On a trip to Jamaca I aquired a large conche shell and in living close to the beach I've gotten several oyster and clam shells, I've read varying things about this, but has anyone had any problems using shells? They have of course be clean and boiled.
Is it safe to use sea shells?
- Thread starter star2one
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As i understand they are ok as long as you wash them well before putting them in the tank. They will raise you PH a little so if your PH is alreadyhigh i wouldn't recommend them. I think iam right with that someone will correct me if iam wrong
Depends on the fish you have, and your current water parameters. They could raise your pH a lot, as well as the KH. This can be stressful for the fish.
Generally, I prefer tanks that look a bit more natural, and sea shells or coral in a FW setup looks fakey--but that's more aesthetics than anything else.
Generally, I prefer tanks that look a bit more natural, and sea shells or coral in a FW setup looks fakey--but that's more aesthetics than anything else.
Surely it'd be worse in a low pH tank as the pH increase would be greater.
In a tank with a high pH you generally have a high KH and so you won't get much of a rise.
In a tank with a high pH you generally have a high KH and so you won't get much of a rise.
It would be worse in a tank with low buffer capactity. You can actually have lower pH's with a good buffer that will resist changes quite well. So find out your current KH and GH values if possible. If they are really low then I might err on the side of not putting them in, otherwise go ahead.
Also after awhile the shells will develop a biofilm and probably some algae. They will most likely slow down on the amount of carbonate and calcium they release at that point unless you scrub them clean.
Also after awhile the shells will develop a biofilm and probably some algae. They will most likely slow down on the amount of carbonate and calcium they release at that point unless you scrub them clean.
In one of my tanks, I have several large, broken conch shells I brought from the beach in Mexico. The water here is soft and relatively neutral. After a few years with the shells in the tank, the water is....well, soft and relatively neutral.
Has anybody actually observed a change in pH or hardness with a seashell or two?
Has anybody actually observed a change in pH or hardness with a seashell or two?
Using coral as a substrate can higher your PH/buffer your water so maybe people assume that as coral does it shells must aswell.
I must admit I have never noticed any change in my PH,KH etc after putting a few shells in a tank, but these levels arnt that important are they unless your keeping marine, Discus or something very specialized I thought??? (I may be wrong as I'm still learning) therefore I never pay a huge amoun of attention to them.
I must admit I have never noticed any change in my PH,KH etc after putting a few shells in a tank, but these levels arnt that important are they unless your keeping marine, Discus or something very specialized I thought??? (I may be wrong as I'm still learning) therefore I never pay a huge amoun of attention to them.