Wot Rock To Use?

[Pinkyfish]

Hi all i'm new to this so sorry if i posted in the wrong place lol
I was wondering if any1 could help me i want to use some natural cheap rock in my tank to make up so caves and tunnels for my fish to take cove. But i have read so much about wot rock i can use but they are all different none say the same thing lol I have read that limestone is ok but if i am keeping soft water fish i would of thought that this would turn the water hard?
I am going to be putting in the tank a gibbicep plec (sorry about spelling) 2 corries and a few other soft water fish like denison barbs, red finned shark, clown loach, pearl gourami, rummy nose tetras, pictus catfish ect...
So if any1 out there could help i will be very gratful.
Love pinkyfish xxx

 

[Ace Of Spades]

Hi all i'm new to this so sorry if i posted in the wrong place lol
I was wondering if any1 could help me i want to use some natural cheap rock in my tank to make up so caves and tunnels for my fish to take cove. But i have read so much about wot rock i can use but they are all different none say the same thing lol I have read that limestone is ok but if i am keeping soft water fish i would of thought that this would turn the water hard?
I am going to be putting in the tank a gibbicep plec (sorry about spelling) 2 corries and a few other soft water fish like denison barbs, red finned shark, clown loach, pearl gourami, rummy nose tetras, pictus catfish ect...
So if any1 out there could help i will be very gratful.
Love pinkyfish xxx

How big is the tank and how big rocks do you want?

 

[ox5477]

local garden store or home center will have garden rock for sale of all sizes. also, if you have construction going on in your area, come by the site just when they are laying the foundation. There should be a pile of "fill" and with it, tons of rock. JUst sift through it and pick out what you like. when you get it home, wash the dirt and mud off and cook it the best you can to kill any and all bacteria

 

[Pinkyfish]

Hi all i'm new to this so sorry if i posted in the wrong place lol
I was wondering if any1 could help me i want to use some natural cheap rock in my tank to make up so caves and tunnels for my fish to take cove. But i have read so much about wot rock i can use but they are all different none say the same thing lol I have read that limestone is ok but if i am keeping soft water fish i would of thought that this would turn the water hard?
I am going to be putting in the tank a gibbicep plec (sorry about spelling) 2 corries and a few other soft water fish like denison barbs, red finned shark, clown loach, pearl gourami, rummy nose tetras, pictus catfish ect...
So if any1 out there could help i will be very gratful.
Love pinkyfish xxx

How big is the tank and how big rocks do you want?

3ft - 2ft - 2ft and i would like the rock to be about half a house brick kinda size so i can build up a rockary to break the top of the water for the frogs and for caves for the fish

 

[Pinkyfish]

local garden store or home center will have garden rock for sale of all sizes. also, if you have construction going on in your area, come by the site just when they are laying the foundation. There should be a pile of "fill" and with it, tons of rock. JUst sift through it and pick out what you like. when you get it home, wash the dirt and mud off and cook it the best you can to kill any and all bacteria

Thanks very much. I take it u can use pretty much any type of rock as long as its been baked or cleaned to remove all bactira?

 

[PRW1988]

you can use most types of rock, but it's better to be safe than sorry, do the simple vinigar test, pour some vinigar onto the rocks, if they fizz don't use them, if nothing happens your fine

 

[ox5477]

PRW is right if your planning on keeping most commona south american or river species of fish. For some fish however, limestone (what the fizz test tests for) is a good thing as it will buffer the pH up close to 8.0 which is good for african lake species who prefer a higher pH. But for most species, shale is the way to go. It is non reactive and has a nice gray-blue color that goes well with green plants and brown bogwood

 

[OldMan47]

The fizz test led me to keep some rocks in my tank for a long time after. When I gave up on the tank because of high pH, I went back a year later and started a new set up. I finally put some of the rocks in a bucket of water and tested the pH the next day. Even though they passed the fizz test, I had rock that was dramatically moving my pH. Now if I want to test a rock, I take a sample and put it in a bucket of water for a couple of days. If there is no change I figure the rock is safe to use. The worst offenders might be found by the fizz test but the ones that work a little slower need time for the effect to show up in the water.

 

[ox5477]

your right oldman. The fizz test must have a lower limit of % of calcium carbonate that it is unreactive and if the rock doesn't have enough, (or you test on an area where maybe it has undergone metamorphasis) then you may not get any result. Your way is good to test if your having probs with the pH. But in general, the fizz test will work a good majority of the time

 

[Pinkyfish]

Thanks all u'v all been very helpful. I now bought some slate to put in and have some rive rock in there we did the fizz test and they were fine we'v now put some black neon tetra in as a "tester" lol, we did a ph test and the water was fairly hard to medium so at the moment its ok but will have to test it in a couple of weeks just to check the rocks have not massed about with the ph blance to much.
Well thank u all for ur help hope i can help some time