Supplies...

[Jake Jackson]

So, I dont like to wait until the last minute... and I was looking at the member cichlid tanks, and I wondered where do you guys get that stone and rock for these setups? and is that live sand?

 

[Griz]

Some pay good money for sand and rocks but there are a lot of inexpensive options too. Play sand or pool filter sand/silica sand is very cheap and looks pretty good. I can't bring myself to pay money for rocks and in my tanks I have rocks that I have picked up here and there. In fact there's a rock garden in my yard filled with great rocks for future tanks. You need to be careful what you use but it's a good excuse to get into geology.

There's a great pinned topic here somewhere about rocks but I can't seem to find it. Perhaps someone can post a link for you.

 

[Jake Jackson]

Okay, so what about live sands and corals?

Also, do you just prebake the rocks for about 20-25 minutes to kill everything, and then use the rocks?

 

[dthoffsett]

There's really no reason to use live sand, I believe the lack of salinity will kill off all of the bacteria and critters. However you can use aragonite, or crushed coral for substrate w/african cichlids. They will help keep your ph and kh nice and high. You can use dead corals as well if you want. I used landscaping rocks from my local hardware store.

My rocks were too large to boil, and I didn't feel like baking them, so I just used a pressure washer to get all the gunk off, and put them in the tank. Just make sure to put your rocks on the bare bottom of the tank (or on eggcrate) and then put your substrate around them, cichlids like to dig, and don't know not to dig under rocks.

 

[Boids-n-more]

I use lace rock for my set up but it is on top of some petrified wood whitch can get pretty darm pricey depending on how it looks and the size of it. First i wash the rock in hot plain water to get the dirt and lose particles off of it then i bake it in the oven for about 30 to 45 minutes. I don't start watching the time until the rock is dried in the oven. You can leave it in longer and it won't hurt anything. i then cool it in dechlorinated water.

 

[adambrum]

I did use ocean rock at first which cost a small fortune and after one of my fish got stuck in a hole i decided to change my rocks for something more natural so i went with lime stone, the pic of my tank in the members tanks thats about 50 kg of rock which cost £8.00 dirt cheap and also helps with the water ph and hardness. as for substrate i use crushed coral which again helps with my ph and hardness.

Could do with knowing what your water is at the moment straight out the tap if its above 7.5ph then most sand and rocks will be ok except sandstone, if its lower than 7.5ph then you may want to add crushed coral sand or similar to increase your ph that way you will not have to add expensive and time consuming additives to your water.

Quick edit, if you have large rocks that you can not boil or bake then try using a jet wash then pour boiling water over them should do it.

Also do not bake ANY rock that have been in water for a while theres a good chance they will explode !

 

[Boids-n-more]

How does a rock thats been sitting in water causes it to explode when baked? I have never had this happen to me and i soak all my reptile rocks and stuff in bleach water before i rinse and bake them. Just looking for a little insight on this so i don't blow up my oven lol.

 

[Jake Jackson]

How does a rock thats been sitting in water causes it to explode when baked? I have never had this happen to me and i soak all my reptile rocks and stuff in bleach water before i rinse and bake them. Just looking for a little insight on this so i don't blow up my oven lol.

I do the same for the rocks in my reptile setups... and I dont want to blow up my oven either. Please elaborate.

 

[Griz]

If there is any moisture inside the rock, it will expand and can cause the rock to explode. I get out wilderness canoe tripping when I can and it is common practice to create a fire ring from rocks. It is important not to use rocks that have been under water because it can be dangerous for the same reason. I've seen it happen.