"dead" Coral In My Freshwater Tank?

[Gootz]

Just got back from a trip to Hawaii and found 2 really nice pieces of dead coral on the beaches there which I would really like to put in my 19g freshwater tank. After doing some research I've seen that coral could raise the PH. However I couldn't find anything about if you boil the coral to remove all remaining organic matter prior to inserting and if that would make a difference.

One piece is rather large and the other is pretty small. Curious to hear the experts thoughts on this subject and what side effects there may be to putting the coral in my tank. Is there anything else I can do to thwart any negative side effects?

Thanks in advance!

 

[MBOU]

Personally I wouldnt put it in a tank...

For starters, you can't be sure there arent traces of dead coral right inside it, could potentially cause ammonia or at very least nitrates if there is and potentially other problems... oops sorry, saw you mentioned that!! NM!!

It really will effect your ph, corals basically utilize calcium to create their skeleton, calcium is obviously not a really solid structure and will disolve into the water over time and will make the water really hard, some fish will tolerate the higher ph but what you need to worry about is the sudden changes, the coral will make your tank water harder than the tap water, so every time you do a water change, you will crash the ph and then it will rise over a few days as the coral is releasing calcium or whatever into the water and then you do a waterchange and rash the ph again.... see the problem? ph will go up and down, up and down and that is likely to kill fish through ph shock (not nice to see i assure you).

And personally.. I really dont understand why anyone would want dead coral in their tank!? Its not like you would have a skeleton of a dead fish in your tank..... its something that has died and displaying dead things just seems a little weird to me

 

[fluttermoth]

The coral will also be ruined, as it dissolves away.

 

[coolie]

Not a great idea, will put hardness into the water as stated, also has nasty sharp edges for your fish.

 

[Gootz]

Thanks for the replies.

Personally I wouldnt put it in a tank...

For starters, you can't be sure there arent traces of dead coral right inside it, could potentially cause ammonia or at very least nitrates if there is and potentially other problems... oops sorry, saw you mentioned that!! NM!!

It really will effect your ph, corals basically utilize calcium to create their skeleton, calcium is obviously not a really solid structure and will disolve into the water over time and will make the water really hard, some fish will tolerate the higher ph but what you need to worry about is the sudden changes, the coral will make your tank water harder than the tap water, so every time you do a water change, you will crash the ph and then it will rise over a few days as the coral is releasing calcium or whatever into the water and then you do a waterchange and rash the ph again.... see the problem? ph will go up and down, up and down and that is likely to kill fish through ph shock (not nice to see i assure you).

And personally.. I really dont understand why anyone would want dead coral in their tank!? Its not like you would have a skeleton of a dead fish in your tank..... its something that has died and displaying dead things just seems a little weird to me

The PH imbalance makes a lot of sense. Guess I'll have to find a nice piece of lava rock or something. =\

Would even the smaller piece which is maybe 3" x 4" have enough of an effect to cause harm?

I like the shape of the larger coral piece as it has several caves and a couple fossils. Why do people put driftwood in their tanks? That's a dead tree!

 

[eaglesaquarium]

Yeah, no matter what size, it will dissolve and add calcium to the water column, increasing the kH, pH, and causing all kinds of issues when you change the water. This will make the tank conditions very different from your tap conditions.

 

[MBOU]

Trees drop branches naturally

 

[Gootz]

Yeah, no matter what size, it will dissolve and add calcium to the water column, increasing the kH, pH, and causing all kinds of issues when you change the water. This will make the tank conditions very different from your tap conditions.

I figured because it was a much smaller amount that the rise in PH would be negligable considering the size of the tank to the size of the coral. Probably scratching this idea altogether.

Trees drop branches naturally

What?!?! Which reality TV show taught you that bogus info?!?!?!

 

[eaglesaquarium]

Its not a bad idea, in terms of aesthetics, but it would be short lived, and the smaller one would actually dissolve away faster, considering that for its volume, it probably has more surface area.


The issue is not aesthetic, but chemistry. There are plenty of igneous rocks that you could look to use in your tank that would be quite striking as well. Put the coral somewhere that it won't deteriorate. ;-)

 

[Gootz]

Its not a bad idea, in terms of aesthetics, but it would be short lived, and the smaller one would actually dissolve away faster, considering that for its volume, it probably has more surface area.


The issue is not aesthetic, but chemistry. There are plenty of igneous rocks that you could look to use in your tank that would be quite striking as well. Put the coral somewhere that it won't deteriorate. ;-)

The main reason I wanted to use these coral pieces is because I picked them up myself off the beach in Hawaii, so it would've been a nice reminder of the trip. But I get that it won't work and will figure out something else.

In the meantime, I decided to pickup another tank for my office. It's a 29 gallon glass tank with a nice cabinet stand that I'll be setting up over the next couple weeks. I'm thinking of doing an aquascape with 2 or 3 large schools of fish just to keep it simple, relaxing and communal.

 

[eaglesaquarium]

If I may suggest... Smaller species will look spectacular in that tank. Lots of individuals, small size.


I'm a fan of the smaller species like: Celestial Pearl Danios (Galaxy Rasbora), Trigonostigma Espei, and Panda cories or Corydoras hastatus are also very nice smaller corydoras species.

You could easily go with 8-10 of each of the fish outlined and not overload the tank. You could even mix in a few male endlers, a BN pleco for algae control (needs wood), etc.



I understand your interest in having the coral as a reminder. Why not just put it on top of the tank, or under it in some sort of cabinet where it is still visible, but will also last for the next 20 years. ;-)

 

[Gootz]

I appreciate the suggestions. I was contemplating making this a saltwater tank, but am going to do another freshwater tank instead. I don't know jack about salt and I think there will be some efficiencies running 2 fresh. I did go to my LFS and spoke with my (knowledgable) friend and manager there about starting an aquascape tank. He strongly advised against it due to how much work they are to bring to equillibrium. So before I pull the trigger on a direction I'm going to do some more research.

The tank arrives tomorrow, so I'll be cleaning it and painting the exterior tank trim which is currently "oak," while the stand is black. I picked it up super cheap on CL and it even came with a python vac! I do have a couple of questions. Let me know if you can answer them, otherwise I may start a new thread in the proper subforum.

1. How should I clean the inside of the tank as well as the used filter and heater? I heard a mixture of water and vinegar works, but not sure the appropriate concentration.
2. What kind of paint works best on the plastic "oak" frames that run both the top and bottom of the tank?

Thanks!

 

[eaglesaquarium]

I'd say use a 50/50 split between water and distilled vinegar. For the tough spots on the glass, I'd use a NEW toothbrush and straight vinegar. Be sure to rinse everything well before filling it up.


I couldn't help you with the paint issue.

 

[Gootz]

Thanks for all of your advice. Much appreciated!!!

 

[Gootz]

Thought I'd share the link to my thread on the new tank: http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?/topic/412241-new-29g-low-tech-planted-tank/

Thanks again for the help.

Happy New Year!