. Please let me know if I
can
assist you any further. Have a great day!
Sincerely,
Angela
Highwater Clays

Landon Webb wrote:
> I am using carolina buff to make aquarium ornaments. I am very
curious
> as to whether this will be safe or not. It will be fired but not to
the
> point of vitrification. I will not be using any glazes unless you
tell
> me that it is necessary. I want to make sure that it will be safe.
I
> am taking a pottery class so I don't know a whole lot about it.

 

[Griz]

I've been researching home-made plywood tanks. There are various products like epoxy paints that are used to seal inside of the tank. Try a search and see what product are safe that might also work to seal your clay ornaments.

 

[Torrean]

The problem with coating it with anything to protect the fish is that it has tons of crevices. It's a coil pot. I don't think I could cover it well enough to feel safe. I have a coil pot that I cut in half attached to the sides of the ornament to use as planters too. I think this would be very very difficult to coat with epoxy. If it's the only way to make the ornament safe then I'll just pitch the whole thing in the trash can. Or take vent some frustration on it. SMASH >=)

I will look into it but at the moment I don't think I'll be able to coat the entire thing with anything unless I dunk it in a tub of the stuff.

 

[Rivermud76]

http/www.avesstudio.com/FAQ_s/faq_s.html

What a find.. clay thats non toxic, doesn't need to be fired, and has been used in aquariums already... woot

 

[Torrean]

Thanks I'll take a look into that if I decide to make more ornaments. I'm thinking of starting to make them for money. Those sunken ships and rocks you get at wallmart are allright but they don't look natural at all, and thousands of people have them in there aquariums. I think there may be a demand for one of a kind aquarium ornaments so you may have just made me a bunch of $$$. Thanks a ton.

http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?showtopic=93121